Peeling paint
Since the installation of double glazing in weatherproof frames, I have given no thought to having the outside of the house painted. As for the guttering, I can’t see that far and don’t worry about the occasional drip.
Then a friend drew my attention to peeling paint on the woodwork, bent gutters and cracked fascia. Of course, I hadn’t seen it and wouldn’t have examined it without prompting.
I was lucky. The weather forecast is reasonable. The painting and repairs start this week. But although I can see most things, I seem to miss what is obvious to others. Is this a lack of interest? And a good excuse to avoid the duller aspects of daily life? Was it any different when I had perfect vision? Probably not! However, these days, knowing I am VI, people bring defects to my attention and I have to deal with them. It is good to have friends who are concerned and I am very grateful. But do I always want to know? Do any of us, sighted or with VI? And how do you distinguish between the important and the trivial?
Are there things you miss or avoid in your environment?
News
Listening to “The Silkworm” by Robert Galbraith. Not sure that the mixture of literary reference to revenge drama and Virginia Woolf really work, but am enjoying spotting them. Although full of interesting information it seems too padded and long for a detective story.
Films
“The Two Faces of January” with the help of much updated and effective audio description technology. Enjoyed it and was able to explain the story to my non VI friends who found aspects a bit obscure!
“Jimmy’s Hall”, Ken Loach’s wonderful portrayal of the political life of an Irish village hall in the 1930s. No audio description at this performance.
Help wanted
Do any of you readers have any experiences or views on shop labelling? I am interested as I have been assembling responses from some supermarkets and large stores, e.g. Marks and Spencer. There seems to be a discrepancy between full sight and Braille, with low vision losing out. Any comments would be gratefully received and I hope to blog about it when I have more information.
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I like it best when not only an issue is pointed out that I missed, but help is offered, too.
And shop labeling. If I have my magnifier, I’m good to go. Takes longer, but it will be able to discern what I want. I find packaging most annoying when it gets “updated” with a different layout or worse, new color scheme. My haste to pull a familiar box off the shelf can lead to an unintentional purchase of the wrong item.
I agree. On this occasion my 100 year old house needed lots of help and is getting it from some really skilled people referred by a friend. Useful comments about labelling. Thank you. There are some good initiatives happening in the UK. Some stores are working with the RNIB..most notably our food supermarket chain Sainsburys. However some clothes labelling defy even magnifiers. Its good to know that VI is being taken into account however.
I get a bit antsy when “helpful” people point out bits dropping off our own 100-year-old house, but it’s like being told your petticoat’s showing, I suppose … ultimately useful but a bit annoying. I should be glad of it but it usually means a sigh, a phone call and some more money popping out of the account!
That’s the awful thing. I am grateful but its like a nudge to get on and do something. And now, when its nearly finished people are admiring the work that’s been done but still pointing out the bits that aren’t quite complete! Human nature I suppose!