Category: Top Tips

Alt Text on Social Media

JustinLeave a comment
Three pairs of legs, on the left legs in black tights with a black guide dog in a yellow harness, in the middle black jeans with a white cane, on the right light blue jeans with a white cane with a red bottom section.

Social media has a great ability to connect us. Without it, I would have never found all the wonderful people in the blindness community on Twitter that's had such a positive impact on my life and would have never met such great folks as Amy. Heck, you probably found this post on some social media… Continue reading Alt Text on Social Media

See Differently Awards

BlondeHistorian1 Comment
Pink background white text. The RNIB see differently awards logo. White text reads Dr Amy Kavanagh #SeeDifferentlyAwards. Grey Background, white text, I'm a national finalist, Campaigner of the Year

On Tuesday I had the pleasure of attending the Royal National Institute of the Blind See Differently Awards. I was chosen as a Campaigner of the Year national finalist for my #JustAskDontGrab campaign. It was a huge honour to be nominated and shortlisted! I was totally overwhelmed when I heard the news as it felt… Continue reading See Differently Awards

“Just Ask, Don’t Grab”: the role of Active Bystander Intervention

cttrainingltdLeave a comment
A flow chart titled active bystander intervention techniques. Heading, witnessing harassment and 5 arrows pointing to sub headings and boxes. 1. No action, do nothing to intervene in the harassment. 2. Direct action, directly intervene and confront the perpetrator. 3. distraction de-escalate teh situation by engaging the perpetrator or the target in conversation, 4, delegation ask someone with more power in the situation to intervene instead of you, 5, delay, wait until the harassment stops then approach the target to check they are alright.

With the rise in hate crime so evident, street harassment is on the minds of many of us. However, for disabled people, street harassment is a matter of every-day living. It is a very rare day that I am able to leave the house with my wheelchair and not be subjected to some form of… Continue reading “Just Ask, Don’t Grab”: the role of Active Bystander Intervention

iPhones: Accessibility in your pocket

JustinLeave a comment
Zoomed large text of the beginning of the vision accessibility settings on iphone. The accessibility menu displays, vision, voice over off, zoom on, magnifier

In my last post, I wrote about assistive technology for using a computer. Today I’m going to take a look at the iPhone and how it’s accessibility features, such as Zoom and VoiceOver, can be used by blind and visually impaired people. A note before I get started: I do realize that Android has many… Continue reading iPhones: Accessibility in your pocket

Holly’s guide to gigs & concerts

BlondeHistorian1 Comment
Photo of a concert. Large crowd of people. There is a stage with red lights and huge screens. Ed Sheeran is visible in the huge screens singing.

My name is Holly, I’m 22 years old and I’m the author of the blog Life of a Blind Girl. Aside from blogging and working, I love reading a good book, seeing my friends and family, watching a bit of tv/YouTube and love going to concerts. As you can tell from the title of my… Continue reading Holly’s guide to gigs & concerts

How do blind people use computers?

Justin1 Comment
Justin and his seeing eye dog PJ. Justin is sat on the beach in a red baseball cap, tshirt and shorts and polarised sunglasses. PJ is standing in front of him, side on, in his brown harness. PJ is looking off to the left of the photo. PJ is a black lab.

Note: I was asked by Amy a while back to write about technology and it’s uses for blind people. This is the first in these series of posts. I’d love to say that being blind is easy, but I’d be lying. Being blind is hard, especially for someone whose vision was more or less normal… Continue reading How do blind people use computers?

The best kind of help

BlondeHistorian3 Comments
A road, shot from above, looking down at a crowded path. Several different legs and feet are visible, it's busy. A white cane is sweeping the road at the bottom of the photo.

Many of you will be familiar with my #JustAskDontGrab campaign. I share my experiences of people who grab, push, pull and generally touch me without my consent under the promise of offering 'help'. Check out my Just Ask Don't Grab Campaign page for more information. Today I wanted to share the best practice, the helping heroes,… Continue reading The best kind of help