Elephant feet!!
Always travel with elephant feet!!
The thing I have to realize is that I'm not the only disabled person in the world. Now, actually I know that. But sometimes I forget. This is particularly true when I go into an accessible room that isn't accessible to me. This just happened. Only moments ago. I'm writing it now because we've got a few things we need to do this evening and I want to have a blog for you tomorrow. See ... dedication or what!?!
Now, we came into the room, saw the bed, and panicked. It was really, really, low. Maybe fourteen inches at most from floor to top of bed. I haven't been able to get off something that low for years, years before even disability. Joe has trouble with them too. Apparently though, I've been told, there are people with disabilities who need extraordinarily low beds. So, this room would be great for them. I have to remember that while I need a tall bed, others may need a low bed. Yikes. I almost never remember to ask about bed height in my requests for an accessible room. Most rooms meet my needs that way, so I worry about toilets and showers and the like. This room is a bit odd because it has a tall toilet and a low bed.
So we called around in a panic, upsetting most everyone, trying to think about what to do. Then, in a blinding flash we remembered. Joe had packed the elephant feet. Those wonderful furniture risers that make chairs a possibility for sitting in. A few seconds of struggle later and Joe had them firmly under the bed and voila - we have an accessible bed for me.
We were given these as a gift from the folks down in Butler, PA (a shout out to Mary and Natalie) and here they are being used to make it possible for me to have a good nights sleep.
Elephant feet.
Get elephant feet.
They are light, stack together, and man, oh man, do they come in handy.
(note: no elephants were harmed during the writing of this blog)
(note: this was not a paid announcement)
(note: product placement in blog by happenstance)
(note: to the makers of elephant feet, if you need a spokesmodel, I can be bought)
Too funny! Now I have to look them up. Bed height is weird! We travelled to Calgary for a dance workshop, staying at the residence at the University. They had an accessible room, no problem. The room was beautifully designed and the kitchenette and bathroom were state of the art for a person using a wheelchair, but the bed! The bed was about 3 feet off the ground, with the drawers underneath. Huh? We couldn't believe it! They had no other rooms and we had to lift the person we were travelling with into the bed at night. I can't see how that high bed would be good for anybody using a wheelchair, really.
ReplyDeleteLOL. Good thing Joe remembered to bring those elephant feet.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'm one of those short disabled people, with my legs disproportionally short, which is the "business half" of things when dealing with getting into bed, on and off the toilet, etc..
ReplyDeleteIf I were queen of the universe (or at least queen of hotel room design), the beds would be the four-poster sort, only, inside the columns at each corner would be motors, so you could dial in the height you need, and the whole bed would raise or lower itself to that level. The plumbing would also have flexible pipes, and be similarly adjustable, so you could raise or lower the sink and toilet as needed.
Actually I need to thank you. In a previous blog you mentioned blocks for bed legs. I had never known that such things existed. At a later date my husband started having trouble getting out of bed. "Ah-ha!" I realized, "He needs those thingamajigs that Hinsburger mentioned..."
ReplyDeleteSo I went out and bought a set, and they do the job perfectly!
I'm going to look for a set for my parents, my son and I. Thanks for mentioning these.
ReplyDeleteQuestion about the Cdn. Blog Awards -- Andrew wanted to vote too. Can we do so from the same computer? I already voted, and want to make sure that if Andrew votes too, it will be accepted as a valid vote (and not someone voting twice).
Thanks,
Elizabeth & Andrew
The Canadian Blog Awards accepts only one vote from one computer for the first round, in the next round people can vote once a day. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThanks for clarifying the voting procedure.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth & Andrew