Dear Folks, This is another one of my late-night stories that I have to write down before I can go to sleep. It has to do with my "Blue Chief" Jazzy electric wheelchair and handicapped accessibility to buildings. Ever since the VA issued me my wheelchair, I knew at the same time that they would foot the bill for an access ramp onto my house and also a wheelchair lift for my car. That thought really intrigued me. I checked with the wheelchair company to see if my 10-year-old station wagon could accommodate the lift and the wheelchair and he said no. That meant going out and buying a mini-van. I checked on prices and even though I thought I might be able to handle the monthly payments, I didn't know whether I could even step high enough into one or actually be able to drive one. That aside, I thought about just how much use I'd get out of my being able to use my wheelchair outside the house. After I'd manage to wheel myself down the ramp (and somehow close the door behind me), I'd wheel it up to my car and push a button or push a lever and the lift would come down. Then I'd drive the wheelchair into the van and somehow get out of it, get the lift back up and get myself behind the steering wheel. OK, so there we go off to do some shopping. I have an idea, though, you know just about how much shopping I do and where I do it. Most of it is done in the village of Youngstown. OK, picture this. I drive to the library to borrow more books, I get out of the car, lower the lift, drive the wheelchair out, manage to get the lift back up and then wheel myself to the outside door. Then what? I get out of my wheelchair and open the door so I can get in. OK, the door is open and now what? I know that the minute I let go of the door it'll swing shut again. That means I have to sit there until someone goes in or comes out who will hold the door open for me. From there there's little problem. After all the building is handicapped accessible and I wheel myself to the elevator, wheel into it and the next thing you know I'm on the first floor where the library is. I wheel myself to the library door and I'm back to square one. I can't open it from my wheelchair. I knock on the door and the librarian opens it for me. I'm free to wheel all around the library but there's one catch. Even though the aisles between the shelves are JUST wide enough for me and my wheelchair, I'd have to make sharp turns to get to the other aisles. It would take mega maneuvering for me to manage that without tipping over the entire floor-to-ceiling shelf. Not only that but the wide middle aisle has a nice long table and chairs for people to sit at and read books; therefore, there's no possible way to maneuver myself in that aisle. I think you can guess that I would just leave my wheelchair in my car and with the use of my cane go up the library and browse around it like I always do. Regarding going to the little local grocery store. Once again I'd be faced with trying to open the outside door. So someone opens it for me. There is me and my wheelchair in a grocery stores that has sufficient space in the aisles to accommodate us. But there's one catch to it. Every aisle has displays sticking out and with my wheelchair I couldn't help but knock them all down on a good day! From there I go to the post office, do the same and wheel myself the few feet to the door. Now THAT door is almost impossible for me to open even when I'm steadily up on my feet so I knock on it until someone comes to let me in, I wheel myself the few feet into the post office, do my thing and someone opens the door for me again. Same thing goes with the bank. Now, we're talking only about my simple shopping in the village. But let's say that I really want to do some high-class shopping and go to the mall (which I've been in only once in the past 15 years or so). Same routine of unloading the wheelchair, getting the lift to close and into the mall I go. By now I have an idea that you realize that the whole routine is more than I'd care to go through. Just give me my cane, my trusty old station wagon and I'll shop my own way, thank you.