Advantages of being "confined" to a (power) wheelchair

[sqbr]

Articles like ReWalk: A Plea for Common Sense remind me how little ablebodied people understand the sheer joy a good wheelchair can bring. Mostly because the alternative for someone like me is not being able to move, but there are some advantages even over being an able bodied person.

A lot of this would apply to manual wheelchairs too but I've never used one myself.

• Crush the feet of your enemies. Or don't, and feel magnanimous in your mercy.
  
• "Run" with the wind in your hair, or for a bus, without breaking a sweat or getting tired.
  
• Unsettle "more radical than thou" able bodied activists with your very presence.
  
• Be an unsettling centre of attention in general. Works well with goth/macabre/alternative clothing choices.
  
• Never bump your head on low ceilings (admittedly this has never been an issue for me)
  
• Have a comfy chair wherever you go. Fantastic for queues.
  
• Put heavy loads on the back or next to you and not have to carry the weight yourself.
  
• Wear gorgeous but impractical shoes you can't walk in.
  
• Work to fight against stereotypes about disabled people and poor awareness of accessibility simply by going out in public and doing your thing.
  

Any others, fellow wheelies?

Comments

[fred_mouse]

This reminds me of a kids book that a least youngest loved - Mama zooms, about life as the child of a wheelchair using parent.

[sqbr]

Gosh, that looks lovely.