Scooterville: February 2014

Helen Dam is a phycology student. We spoke on the Friday after the big storm on Monday the 3rd of February.

With My condition, I am ambulatory but it's not practical for me to walk across the campus. When I started university, I got an electric wheelchair to make it easier on myself because my condition is progressive.

So when I get stuck in the snow, I feel weird when I get out and have to push my own wheelchair… I feel like people are going to stare at me

and say “why is the person who is sitting in a wheel chair getting off their wheelchair still able to push it to dislodge it in the from the snow”.

I feel like people in the cars who drive around me think: “Why wouldn’t you use the sidewalk ?”. They don’t understand I could get stuck in the snow. Even my dad one day said why isn’t that person [in a power-chair] using the sidewalk?

I had to explain to him that it’s because he has too, the sidewalks aren’t shoveled enough, and He has to use the road to avoid to get stuck. And my Dad knows that I get stuck.

I think it’s our societal perception…

What do you think about Hamilton’s by-Law to shovel the sidewalk within 24hours?

On Monday [FEB 3^rd, 2014] during the snow storm, a lot of my neighbours and my dad didn’t bother to shovel because it’s just keeps building up and getting worse, and a lot of people because… it’s 24 hours they won’t touch it for until after... 24 hours.

When I have to get to class at 9am in the morning. It’s not going to help me 24 hours after the snow stops in the afternoon. I purposely skipped that day, especially because I live in a court. My reality is that I still have to make it to school everyday.

And a lot of people were ranting and upset on social media about how McMaster didn’t call a snow day. They look at it as were all adults and responsible to make our own decision to go to school, but for someone who has a mid-term. They’re going to make it if it’s worth 40% of their mark.

And the Day after, the snow banks were so high I have trouble getting on the HSR bus could load me on. And luckily I was able to walk and dislodge me on the snow bank, and then two guys helped me lift the electric wheelchair, and I had to walk on the bus. It’s a hassle.

McMaster campus currently has some construction going on. The accumulation of snow on monday was cleared by McMaster services however the path they shovel isn't accessible for everyone, Helen showed me…

I called student service to let them know about this... The person on the phone was looking at a map trying to understand what I’m talking about, because there is construction so the person in the office doesn’t really know what’s outside.