Couch 186: Pink Lemonade

I hope Tony Romo will be commentating. I love how he explains why they do what they do. But it drives me crazy that his voice doesnt match his face! IMO, he doesnt have a cute voice! He sounds like an old fat guy - not that theres anything wrong with that! I need a voice filter on my tv so he sounds like Idris Elba. So EVERYBODY sounds like Idris Elba!

I like Tony Romo and I like Idris Elba!

I really feel like my post was misunderstood. As I think I mentioned, I felt weird scrutinizing these people. However, these instances were pretty in-your-face bizarre. The service dog thing was just wrong. He is not a service dog. Period. It is ethically and morally wrong to present him as one. The handicap permits thing - these are people I've seen perambulating FINE for many months. I've just recently seen them driving with the handicap permits.

I get the impression people might have read my post and think I'm one of those weirdos who want to eliminate food stamps and social assistance. I'm so not. I don't subscribe to any political party, but I lean farther left than most left-leaning people, if that gives you an idea...

I just don't think it's helpful to pretend that there aren't a significant minority of people who utilize the system in a way it wasn't intended. Personally, I wouldn't care so much about these people as long as the ones who actually need stuff also had access - EXCEPT there are people out there who are stingy and can't stand the thought of anyone who doesn't deserve something gaming the system. So they place more restrictions on things, which ends up screwing everybody. So I have to care about the people who are gaming the system, because they screw the people who actually need stuff. It's not about me subscribing to the popular conspiracy theory that people who receive assistance are all moochers or whatever.

I watched a few more episodes of In Treatment last night. I think my favorite ones so far are the Paul and Gina ones.

I do agree that the service animal issue has gotten out of hand and many of the animals claimed as such do not qualify in any way, shape, or form. I think there probably is more scamming than reality in most alleged service animal claims that I see in stores, etc.

The handicapped tags are a different issue. Orthopedic needs are not the only reason for a handicap tag, so the ability to "perambulate" is not the only reason a person might be eligible for this permit. Handicaps allowing for those tags can be for a variety of reasons, and generally, so long as the car has a tag, I don't question it. I do think people abuse tags that are assigned to an elderly parent or spouse for their own use so they can get a premium parking spot, but I suspect the tag is associated with someone who is legally eligible to have a tag. But I am not the police, and as much as it aggravates me when we cannot find a handicap parking spot for my permanently handicapped husband, there is not much I can do about it unless I want to bring it up to an officer of the law (and there is almost never one in the vicinity).

Acquiring an handicapped permit required a doctor's prescription in our state, so I assume if someone has a handicap tag or plate, they have had to go through that process. In our state, we are only allowed one actual license plate, so we have a plate on one car and a hanging tag on the other. Some people prefer the hanging tags rather than plates because they are portable to other vehicles which is entirely legal.

We have actually, more than once, had a police officer check out tag and be sure my husband was actually in the car. We thanked them for taking the time to check. I think that is, honestly, rarely done. Simply not enough law enforcement to take care of such a relatively minor thing.

@ArtleyWilkins

This is what my state specifies as making one possibly eligible:
Being unable to walk without assistance
Having mobility impairments caused by lung disease, defective vision or cardiac, arthritic, neurological or orthopedic conditions

So in my state at least, it is certainly all about mobility. I cannot speak to other states, but in my state, if you can perambulate (I personally think this is a fun word) unimpaired, you are not eligible. But thank you for letting me know this isn't the case everywhere. I didn't know that.

Not to be ableist, but I am slightly alarmed by the defective vision mention. The DMV website specifically says permits are issued to vehicle owners, rather than individuals. I don't know if that's actually the case (I can't find any information to the contrary), but if it is, it's a bit concerning that someone can have defective vision so disabling they require close parking, yet are also driving around. Right? Or am I missing something. I'm not very knowledgeable about conditions affecting vision.

Today has been awful.

I went to a memorial spot for my friend who died and some random person started talking to me. He expressed sympathies then asked how she died. When I said cancer he then asked if she was a smoker. Ugh. She was a young woman and this was a terrible thing to happen, why try to assign "fault" by asking if she smoked??? She didnt btw but so rude.

Then work has been slammed busy and I find my patience lacking completely.

Bring on 8pm

Wow wtf, who does that?

I'm so sorry that happened, JaneT. Hugs to you if welcome.

JaneT...some people can be so rude! I hope your day gets better and that you have a great weekend. Kit

I was not talking about the dogs.

In my state, the handicap tag required a prescription and we had one actual license plate and one hanging tag.

Hugs, Jane...I think sometimes people just want to think it can't happen to them. Which does not excuse them at all.

Thanks! People should just mind their own business if they aren't going to be nicer.

Agreed!!!

Then you probably enjoy season 3 with Adele and Paul. Although there are only 7 episodes with her.

Its true, it's the illusion of control I think, but so thoughtless. I was just having a quiet moment with my friend when he came up.

I'm on a dry cheerios cereal kick. I've been eating them for a few days now. Just like craving them for some reason. I also had some with milk the past two days. Kitty liked that because I let her drink the leftover milk. Kit

Except you can't "see" lung disease, defective vision, cardiac issues, or neurological conditions. That's what we are saying. Just because YOU can't see the difficulty, impairment, or danger in a person's mobility doesn't mean it doesn't exist. You are going by your definition of "unimpaired" which, I'm guessing, is not the legal definition.

For instance, I have a friend with a heart transplant. Unless you know that about him, you wouldn't know anything is wrong with him. However, he has a handicap parking sticker. Why? Because distance is an issue. Because the danger that he might trip or fall and cause damage to the transplant is an issue. Because he takes medications that cause his skin to burn and blister easily, even across a parking lot in the hot Texas sun. So yes, he needs a handicap parking sticker because these combination of factors impairs his safety and parking closer improves his safety.

My husband, earlier on, could walk without a cane or crutches, but the level of his pain was horrendous. You can't "see" his pain, but walking the extra distance did cause him great pain. His pain level was his impairment. Not visible to the naked eye, but an impairment nonetheless.

Mobility impairments means movement causes problems or has the potential to cause problems. It doesn't necessarily mean you can't move.

Couch made it to 100 pages. I made a new couch! Kit

I would rather let someone use a space who did not need it than to have someone face this:
Stranger leaves hateful note on disabled woman'''s car

I did not like Adele at all. I wanted to reach through the screen and throttle her. I really liked Gina.