The Seated View

There are days where you hardly notice you have a chronic illness or disability. You move through your day effortlessly a, whatever accommodations you’ve made are by now second nature and hence unnoticeable. Wherever you go, people are helpful, removing barriers to make sure you are included Last Saturday was the opposite of one such day. Insurance Battles I’d submitted a claim to my private insurance company for hospital cash for last year’s medical adventure. Trying to limit the amount of back and forth, I first checked what supporting documentation was needed. Oh, the agent said, just a letter from the hospital confirming admission and discharge date. I got this ($30 fee) and sent it in. Nope, not enough. They also wanted to know how many days I’s spent in a private or semiprivate room (they don’t pay for this). New letter, another $30. No again. Now they wanted a letter from my doctor with the diagnosis that led to the admission. To ensure (I assume) i...

Last Friday, I was at the official opening of the revitalized Queen’s Quay . But I get ahead of myself. Look for the guy in the green t-shirt, they said... Four years ago, I posted about accessibility barriers in the path to the beach. Subsequently my MPP, Glen Murray, a true champion of universal design, facilitated a tour of SugarBeach with staff from Waterfront Toronto . It was a great day, with lots of opportunity to talk about accessibility, barriers, and solutions. At the end, they committed to involving people with disabilities in the consultation process as they began the revitalization of Toronto’s waterfront. Joe Oliver, Minister of Finance delivers his speech   Six months later, I got a call. Would I be willing to serve on the Construction Liaison Committee (CLC) of the project? Being asked to put my money where my mouth was, of course I said yes. It’s been an amazing 3 and a half years. The monthly meetings of the CLC has taken us fr...