CATS

On the Road with Barry – Nebraska

A woman uses her white cane to follow the curb while walking in the street. She is wearing a blue top and dark pants. — Jerry uses her white cane to follow the curb while walking in the street. She is wearing a blue top and dark pants.

Day one

I’m flying the other airline, so I don’t have my pocketknife. That already has me out of sorts. And I don’t have an assigned seat, which makes me really nervous. Once I get on board, I have a window seat, which is fine, but I’m seated next to the guy with the widest shoulders on the plane. I’m not a small person either, so this two-and-a-half-hour flight to Omaha is going to seem like five hours instead. He’s a nice guy, but I can already read on his face that he’s contemplating the same things that I am. I offered him some gum because we’re both going to want fresh breath before this is over.

Just before takeoff, the gate agent comes through asking for me, and hands me a new seat assignment: 1A. What? I’m in the first seat on the plane? And no one beside me? What have I done to deserve this? I’m not going to argue, but it does make me wonder. Maybe they read my blog and are concerned about their reputation with me. Who cares? Does anyone remember that movie Jerry Maguire? There’s this scene where the leading lady says, “First class. It used to mean a better meal. Now it means a better life.” While I don’t completely agree with that, the blankets are softer, they trust you with a beverage before takeoff, and they give you drinks in a real glass. Sometimes the snacks are better, too. Once again, I’m not arguing.

I’m on my way to Kearney, Nebraska (that’s pronounced Car-knee, even though it doesn’t look like it) to see Jerry. Jerry has been to our campus in Michigan for orientation and mobility (O&M), but she has requested some extra work in her home area. Yes, I said “Jerry.” Yes, I said “she.” She asked for it that way; I didn’t misspell it. Kearney is not close to Omaha, but it’s the closest large-ish airport around. As you might expect, there’s a lot of corn and a lot of cows on my drive. But rolling farmlands are pretty to me, and I’m a big fan of beef.

Day two

I’m starting to suspect a trend at my hotel chain: Bacon happens every Monday morning. It’s the same too-thin, not-cooked-enough bacon that I get every Monday morning at this particular chain. Maybe they’re trying to get people in the right mood for the week? Who knows? But as I’ve said before, sub-par bacon is better than no bacon at all.

Jerry lives in a neighborhood about 10 minutes away, so I get a leisurely morning to enjoy thin bacon a little longer than normal on trips like this. I met her at her house, and we devised a plan for the day. After crossing a lot of streets and walking around her local park, we broke for lunch. Because of the heat, we tried a little mall travel in the afternoon and called it a day. You’ve all heard my sermon on mall travel, so I won’t bore you. This mall doesn’t have an Orange Julius either, so I just lament in silence.

A woman uses her white cane on a wide sidewalk next to mural of sandhill cranes flying over water. She is wearing a bright top with dark pants. — Jerry uses her white cane on a wide sidewalk next to mural of sandhill cranes flying over water. She is wearing a bright top with dark pants.

Day three

I had that dream last night that my alarm was going off and realized that my alarm was going off. A little rushed, I didn’t make it downstairs to see what kind of breakfast “meat” was on the menu, so I relied on my groceries. I’m trying a new tea this week because I didn’t find my favorite Scottish Breakfast. This Darjeeling is advertised as the “champagne of teas.” I don’t know about all that, but it’ll do for now.

Jerry and I went downtown today. “On the bricks” they call it because the streets are all brick. There are lots of new and fun restaurants and boutique shops, along with the old, established places a good mix. Jerry wanted to go to the Museum of Nebraska Art (MONA for short — I love this). Jerry went inside and inquired about whether the museum has tours for patrons who are visually impaired. They don’t, but they’ve been thinking about it for a while now. Jerry might have been the one who gave them the push they needed.

After lunch, we tried a route to the library and to Jerry’s bank. Sidewalks downtown are much wider than in Jerry’s neighborhood, and she struggled a little with keeping in a straight line. The trick there is to maintain a consistent pace, and when encountering sidewalk hardware, go around on the side away from the parallel street, if you can. Also, when you encounter the building line or the curb, don’t turn away from it as much as you think you need to. A very small correction makes an enormous difference. And it doesn’t take much to correct too much, sending you ping-ponging to the other edge of the sidewalk. A consistent pace and correcting less than you think will make a big difference.

Day four

Mark Twain once said something resembling, “Be careful to take from an experience only what it offers. A cat who sits on a hot stove lid will never sit on a hot stove lid again. But he will also never sit on a cold one either.”

Jerry had a bad day, orientation-wise, and mobility-wise. She had a really hard time staying straight on the wide sidewalks downtown, ping-ponging between the curb and the building line and back again. She got really frustrated, as would you or I, I promise, and that only made it worse. The more she tried to correct it, the worse it seemed to get. She also veered to the left like nobody’s business today. Like she had a rock in her left pocket. Like her left leg was three inches shorter than her right. Like, well, you get the picture. All of that made keeping up with her orientation even harder.

This afternoon wasn’t any better. I had hoped that rest, lunch and hydration would have made a difference in her day, but they didn’t. It was hot, and the stretches between patches of shade were longer than the drive-through line at Chick-Filfil-A. And we weren’t moving as fast as the line moves at Chick-Filfil-A, either.

Here’s the big takeaway from today: don’t let the hard days beat you. Jerry got a lot of practice with veer recovery today. I hope she takes that for what it is and puts the rest of this day in her rearview mirror. Mac Davis sang a song titled “Happiness Is Lubbock, Texas In My Rearview Mirror.” Two things here: One, I’m a Texan and can complain about Texas if I want to. Two, the song is actually a love song about Lubbock and life there, so cool your jets. I love Texas, and so did Mac. This had nothing to do with Jerry’s Day. I’m pretty sure it was my mentioning of a rearview mirror. I’ve had a long, hot day as well. That may have factored in.

A woman uses her white cane to locate the curb at a downtown corner. She is wearing a white top and light pants. — Jerry uses her white cane to locate the curb at a downtown corner. She is wearing a white top and light pants.

Day five

It stormed here last night. They’ve been predicting it for a few days now, and it finally showed up. Big wind, rain, and some hail. Nothing crazy, but I could see the storm coming in over the plains. I love that about farmland: you can see forever. My boyhood home in west Texas was like that. The farmers there were always looking for just the right amount of rain, and I’m sure they’re the same all over the country, even in Kearney. Lots of folks were standing at their screen doors looking out at the clouds yesterday evening. Or I hope they were. Maybe that’s too romantic for nowadays. Maybe farmers are just watching the Weather Channel like the rest of the world… On their phones.

Sausage was the meat of choice at breakfast today. Not link sausage, but the gray, round patties. I left them for the hotel full of conference-goers staying all around me. I went with a toasted bagel and one of my remaining avocados in my room. Groceries are getting thin. I’m gonna have to shop again or eat out more, neither of which is appealing to me.

Jerry needed a win today, so we stayed in her neighborhood. This helps because the sidewalks are narrow and are lined with grass on both sides, which makes it a lot easier to stay on the intended path. It was also a lot cooler this morning in the aftermath of the storm. I always feel better in cooler weather. We’re focusing on orientation to her neighborhood and basic recovery skills with her cane because I’m exploring other options to help her cross the street. I’ve written about the use of crossing cards before, but they are cards printed with a request for assistance in crossing the street that you can hold up after you’ve positioned yourself for the crossing. There are a variety of these cards with different language on them, and I’ve been consulting with our DeafBlind team at Leader to help find the right one for Jerry. Mostly, I’ve been speaking with Chelsea, a guide dog mobility instructor (GDMI) and certified orientation and mobility specialist (COMS), and otherwise bent on taking over the blind rehabilitation world. Chelsea is a wealth of information on multiple subjects, and this one is no different. (With folks like Chelsea on our team at Leader, I’m quickly becoming a dinosaur in this field. I need to step up my game!)

After lunch, we went back to the park close to Jerry’s home, hoping to get her comfortable enough with this route that she can travel there, eventually, on her own. We also discussed Jerry getting more O&M from the state or from the Veteran Affairs (VA). A veteran and a former Army medic, Jerry is eligible for services from the Blind Rehabilitation System run by the VA. Anyone reading this should know that all the O&M you can get, from Leader or anyone else, is helpful. If you have access to services, don’t wait to come to Leader or for Leader to come to you. We’re happy to help, but if you can get it before or after you work with us, get it.

Also, the cockles of my heart were somewhat warmed by Kearney folks. Both the lady from the post office and a FedEx driver stopped to ask if Jerry was okay. The FedEx guy even got out of his truck and ran over to us while we were standing on the corner. I’m glad people are paying attention. It sure made Jerry feel nice to know that people still care. I DO wonder what they think I’m doing out there with Jerry. Just some schmuck out for a walk, really near a blind person, NOT helping her?

Jerry has homework to call her local Veteran Services Coordinator, and I’m gonna continue to research crossing cards. All my groceries are gone, so I’m gonna have to research dinner as well.

Day six

I didn’t feel like fighting the conference crowd for fake eggs and gray sausage patties this morning. Also, I’m out of groceries, so I went without breakfast. I did have a cup of the champagne of teas, so I’m fortified for a good, long time.

Jerry and I worked for a while this morning on a route around her street that she can practice on her own without crossing a street. Just something she can do for exercise and to use a few of the techniques we’ve been working on this week. Her street ends in a cul de sac, but the sidewalk continues around the sac. Am I saying that right? Is the round part of the cul de sac the cul or the sac? If Melissa Weiss, our president and CEO, reads this, she could edit me. She’s fluent in French and probably 15 other languages. She’s probably fluent in Sanskrit. She went on a sabbatical one time, and I asked her what books she was taking, knowing that she’s an avid reader. She was taking one that was all in French, just so she could keep up her language skills. Reading a book in a different language would be like me reading a book without pictures. Goodness gracious.

I’ve done all I can in a week’s time with Jerry, and I say this all the time, but the work for Jerry is just now beginning. She’s got a lot of work ahead of her to continue what we started. She actually started with Hannah, certified orientation and mobility extraordinaire, on campus at Leader, and I’ve hopefully helped to push her a little further down the road. But the work is all on her now. We’ll be there for support, but she’s gotta get out the door on her own, and I bet she will.

I’m driving to Omaha this afternoon for a Saturday flight. If there’s not another paragraph after this one, you’ll know I made it home on schedule. If there’s a story to tell, I’ll tell it.