I am not completely sure what to write about so I’m just going to start and put down everything that comes to me. Throughout the semester I will be doing the lifestyle of a blind person. I have personal ties into this subject which make it easier for me to answer many questions. I hope to be able to somehow integrate what I would call a “virtual” day in the life of a blind person. I want people to really get a sense of what it is like to be, in my opinion, the worst sense for a person to lose. Then after you know how it feels to become blind and work in their place, I challenge everyone to dive deeper and try the experience for an hour or even a day. I want to prove to people that, although a bit harder, it is still possible for a blind person to easily manage through their day.

I know of many tools that the blind use that helps them to cope. Two of their most primary aids for maneuverability would have to be the cane and the popular seeing eye dog. For some time my father had one of these specially trained dog and being so I know that whenever the harness was on the dog would immediately snap into work mode. It was quite interesting to see the dog go from playful to using the harness. I do remember my father always saying that when he put the harness on you weren’t supposed to play or even pet the dog so that not to unravel their training being while the harness was on they were in the mindset that it was time to go to work. There were a few simple commands that the user had to learn so as to communicate with the dog, although I don’t recall them right now. This dog was one that you would never seen run into the street only to meet its fate to the traffic. The second most important tool that a blind person uses is their cane. The canes primary function is to skim the ground surface and detect any obscurities or obstacles that the user would otherwise trip over. The cane is also detailed so that it is reflective to nighttime traffic.

A very important factor for the life of the blind are the organizations that help aid the blind in many ways. Most commonly known are the leader dogs for the blind. They not only supply the dogs for use but also provide training to the user. From what I can remember my father went away for schooling or some weeks. A major supporter of the leader dogs for the blind is the lions club. They hold many events to raise money and are always accepting of donations. I actually found that on the leader dogs for the blind website they had a section referring to the lions club. Less known to me is the American foundation for the blind. I do not know of any support my father has taken from them or what they do exactly yet but I hope further research will open new helpful information.