Directing People to Indecipherable Gibberish: Dilemmas in Lip Reading Lost Motorists
By Chris Heuer on Tue 22 May 2007 |
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A curious socio-biological phenomenon: As a deaf man I apparently don’t know how to get anywhere in a town that I’ve lived in for eight years.
Now this isn’t as strictly true as it first might appear. I can draw you a pretty decent map to everything within two or three miles of my house, and I can get you to all of the major highways with no problem whatsoever. The only thing I can’t do is direct you to indecipherable gibberish.
I was trained to lip read the differences between a “b” and a “p.” I can spot that little tongue-behind-the-teeth flick that indicates a “t.” And that goldfish pucker? A “w,” no sweat! I can pick all of that up. My lip reading skills are actually pretty good! If a guy pulls up next to me while I’m walking to BlockBuster or wherever and says, “Can you tell me how to get to indecipherable gibberish?” then by my count, if I lip read everything except those last two words, I successfully lip read eighty percent of everything he said!
Now my question for you is this: How should I respond to the guy?
People ask me for directions all of the time. I’m a walker. I look like I know where I’m going because more often than not, I do! I have long since tried to make myself less accessible-looking by shaving my head and growing a satanic goatee. You’d figure people would leave me alone, but no. Floridian retirees in station wagons ask me for directions. Pregnant mothers in SUVs filled with Sunflower Camp children ask me for directions. On one memorable occasion even the leader of a gang of unicyclists (he had a goatee too but his was merely unfashionable) asked me for directions. So let’s face it: Absolutely nobody finds me threatening. People will be asking me for directions for the remainder of my gentle walking deaf creature existence!
I used to have a similar problem with BlockBuster clerks. Whenever they asked me if I’d like to join their indecipherable gibberish programs, I used to say, “I’m sorry, I’m deaf.” But I soon forced myself to stop apologizing, because there’s no reason that I should be sorry. It’s not like I did anything wrong, right?
But I’ve since found that dumping the apology and simply telling people I’m deaf does a lot more than get me out of joining indecipherable gibberish BlockBuster programs. It also causes people to apologize to me, as if they did something wrong, and then drive off toward (or away from) whatever indecipherable gibberish destination they originally wanted directions to in the first place! This is not psychologically healthy for anybody, because what happens if they never get there? Bam, they end up projecting their navigational incompetence onto me, the gentle walking deaf creature!
Even worse is when these people have already tried (and for the exact same reason… probably failed) to get directions from some other deaf person in the past. Imagine the seething resentment that has built up by now! This is why I also hesitate to say “I’m deaf, would you mind writing down the name of the place you’re trying to get to?” All of a sudden I see in their eyes the math of a lion calculating the distance to an unsuspecting gazelle. “Sure!” they’ll say, grinning toothily, and then wave me over from where I’m standing on the sidewalk. It doesn’t matter if you look both ways before you cross the street. Once they start writing that note, it’s all too easy to get lulled into the trap and lose sight of the fact that you’re standing in the middle of the road. Some of these people write so slowly, you can’t help but wonder if that’s exactly where they want you to stay!
So help me out here. How should I respond? I’m morally averse to statements such as “I’m sorry, I can’t help you,” because I certainly can help them get to almost any destination they might wish to arrive at other than indecipherable gibberish. Equally problematic is saying “I won’t help you,” or some equivalent of that. I find such statements unbearably rude (and untrue, because even if I ultimately end up not helping a given driver find indecipherable gibberish, I was certainly willing). It might be easier to just keep on walking as if I didn’t hear the guy—pause here to appreciate the irony—but this action hurts my sense of personal pride. Lost motorists are not bums hitting me up for change. Whether I choose to ignore him or not, there isn’t a bum in Washington D.C. who doubts that I know how to direct him back to his street corner.
Hopefully you’ll have some advice for me soon. I’ve considered giving up walking, but even when I’m stopped at intersections in my Toyota waiting for the light to change, people will pull up next to me and ask me for directions anyway! It’s existential hell I tell you!
I can’t escape!
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67 Comments
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I don’t know about you, but I say, “I don’t know, sorry”…
Your options are limited here…I say give up walking and roll up the windows of you Toyota..
Sorry pal…not much of a help here :-)
Heh, I’m not a great lip-reader either. A few weeks ago I was mowing the lawn when a couple in a car pulled over and asked me if I knew how to get to a certain street. I replied that it was the next street over. Then I watched the car drive away, passing the street that they had asked me about. This led me to wonder whether a) I really understood them or b) they didn’t understand me. Or maybe it was both.
1) Look for someone else around you who can help? 2)Whip out your writing pad. 3) “There’s a gas station up the road. Might want to try them?”
And if you’re in a bad mood, “Left, right, left.”
I guess I’m perpetually in a bad mood. Ahem.
:-)
people in dc NEVER ask me for directions. but every time i go on vacation people ask me for directions. i’ve concluded that when i’m in dc i’m just trying to get wherever i’m going and give off a “don’t bother me” look, which scares people off. when i’m on vacation i’m relaxed and happy and look more accessible.
so the solution is, look meaner and people will stop pestering you!
Yeah. That’s the solution! ;)
For me though, if I ever get asked for directions, which is rare - I just shrug and indicate that I’m deaf. Their reaction is THEIR problem. Not mine.
But yea, the way to avoid people asking you to look unfriendly. Facial expressions count too.
Last time a guy drove up and asked me for directions he was jerking off. I now refuse to give directions to men in cars. I just keep walking.
People ask me for directions all the time. I stop. I repeat what I think they said. (Metro? Zoo? Mall? Connecticut Avenue? - 4 most popular destinations near where I work.) Sometimes they show me an address. I think lost people are grateful to have anyone stop and help them regardless of whether its a deaf person or not.
“Sorry, I can not hear” is my line. I do not recall anyone shouting louder after I said it. It’s nice to live in deaf friendly area. Rob, I do not carry writing pad when mowing the lawn or shoveling snow. ;)
Chris,
In reference to #83945, your “sorry” remark is out of line. Take a course or read a book on good manner is recommended.
Hi WAD,
See my response to both Silent Observations and you below (under #83994).
Usually I just shrug and say “I don’t know.”
Too many crazy people out there. I don’t trust them to get “close enough” to read their lips or read their notes. You never know what their intentions are: rape, etc. For women, especially. I merely just “shrug” as if to say “I have no idea” and walk away.
I usually say, “I’m deaf and can’t read lips well, have a nice day.” They usually smiled and waved at me, “thank you, have a nice day also.” and drove away.
Okay, but a few challenges here:
One, for those of you who say “I’m sorry,” WHY are you sorry? Does it ever bother you that you’re apologizing for something that’s a) not your fault, and b) not even “wrong?” (If something is “wrong” here in the sense that an apology is required, please tell me what it is.)
Two, for those of you who say “I don’t know,” doesn’t that ever bother you a bit? Because it’s entirely possible that you DO know! Right?
And finally three, does anyone find it weird that many of us interpret the situation in terms of “*I* can’t understand,” but almost never in terms of “*They* can’t make themselves understood?” At the very least both are true, but while we hold ourselves accountable for our own difficulties with communication, we almost never hold the other party accountable for theirs.
And four - why can’t hearing people use googlemaps?
I mean, honestly.
For Joseph Rainmound:
Wow, let’s just bash all the people who may not have access to computers!!! What about those who are illiterate? Don’t have enough money to buy your own map, tough luck!!! I guess I’ll just be an a-hole and point randomly, without even making an effort. And we wonder where the decency in humanity has gone these days….
You should know better than to overgeneralize comments, and then go, “I mean, honestly.” Your arrogance, just by making that comment, is mind-boggling….
For Chris Heuer:
1) Saying, “I’m sorry, what did you say,” is no different from saying “Excuse me, what did you say?” Saying “I’m sorry,” is NOT an apology for being D/deaf, it’s an apology for not understanding what the person said. News flash: D/deaf people say “I’m sorry,” to each other ALL THE TIME when they miss something!!! Why does the use of a common phrase in both languages have to be twisted into a D/deaf/hearing thing?
2) If people ask me for directions, and I say, “I don’t know,” it’s because I - DON’T - KNOW!! At the very least, I’ll make an effort to assist someone, because someday I’ll be lost, and I hope to God that someone, even a hearing person, would have the common decency to take a few minutes and assist me with something. And if that person, God forbid, doesn’t know where I’m asking to go, then I hope that at least s/he is being honest with me.
3) I really think that you’re grasping at straws here with regards to accountability. When the majority of communication in the U.S. is done via spoken English, and a lost person randomly picks a person out of a crowd to ask for directions, then finds out that that person only speaks Spanish, should we immediately hold that Spanish speaking person accountable for failure to make themselves understood? Should we hold ourselves accountable for not understanding – absolutely not. BUT, we live in a diverse society, holding other people accountable for failure to understand us, or our failure to understand them, because they do not speak or sign our language is borderline ridiculous. This absurdity is magnified when the scenario presented is one of complete randomness.
For WAD and SO:
WAD, why is my comment “out of line?” I meant this article and my comments to be light humor, but seriously, I have a pet peeve with saying “I’m sorry” when it’s meant as “Excuse me.” I don’t feel it’s rude at all to exclude an apology (because that’s what it is) when you’re the one being approached. I have no problem whatsoever with saying “I’m sorry” when I go up to someone to ask them something, because after all, I might be interrupting them or interfering with their “alone time” or whatever. I strive to never be rude.
But in that same vein, I have a challenge for everyone. TRY for one month to stop saying “I’m sorry” when a situation pops up in which communication becomes difficult. If it means the same thing as “Excuse me,” then it should be no big deal, right? Just say “Excuse me.” But it’s hard. HARD. Believe me, I know. It’s like quitting smoking. You get the shakes. It feels WEIRD not to say “I’m sorry.”
Now S.O., that leads me to my challenge for you: I never said anything about sign language. There are many ways in which non-signing people can fail to make themselves understood to signing deaf people. And refusing to write is certainly one of them, no? But if they refuse to do so, who is that on? Why should it be on me? I didn’t go up to THEM and ask for directions, right? Yes, they chose me at random, and many simply drive off when I indicate I’m deaf (by the way, is THAT rude? and if not why not?). But how does a random choosing on their part make ME more obligated to understand them then they are to make themselves understood to me… especially if signing never enters the picture? Spoken English and written English are still… well, English.
I admit I am givin’ ya a bit of a hard time, but seriously, I’d like to know what you think.
Your pet peeve reminds me of my dad and the word, ‘Okay.’ When people ask him how he’s doing or how’s the food and so on, his answer is always ‘Okay’ unless it’s horrible.
One night my parents were in a restaurant, and the waitress came up and asked my dad how was the food. His response was, “It’s okay.”
The waitress went a bit pale and said, “I’m sorry sir, is there anything I can do to make it better?”
Dad goes, ‘Nah. It’s okay.’
The waitress just stammered then finally walked off. Dad looks at Mom and says, “What’s the matter with her?”
Mom looked at him in exasperation and said, “Dear, the word okay in this context means it is *barely* tolerable. She thought you were saying the food wasn’t good.”
He replies, “But that’s not what okay means!”
:P
It’s all about context. A word doesn’t always have a strict definition. That’s what *I* think.
Hi DP:
Sure, it’s about context. But I think I’m still making a reasonable argument. It took me MONTHS–and I do mean I REALLY had to concentrate–to stop saying things that made me, my deafness, or the ensuing communication difficulties anything out of the ordinary. In stores I used to say ALL of the time: “I’m sorry, I’m deaf, would you mind writing that down?” I shortened this by simply dumping “I’m sorry,” but then I had an immediate impulse to say “Excuse me” or “Pardon me” or something like that. And guess what? When I finally became able to say “I’m deaf, would you mind writing that down?” with relative ease, nobody shot me. Nobody gave me dirty looks. Dumping “I’m sorry,” or “Excuse me” caused nobody any undue harm. Ha, so why is it considered MORE polite to use such terms? No harm, no foul, right?
It’s very strange.
Also, one last thing… it’s becoming my NEW pet peeve to say “I don’t know.” It makes no logical sense if you DO know. If a guy pulls up next to me while I’m walking up Florida Avenue and asks “How do I get to the Capitol,” you cannot deny that I KNOW. Yes, what HE heard as “the Capitol,” I saw as indecipherable gibberish, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that I know how to get there. Or at the very least it doesn’t take away from the fact that it’s highly probable that I know how to get there. I’m from around here, after all, right? So saying “I don’t know” just seems to me to be inaccurate. And possibly untrue. It’d be a shame if discomfort over communication difficulties is what’s causing so many of us to say stuff like this when it’s possibly not true, don’t you think?
“I’ll tell you later….”
It’s NOT apologizing for being deaf. Like I said before, it’s social etiquette EVERYONE is using. Chris, let’s agree to disagree. :P
The crux of the discussion lies with how people treat each other, regardless of disability, language, etc., etc. There are people out there who will not only give you directions, but who will take you to your destination personally, and there are people out there who will kick you to the curb for even bothering to ask for directions. These personalities can be found in ALL areas of humanity, including the Deaf community. Personally, I find that my deafness has very little to do with how people react to either my query or my reaction to their asking for directions, it has everything to do with their own personality trait. If a person reacts by refusing to give you directions after you ask for them (in either spoken, written English, or gesturing) that is absolutely rude of them.. At the same time, if they approach you, then back off after finding out that you’re D/deaf, I’m not so sure that’s rudeness as opposed to simply not being sure how to handle the situation and looking for an easier way. It has nothing to do with obligation, accountability, etc., and everything to do with how a person perceives the situation AFTER they find out they are dealing with a D/deaf individual. Are there a-holes out there who won’t make the effort, sure…. Do I care?? No. I’ll tell you why I don’t care: because if you’re not going to make the effort, then why should I? You picked me out randomly, I’m willing to make the effort, you don’t want to after finding out I’m deaf, ok, fine by me, go find someone else and I’ll be on my merry way. Now, take the word “deaf” out of, “you don’t want to after finding out I’m deaf” and replace it with “don’t speak English,” and I’m willing to bet you that you would probably drive off and find someone who did to make your life easier. You tell me if that makes you rude or an a-hole.
I’d also like to mention that, quite frankly, I’m not impressed with your argument that it took you months to make your deafness/communication difficulties out of the ordinary. You now live in one of the most accessible areas for D/deaf people in the United States (hell, in the world), if you feel like you’re still apologizing for these issues, then that’s your problem, not anyone else’s. I don’t think it’s fair for you to challenge people on how they approach specific situations. Instead, I think that you need to sit back and ask yourself, “If I am doing this, does this mean that I’m the pied piper and I should challenge everyone to follow my approach?” People are unique individuals, each of us have different ways of handling random situations. Just because you do it one way does not mean it’s the best way, nor does it give you the right to challenge their approaches.
I’m going to TRY and stop posting on Chris’s blogs, hopefully with the same likeness as I do for Ridor. It’s the same thing over and over and over. No matter what you say, the man just can’t stop blabbering, “this is chicken.” “yes but it’s south american chicken from puru!” WHO CARES, chicken is chicken!!
“i think children develop better with a mother and a father figure.”
chris: “wait, lets step back and think about this for a second, studies have shown that children can develop well with a lesbian couple just the same but at the same time with a male homosexual couple they may develop difficulties, (bites on pipe) elementary my dear waston…… ” (all above is fabricated and fiction, if you take it personally,(shrugs) ain’t my problem)
it never stops… god, if i EVER go to DPHH and see chris there i hope i bring a pillow.
Since we’re having a good ole’ flaming BBQ here…. My dear Punkybrewster: it’s “PERU”, not “PURU”.
And how would you know chicken is chicken, have you ever had Peruvian chicken? Do you have any data backing that up? I heard that the body mass of South American chicken is .08% larger than North American chicken - does this mean we’ve been getting ripped off by American farmers all this time?!?!?! OOOOOH, the HORROR!!! http://www.edwardsamuels.com/i.....enburg.jpg
this will come in handy. http://www.ars.usda.gov/images.....g32004.jpg
also I humbly thank you for pointing out my minor faults on the internet. here have a http://www.insidesocal.com/arc.....cookie.jpg
Don’t forget this: http://www.goodness.co.uk/images/milk.jpg and invite http://www.graveerror.net/wp-c.....onster.JPG over for this “my life is a mess” discussion.
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hmm that didnt’ work
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god… this blog needs a serious revamp for editing and such.
link -> copy and paste it dramsoc.nuigalway.ie/news/2006_2007/sem1/images/drama.jpg
Heh! Replace “*****” with “p a c k y” (remove the spaces)
Hey Chris. I too am one of those people everyone asks for directions. Not because I know where I’m going, but because after years of growing up in the hearing mainstream, I’m hypervigilant. I’m always looking at people’s faces and wondering, “Are they talking to me? Did they say something?” I have to really work at not looking at any one person too long, cuz if I do, then they will say something! I’ve also cut out the habit of saying, “Sorry I’m deaf.” Now I just say, “I’m deaf. Whadja say?” If I’m feeling generous, I might suggest that they write it down on THEIR OWN note paper; if feeling slightly sadistic, I might watch them flounder and stutter for a few seconds while they figure out what to do, before I graciously help them out. I have a lot more difficulty understanding indecipherable gibberish when I’M the one asking for directions. Sheesh. Now there’s a good topic for a blog.
lol chris, you’re funny. I think most people say “I’m sorry”, not necessarily to apologize but to kind of say “I’m sorry I can’t help you”. People can be lazy. In that term, it’s not really aplogetic. Or is it? well, in any case, it pays to be polite.
It would be more helpful if the lost motorists stopped by at a gas station or a store nearby.
That’s what I do. It’s more safe that way too.
Hi Chris, I love Shane’s comment. At any rate, I am one of the world’s worst lipreaders, but more frequently than not would I be able to correctly answer when asked for directions here in Cleveland Park where I live on Connecticut Ave. It is my senso comune on which I rely. For example, if tourists come away from either the northern metro or the southern metro and are in the midway when asking for the National Zoo, I would cheerfully as a hostess gesture,
“One block shoulder right.” And, in turn, they cheerfully thank me. Equally easy when I am asked where P Street or Massachusetts Avenue is. Otherwise,
I would gesture politely, “I do not know.” A number of
hearing people in Europe making gestures is more legion than in the USA. Hearing Americans are sooooo
monolingual that they even do not know how to guesseudcate what a gesture means. Nihil sub sole novum. :-)
Jean Boutcher
With the bloggers suggesting signing directly to fast food servers or waitresses, I wonder if this approach might work for direction seekers. A big grin, a few quick signs, “one block north, then two east, then stay left” would cover any situation. Yay for visibility!
Sometimes I just get tired and point and hope it’s the right direction.
Deaf people and those who work with Deaf people tend to make eye contact more often than hearing people do. As a result we seem approachable and people ask us for money and directions.
I’m a pretty good lipreader…and I’m also DC-savvy. I do have a story I think is amusing, but that might just be me. Note: idiotic tourist alert!
A few years ago, I was walking around the Dupont area, heading south on 19th (south of the circle). This very nice, youngish (30s?) couple approached me and asked “Where is Pennsylvania Avenue?”
SERIOUSLY.
I choked back a smart-aleck response and said, “Well, Penn Ave is quite a long street — it goes crosstown. Where On Pennsylvania are you going?” (I figured if I knew it, I could at least point them in the general area.)
“Oh, we’re going to a restaurant called Cafe Luna, it’s supposed to be in Dupont Circle.”
“Actually, Cafe Luna is on P street, not Pennsylvania Avenue. You wanna go that-a-way (gestures) — go around the circle to P street and walk over to 17th, and it’s on the left.”
I was laughing hysterically for about 10 minutes after that. That was the first and only time I’ve ever encountered tourists confuse “P Street” with “Pennsylvania Avenue.”
When I don’t understand someone, I usually just say “I don’t know. Good luck!”
I think that when people say “I’m sorry, I’m deaf.” it’s not apologizing for your being deaf, it’s more of apologizing for the fact that you didn’t understand them the first time around, and might they repeat what they said.
I try to lip read, if i don’t understand them the first time around, I just say i don’t know. but if i think i know what they’re talking about I’ll repeat it & then if they say yes, then I’ll tell them where they might want to go.
Though I don’t know about asking gas station attendants, more often than not, they never have a clue what we’re asking, nor can i ever understand them! Maybe people should consider getting one of those navigators for their cars, because I had one when I was visiting Atlanta & wow, that was genius. Never once did we have to ask for directions!
When I’m lost, (and it happens a ton, despite using MapQuest or Google/Yahoo Maps!) I go to gas stations, and always ask for a pad and paper then write down my question for them. It’s been my experience that they’re pretty helpful.
A GPS navigator definitely would be a good thing for me! ;)
…Unless they can’t read, then you have yourdelf a big problem.
That happened to me once, I went into a gas station when I was visiting D.C. and wrote down a request for directions to a specific spot. After staring at it for a good five minutes the attendant finally asked the guy behind me what it said. That’s when I realized he was illiterate.
Ouch. That would suck! I had an annoying incident in the gas station once, I have to admit. I was lost, so I walked in and gestured for a pencil to the attendant. He stared at me like I was from another planet. I repeated myself maybe 3 times before I snarled with my voice, ‘Pencil and paper!’
That’s when a lightbulb went on in his head! Sheesh. Such a simple gesture and he couldn’t understand.
Erin, that’s a good perspective. I didn’t think of that. But, again, apologizing makes me feel inferior most of time. I usually say, “I lip read - could you write down the place you want to go to?” Most of time, it breaks the ice, and people are aware that I lip read rather than the fact that I’m deaf.
I guess a lot of D/deaf folks are tired of being asked for directions. OK, let’s pass a resolution that all D/deaf people should not be asked for directions.
Anyone want to second my proposal?
:rolleyes:
If i can’t catch what’s going on, I usually, just shrug, point at my ear, and say, “I’m deaf”, then point at someone else and say, “ask him”. then walk away.
so it’s not exactly being helpful, but sheesh, it does take a lot of time sometimes and it really is quicker at times just to have someone else take care of it.
I can relate to many of your comments, I have done it all!! I try to help any way I can, but if I truly, truly do not understand them, I do give them “I can’t hear, sorry” (Sorry as in cannot help you) yes lazy methods, I admit, I guess I wanted the awkwardness to end quickly as possible. I get approached by drivers all the time because I walk my 2 dogs everyday 4 times a day and I assume a person walking their dogs are usually friendly or neighborhood savvy. Oh well but most of the time I do help and I like some said I repeat what they ask… because I usually ask for dirctions alot too and it is a relief I can find my way with a help of someone who knows where I’m going. Yes, deaf people do tend to look everywhere and make eye contacts, I guess if we the deaf community made a living as a map guide, we’d be rich! LOL.
I’ve been in the same boat as many of us have…and I always feel so guilty that I couldn’t help them, because I do like helping people, and I can’t help wondering if I might have been able to give them really good directions to where they want to go - IF I could have understood where it was they wanted to go in the first place!
I realize it’s not my fault and I have nothing to apologize for, but it still makes me feel bad, nonetheless.
I actually asked my sign language students this question, and some of them came up with an idea that I have been using ever since, and it does seem to work (although I admit that it works for me because I have good speech skills, I’m not sure what the solution would be for others…):
I put a smile on my face and say in my friendliest voice, while signing at the same time - “Gee, I really wish I could help you, but I’m terrible at giving directions!”
This way I’m not really apologizing for anything, and hopefully they see the signing and realize I am Deaf, while at the same time hearing me say that I am terrible at giving directions (well, that’s not exactly a lie - I am terrible at giving directions when I don’t know where you’re going!)
Speak of the devil! This morning when walking towards Best Buy store, one of two women with a baby in the carriage stopped me and asked me for directions. Since it was on Wisconsin Avenue, I just knew I would be unable to lipread her and said ruefully, “I cannot hear” as I pointed at my ear. Suddenly, the face of the other woman turned bright: “ARE YOU DEAF?” What a brush of pleasure, I yeahed with a smile. Hearing herself, she asked in ASL, “Where is Whole Foods?”
They tend to leave skid marks as soon as they discover that I’m deaf.
On the road, or on their underwear? :P
That comment does seem rather open to intepretation. I can’t decide which one I prefer. LOL.
To educate hearing people that deaf people are not dumb is to answer via paper and pen.:-) You would be surprised to find more people who cannot read or write. A hearing guest (a vice president of a chemical company) I met at my friend’s wedding receiption could not write. He struggled for about 30 seconds and gave up and asked his son to write to me for him!
okay.. I just saw this, I dont’ know WHY I keep watching this woman, but she’s entertaining i’ll give her that. it was kind of pertaining to this subject (pens and papers etc.)
http://aslisrisen.blogspot.com.....rsons.html
anyway, I can understand the frustrations to have to adapt to the majority because we are deaf. but how does that make us slaves? I certainly hope deaf individuals such as this woman do not expect the majority to conform to a minority. it’s unrealistic to expect otherwise, if you do expect the majority to do so, then you are absolutely deranged, like this woman. COURT CLOSED WHEN?! what does that mean?
‘Court closed when’ means ‘When does the Court close?’
I’m aware of it’s meaning, but it’s nice to know even ASL has idioms.
Hmm. I’m not sure if that’s an actual idiom.
if it’s anything like “Drives me up the wall.” then it’s an idiom.
Ha! Had to go see the video for myself.
Apparently she’s saying “When will my court case be settled?!?” She’s getting exasperated with all the trips she has to make to the courthouse and thus feels enslaved to her case (and to the paper & pen communication method), which doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon. COURT [CASE] CLOSED WHEN?! That…
Serves me right for not watching the video. Whoops.
Deaf Pundit, I do not either! I am lost! :-)
“You’re lost? I’m sorry, I don’t know how to help you, maybe somebody else can…”
(points at person standing closest)
(-:
After reading over all of these comments, I have to say Chris that I totally agree with you. There’s a difference between being polite and meek. And some things deaf people say make us all look like we’re too stupid to help.
Hearing people need to know better not to stereotype all deaf people as a whole just as much as we shouldn’t stereotype all hearing people as a whole based on what a specific individual has committed. Stereotyping-prone individuals are simply ignorant. Our job is to show people what we are capable of in spite of what their previous experience was.
Think about it: We, the deaf, have been subjected to many things by hearing people than vice versa as our encounter with them is unavoidable whereas their encounter with us is rare. Yet, we are the ones under the microscope for every little thing — bad or good.
Give them a break and why make our own people look bad when they’re human just like everyone.
You asked for advice on how to handle people who come to you for directions. No problem!
I have two favorite approaches that I use all the time, and they both work beautifully.
Approach A (used when I happen to have paper/pen handy): Someone comes up to me asking for directions, and if I have trouble understanding that person, I give that person paper/pen right off the bat and make it clear that the person needs to write what s/he just said. 99% of the time, the person will do it and the experience usually ends with me giving the person info s/he wants.
Approach B (used when I don’t have paper/pen with me…I try to carry them around, but sometimes that doesn’t always happen for various reasons): Someone comes to me asking for directions, and if I have trouble understanding that person, I will sign “I don’t understand” (and mouth each word as clearly as I can) and shake my head at the same time.
100% of the time when I use Approach B, the result is always unfailingly the same: the person gives me a look of comprehension and beats a hasty retreat. :-)
-Michele Ketcham