Dave, that sounds like serious bad ****. I'm sure the skin medicine could not have started working soon enough. haha I did not know that about Shingles though, interesting stuff.
Also, Dave's big rant made me think of something that I had been meaning to talk about that has nothing to do with Smash but general life appreciation so worth sharing. Feel free to skip but I thought some of you might find this interesting.
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Last Sunday, myself and a female accomplice went to Crabtree when it was at its most bustling. We bought a cheap pair of sunglasses from one of the mid-mall huts and I put them on so that we could start. I was going to try to be blind for the rest of our visit. The sunglasses make it much less obvious that your eyes are closed and also give social context for why you are having to be guided and don't seem to be looking in reasonable directions. haha
I had gotten the idea when we were leaving the food court the other day and I had her walk me out with my eyes closed just to see what it was like. It was an overwhelming experience, even from the food court out to my car on the parking deck. Here is why.
When you walk around as you normally do, your brain documents moments and experiences kinda like movie files on your computer. If you think about it, when you recall something, the things that flood back first (for me at least) are the visual and the audible experiences; the sight and the sound. I have a harder time remembering typical smells, texture and tastes, maybe because they tend to not be as prominent in day to day use as sight and sound.
So having been thinking about this, I wanted to try it for a longer period of time in a place full of varying sounds, hence choosing Crabtree Valley Mall.
Anyway, I put the shades on and while holding hands (and sometimes arms) with my Y-chromosome deficient accomplice, proceeded through the mall. As a major advocate and user of vision, I must confess to you that walking around in even a moderately familiar place full of unfamiliar people without being able to see where you are going is TERRIFYING until you get more comfortable. There is this incredible sensation that you are going to trip over something, run into something, be ran over or just be straight up impaled by whatever might be waiting around any corner, for the sheer reason that you don't KNOW what is there.
We walked all through the mall. The variations in light are very apparent through your eyelids but past that, the visual experience is absent. The product of this is that all of the people you "meet", as passerby's or direct encounters, are experienced in terms of movements of noises around you, tones of voice and things that are said. I found myself remembering the last five, ten, fifteen minutes in terms of audio files only; like an iTunes playlist of individual sounds files. I found this contrasting starkly with the giant majority of ALL OF MY OTHER EXPERIENCES. This is a unique (albeit limited) way of experiencing the world.
The escalator is a terrifying experience, by the way. You can hear the noises of things moving in front of you and kind of awareness of motion (this sense got better and better the longer I walked around) but again, how far away it is and your pre-existing understanding of escalator movement makes this scary. I depended very heavily on being told when to step on (while holding the moving rail) and step off. The sensation of rising diagonally was also much more apparent.
Passing by stores with strong aromas (Bath and Body Works, for example) gave me context clues as to my location. Going in and out of stores was always strange and jarring when the smallest thing touchs you unexpectedly. It was supremely humbling to be so in need of help. I gradually got more and more comfortable with being "blind"; something to be said for our ability to adapt to adverse conditions. I realized I also got to really trust my friend leading me around. I had no choice (in the experiment) so I found myself letting go of my fear and doubts about being guided through this environment.
The most important part of my experience though was when I finally opened my eyes, sitting on a bench in a well lit part of the mall. I don't really have words for how I felt but I'd have to start with "overwhelmed". The vivid collage that stretched in every direction was stunning. The diversity in colors, textures, shapes, everything, is just something we are so numb to. The day to day experience of vision is so easily glossed over by its constant use. I couldn't help but tear up some at the flourishing environment around me. Once again I felt so silly for ever underappreciating this aspect of my life and it's renewed my want to see and experience everything while so blessed with such a trivial seeming gift as "sight".
If this sounds silly (of even if it doesn't), I recommend you try it out for yourself sometime.
TL;DR: Vision is too incredible so appreciate yours while it works. Guidance and the help of others is fundamental sometimes. Keep a fresh point of view however you can and trust those close to you when you need it most.