Disability In A Nutshell {Completed}

School Pt. Two: It's Like They Think My Walker Has Superpowers

So today, I am going to explore three school-related topics, since I started school this week and I'm in a rant mood. The first topic IS--

*drumroll*

The dreaded locker hall.

If any of you have been to middle/high school (it's secondary for some of you), you know that the locker hall is a disabled person's nightmare (really it's anyone's nightmare, but you know what I mean). From the tall, big-shot boys who think the locker hall is their personal boxing arena to the fact that there's literally NO place to put your walker/wheelchair without someone bumping into it, the locker hall is a disaster.

Do you know how FRUSTRATING it is when you fall over your walker and flat on your face because some douche wasn't looking where he was going?

And don't even get me started on those groups of kids who just stand in the middle of the damn hall, chatting idly while I'm trying not to be late to class.

Meanwhile, I'm standing there patiently, thinking: Hello! I have a bulky walker and I'm trying to get through! Can you make your weekend plans elsewhere? I mean, come on, people! The Solar System doesn't revolve around your sorry arse! Get a bloody move on!

#TryingNotToSwearInThisBookAndFailingMiserably XD

ANYWAYS. Back on topic!

The thing that annoys me the most about locker halls is that they don't have nearly enough space! I'm trying to get through and it just so happens that Mr. Billy Bob Joe has chosen that exact moment to clean out his locker, and now my life has been made twenty times harder because his belongings are spread out all over the floor. -_- And it doesn't help that the place is already more jam packed than the Washington D.C Metro!

We also have this backpack rack for people who either can't fit theirs in their locket, don't have one in their homeroom teacher's classroom, or choose not to carry it around (I do this because I have a walker that I can hang my bag on and the backpack rack is more of a disaster than the locker hall itself). Now you must understand that there are dozens of kids who use the bloody locker hall, so it gets to a point where there are backpacks on the floor instead of the actual shelf.

I gave up on trying to get through there with my walker a LONG time ago.

Luckily, the head of my middle school reserved a few lockers for backpacks, and a few of the classrooms DO have cubbies where you can put your backpack. So not all hope is lost! :)

Let's move onto to topic number two, shall we? Yes, I think we shall.

So, in the last rant I wrote, I think I mentioned that my school installed two staircases so that people could access the playground.

Well, this year they put up another ramp,

When I heard this, I was practically singing hallelujah to the skies (XD). All my friends were celebrating, and here I was thinking that the school staff had finally screwed their head on straight and done something disabled friendly.

Boy, I was wrong.

For starters, the wretched thing was ridiculously steep, and with my walker, I was liable to roll right back down. And--well, the results wouldn't have been pretty. Because of this, I had to have someone help me and that's just inconvenient for everyone.

Oh, and did I mention that there's a step at the end of it?

Anyway, topic number three--the field.

So like every other school (probably)--my school has a field that we use for recess, phys ed, outside activities, etc. Now this isn't the state of the art field with a track course, soccer goals, a football field, yada yada yada. And to be honest, it doesn't need all that. It's big enough to fit the population of roughly 200 students and that's what matters. On the other hand, it is very inaccessible.

There are bumps everywhere, ditches everywhere, and it's hard to get across that thing even without my walker.

I mean, I understand that Mother Nature likes to do whatever the hell she wants, grass grows in all sorts of places, and that it would cost quite a bit of money to get it looking nice. But the thing is even a small change would make a difference, because that field is really bad. In one area, there's grass; in another, there's dry dirt/sand; and in another there's this deep ditch.

Like, how the hell am I supposed to participate in a game of baseball during PE and run to first base when my walker is giving me a bumpier ride than the Knight Bus? Honestly, it's like they think my walker has superpowers.