10 Exasperating Disability Problems

1. Someone tells you a location is “accessible.” But then adds, “There is just one small step to get in.”
2. Finding out that you can indeed get in the “accessible” bathroom; you just can’t close the door.
3. There is only one seat next to the wheelchair space at the movie theater; because obviously people who use wheelchairs have aides, not friends and family.
4. You wait ten minutes to order a coffee/drink, because the barista/bartender can’t see you over the counter. They apparently can’t hear you either.
5. You get referred to as “she/he” even though you are sitting right there. (I.e.: Is she ordering anything?)
6. “Can you have sex?” and “How do you go to the bathroom?” are deemed appropriate conversation starters.
7. You go shopping, but you can’t try on anything because either a. someone thinks the accessible changing room is for anyone who has a lot to try on and “needs” the extra space, or b. the store employees use the accessible changing room as storage for all the clothes they have not put back on the shelves yet.
8. Other people actually trip over you, because they have their face in their cell phone. Watching where you are going is so 1997.
9. Finding cute dress shoes is more difficult than finding whiskey on a Sunday in a dry county.
10. Despite the fact that it is 2013, and segregation is illegal, you still get told that the accessible entrance is around the back.