Boy, I wish I could drive.

I'm so thankful that I got a chance to do certain things before I started losing my sight. For instance, I got a chance to ride a bike, go fishing, go to fabulous museums, and look down at the scenery below as I was riding in a cable car. In fact, I wrote about some of the things that I enjoyed seeing before I lost my sight in another blog entry, entitled "My Super Power." Here's an exert from that entry.

"I’m so thankful to God that I got a chance to see when I was a little girl. The visual images of so many experiences are burned into the walls of my memory. I’m so glad that I remember the color red, the beauty of the ocean waters, the magic of electricity falling from the sky to the earth, the image of a tiny ant, carrying a bread crumb, 5 times its size, the brightness of the sun, a sparkling diamond, a bald eagle soaring in the sky, The smiling faces of the people who stood on the ground as I was flying through the sky on a wild roller coaster, flames reaching for the sky as it consumed a burning house, perfect cursive writing, beautiful, exotic animals at the Houston Zoo, and the darkness of the night sky. And that’s only mentioning a few of my visual memories…"

But with all that being said, there are some things that I am sad that I haven't been able to do in this life. The one thing that I wish I could do the most is drive. I WANT TO BE ABLE TO DRIVE A CAR. No, not for the pleasure of saying I drove a car. I want to be able to hop in my car, pour the high price gas in it that everyone is complaining about, and drive where ever in the heck I want to go.

My #1 gripe about being blind is my transportation situation. I hate not being able to be in charge of my transportation choices.

Yes, I know that there are some blind people that would hit the roof if they saw this entry. They would cry out that I can be in charge by just taking a taxi or using public transportation. But even those modes of transportation demand that you're dependent on who ever is doing the driving. You have to wait on taxis. Pay them more money than the trip would normally cost. And deal with the funk that often reeks from the taxi driver. When it comes to riding the bus... Well, that in itself is a-whole-nother issue. Plus, there is no public transportation out here where I live.

So, right now, I have to deal with my family to get me where I need to go. And although that works out most of the time, there are a lot of times that I basically opt out of going places that I want to go, simply because I don't want to fool with my family like that. Yes, my daddy is real cool. But my sisters can be a trip.

Here's my final gripe about the whole driving issue. I was watching television the other day. (yes, I said watching... I'll explain that choice of words in another entry. So, just wait on that.) And in between my show, a BMW commercial came on. I got sad all of the sudden because I realize that as it stands, I will probably never get a chance to buy me a fine car.

And yes, I know that there are some smarty pants that are probably saying that I can buy a car. But let me hip all of you to this... I, Angela L. Braden, will not purchase nothing that expensive that I can't get behind the wheel and drive myself. So, unless God heals me and gives me my sight back, I won't be buying a car for myself or no one else to hop in and floss in.

Well, now that I got that off my chest... Ummm... I once heard that talking about stuff makes you feel better. I don't know... I just vented about my transportation problem, and I don't feel any better. Oh well...

Angie

P.S.
As I was writing this particular blog entry, someone broke in my sister’s car. Apparently, some kid had enough nerve to break in her car as it was sitting right in our driveway. The kid must have gotten spoofed by something or someone… They left without stealing anything. And the kid left their house keys in Kim’s car.

Even though having a car has its own set of problems. I would still much rather deal with someone breaking in my car from time to time than being blind all of the time.

More, love,

Angie