Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by ClawsOnPaws 1155 days ago
I haven't gone blind, but I have been blind since birth. I think especially in the realm of technology, there's very little I can't do. I write code for my dayjob, I write different code for fun, and even do some audio engineering and music production.

I can also ride bikes. I have to know the area well of course, and be prepared for the inevitable accident, but I had a ton of fun doing it as a kid. Also climbing trees or participating in airsoft or laser tag matches.

I've also been able to drive a car. My family thought it would be cool to give me two practical driving lessons as a birthday present. So they called up a driving instructor and just asked. And it happened. Not on the street of course, but on a pretty big and open paved field that they generally use for their first motorcycle lessons.

I also travel. By myself. I have to do some prep work and I do have to ask for assistance a lot, but it's absolutely possible. Especially nowadays where we have phones that can do so much, from image recognition to GPS to video calls.

Naturally there are a lot of limitations. I can't just go out and explore a new place. Or if I have to travel somewhere for work and stay at a hotel I've never been at, getting around can be anxiety inducing and stressful. And of course I miss out on a lot of beautiful things. Like I can only imagine what nature looks like in all it's different forms. I can hear it, but I can't see it.

There's a lot more I could go into, but I just wanted to comment and give another little piece of anecdata. Of course, I imagine going blind later in life is a lot more terrifying than what I'm experiencing. Just like how I dread losing another one of my senses. I have no idea what I would do if I lost my hearing, even though I know there are deaf blind folks that do amazing things. We just do the best we can with what we have. And sometimes that turns out to be quite a lot of things.

2 comments

Have you ever used the app BeMyEyes? It looks like a very nice project. I've subscribed but never had a chance of using it
You seem to have more accessibility than I imagined!

Something I have been curious about. Do you experience sexual attraction yourself? Is it based on voice?

Answering as a severly sight impaired but not fully blind person. But yes - of course! I'd throw it back at you - do you experience sexual attraction purely by looks alone? I seriously doubt it (and would be concerned if you did!). How a person sounds, smells, feels, behaves etc. all come into it. If your partner playfully blindfolds you, you wouldn't suddenly stop enjoying the experience.
Sure. And I think it's based on a bunch of factors coming together, voice being one of them. I don't know how it works if you have sight left, but I can't imagine that attraction is the same for everyone there as well. It's probably a lot more nuanced than that.