Off-road with the wheelchair

Yesterday was a really great day. We managed to get out for the day, which is wonderful for me, although not so wonderful for Jason, who had to push me around in a wheelchair all day.

We really did a lot of walking/rolling. Starting at the World Financial Center for Canstruction we walked around the WTC site. Then we drove down to a different side of town to get dinner with my family and see my cousin's ballet. Before dinner we did a lot of exploring, walking around the Lincoln Center area.

There's a thing about sidewalks that you probably don't know if you've never been in a wheelchair. First of all, I find the grates to the subway pretty terrifying when I'm walking, never mind being rolled over them. I also hate those big bulk head doors to businesses, because if you have ever lived in New York you have seen a news story about someone falling into an unlocked one.

I did not fall into an unlocked bulk head. Just thought I should jot that down, since with my luck that's probably where you thought this story was going. Although at one point I did get slightly stuck on one- Jason was wheeling me directly over the grate to torture me and the wheels in the front, just slightly bigger than the giant holes in the grate, got stuck. Luckily he was able to tilt the wheelchair and get me out of there before I totally flipped out and tried to tuck and roll.

The other problem with NYC sidewalks is that there is frequently a small cliff between the street and where the ramp begins, making crosswalks slightly terrifying. Jason did a great job navigating the treacherous divots and valleys that make wheelchair-ing and high heel wearing mildly deadly. Until one sidewalk, at which I lifted my bad leg (I did this at every ramp to brace myself), held on (thank goodness), and Jason got a bit of momentum going. We hit a dead stop at the bottom of the cliff/ramp and I, holding on, did not pitch onto the sidewalk. I did say a very loud curse word to the amusement of the people standing nearby.

After a few of those I noticed the wheelchair wasn't as much of a smooth ride anymore. It was like riding a tricycle with one flat tire. In a rhythmic pattern the wheelchair was thunking hard to the left. We had broken the wheelchair.

Actually, the "tire" aka rubber band around the left wheel had come off the actual wheel. We had to stop while I stood up and Jason tipped the chair on its side to muscle the band back onto the wheel. Clearly hospital wheelchairs aren't meant for off-roading.