sinisterporpoise

 I went to a meeting with one of the officers of the Terre Haute Mind’s Eye Society domain. During the course of the meeting, a discussion about places to hold the game and accessibility issues occurred. At some point during the meeting, the individual uttered the phrase, “People like you, Trina, and Jaileen have issues with parking when we game at Indiana State University.” The three people she mentioned all use a cane.  She mentioned another member of the group who could not get in the building because she uses a wheelchair. (I found this one difficult to believe because the building in question offers many ramps for wheelchair users, but I did not press the issue.)  Thinking nothing of it, I uttered the phrase “people with a disability?”  She replied, “I was trying to put it nicely.”

I wondered if I said something wrong. I do not possess tact in great abundance, and I’m not surprised when someone takes offense to something I’ve said in these situations. As I reviewed the situation, I was not sure I did anything wrong, although some people would tell me I should have said disabled people, rather than say people with a disability.

I made no attempt to be politically correct, especially as it was a casual conversation and there was no need to be as guarded as I might be otherwise.  wondered why she would object to me using this language, especially after she included me in the list of people she was worried about. The parking at Indiana State University is atrocious, and it’s worse if you can’t use the disabled parking spaces. (I’ve asked my doctor about getting a disabled parking placard once, and he said, ‘No, but we’ll wait to see what the rheumatologist says.’ I have not asked him since.)

I’m sure this won’t keep me awake at night, unlike the other situation I now face in this group. 8It seems she wants to remove someone from their current position within the group and have me learn her current roles. I’m not comfortable with this, especially after being forced out of my job at work.)

Now it’s time to get ready for the IMPACT session. If Indiana is happy to waste my time telling me about services that won’t work for me, I’m willing to oblige them for now.