to keep the discussion, education - and hopefully flirting - going, let's try something...
ASK A BLIND GUY ANYTHING!
Obviously, no two blind people are exactly alike, just as two sighted people aren't alike, but at least this can dispel some myths which are far too common. Hopefully, if I cover the standard questions we all get regularly, we can move on to more interesting ones.
To start with:
Let's dispel this one right away.
Question 1: "Um, do you like, feel faces, to like, see what people look like?"
That's a cute giggle. No, we do NOT feel faces to find out what you "look like". Seriously. I also don't tend to grope strangers in public, even if they assure me I can do so. Perhaps I should go along with these people and have more fun. LOL
I realize that for sighted people, facial recognition is key to social interaction, identifying other people, and is very important. but in terms of how they feel, a face is a face is a face. Unless your nose is horribly misshapen or you have a unique skin condition or a long beard or something, faces feel very very similar, and are quite boring to feel! Sorry if that ruined some sappy 2-star romantic movies for you.
Now, of course we DO explore the world with our hands. I'm much more interested to find out how tall you are, how curvy you are, and other things I won't list here, but the face is just not high on most of our priority lists. Again, I can't speak for everybody.
Speaking only for myself, when I first meet a girl, I immediately check out:
1. The voice: my own preference is for higher pitched, not too loud, a little bit on the sweet/girly end of the spectrum.
2. Perfume: anything sweet or fruity or flowery and not too strong immediately gets me going, especially if it's just strong enough to be noticed, and then impossible to ignore after that.
3. Personality, sense of humor etc.
4. Are gaps in the conversation comfortable or awkward? I'm ok with silence and my own thoughts sometimes ... are you?
If we hug, then I can check out height, cuddliness etc.
Question 2: How do you use a computer? Is someone reading what I write for you?
My computer is a regular PC running Windows 7. It also has software on it known as a screen reader, which reads screen contents aloud. I type on a regular keyboard, and quite quickly. I also have an iPhone which I use a fair bit - yes, including the touchscreen. Like my PC, it has a function that reads out what I am interacting with. (all of you with an iPhone have this built into the operating system: it's called VoiceOver)
Question 3: Have you always been blind/were you born that way/is it hard being blind/can't you get an operation to fix it/would you get your sight back if you could? etc.
I was born blind. I was three months early. Extra oxygen to keep me alive also damaged my retinas. my other parts all work just fine. No, I'm not bitter about it. I'm lucky I didn't end up with other problems as a result of being born so early.
There are many different eye conditions, all with their own unique resulting visual impairments.
Is it hard being blind? Is it hard being anything? Human? Yeah, some days.
Well, it's a pain in the ass some days - do I wish I could drive a car or shop independently in stores? Absolutely! I also wish I could make eye contact and do other non-visual things, like motioning for a waitress or bartender in a noisy restaurant. But, I won the jackpot in terms of living in a great country and having very supportive parents - perhaps too supportive.
No there isn't yet a miraculous operation to give me sight. But, since it's harder to adapt the older we get, I'm not sure I would want to suddenly have a new sense. People assume the eyes do all the seeing, but really, it's the brain that sorts and deals with all the visual stuff coming in, and would my brain be able to handle that, after decades of adapting to being blind? Some people who have gotten eyesight have literally gone crazy. So, I honestly don't know if I would go for it or not. Plus, my blindness is part of my identity now.
Question 4: Um, do you um, like, see colors?
Uh, what are colors? I've never seen in color so I only understand the dry scientific explanation of what they are, having never had that particular experience. Can you describe the difference between how a flute and trumpet sound, to a deaf person? Thought not.
There are lots of visually-impaired people who can see color though, so again, this is only me talking. When I was a kid, I could detect bright light, so I do at least know what light and dark are. This is helpful, considering how loaded our language is with visual metaphors. Apparently I was a bright kid.
Regarding colors: if you respond with "well, blue is 'cold' and red is 'hot'" I will laugh ... hard! You have been warned.
I hear that one a lot.
Ok, although I'm a bit sarcastic, I promise I won't bite. Ask away ... anything! What have you wanted to ask a blind guy but for whatever reason, haven't? Now's your chance.
Hmm, I'm trying to think of the strangest questions I get, or weirdest asumptions people make. The best one recently was someone who said the following:
"I would take you out sailing on my boat, but your balance probably isn't too good, being sightless and all."
I tried to explain to this guy that no, our sense of balance has nothing to do with eyesight, but he wasn't getting it. Oh well. Some people are unreachable.