There's nothing I despise more than hearing people talk about how folks with disabilities are lazy. I'm here to put an end to that crap right now.
First of all, for any normal person who thinks we're lazy, I would love to see you try to live day to day while having to deal with various limitations that are beyond your control. Some of us never get the opportunity to participate in society because we never learn how to get around our limitations. Why? It's simple. Many of us don't have the support we need in order to function.
I say this because I'm pushing 29, and I'm just learning how to drive. For someone with my sensory and visual issues, it's a difficult thing, especially when you're overstimulated by everything else going on around you, be it other people driving like total idiots, or the activities of your passengers.
Of course, when I was 16 years old, my own family didn't have the patience to teach me how to drive (Hell, they didn't have the patience for anything other than partying or drugs.), and until 7 years ago, it was all downhill from there. Due to my physical limitations, I'm unable to work full time in most jobs where I live because most of those jobs are physically intense. You'd think it would be an open and shut case when applying for Social Security. Nope. I tried ten times in five years, I even had a hearing with a lawyer, and still got denied, and this was about a year before I went back to school.
Still, in spite of everything I've done up to now, I can't seem to catch a break of any kind. I've applied to every job I can think of, but it seems clear that most places don't want someone who's trainable, who's willing to work hard and give their best to a job. Instead, they want someone who can hit the ground running and give their company an almost instant return on investment.
My point is this: Unless we have an environment that allows us to learn to function in the real world in our own way, we will never be taken seriously anywhere. Don't bother telling me that there are programs out there to help us, because they don't. It's not their job to help us. I'm sure many kossacks can relate to that statement, but I digress.
To end this diary, I'm going to leave you with this, because this is how I feel right now. Freedom is meaningless unless we have the power and the means to participate and exercise that freedom.
See you around,
Homer
