KosAbility is a community diary series posted at 5 PM ET every Sunday and Wednesday by volunteer diarists. This is a gathering place for people who are living with disabilities, who love someone with a disability, or who want to know more about the issues surrounding this topic. There are two parts to each diary. First, a volunteer diarist will offer their specific knowledge and insight about a topic they know intimately. Then, readers are invited to comment on what they've read and or ask general questions about disabilities, share something they've learned, tell bad jokes, post photos, or rage about the unfairness of their situation. Our only rule is to be kind; trolls will be spayed or neutered.
A slightly tweaked version of this piece appears at my blog burn after writing
The funniest thing I do when I'm out is watch people and how they react to me. It's not just the chair - it's the hand-controlled truck, it's the handicap accessible apartment. Just seeing someone eye all this medical and accessibility equipment and gape all curiously makes me laugh inwardly. Has no one seen a shower bench before? A truck's wheelchair lift? I can't even tell you how many times I'll be out in public, at a grocery store or movie theater, and someone just stands and stares while I use the lift to swing my chair out of the truck.
I attract crowds.