Hi, Richard!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

RW>  SEattle was kind of  fun, was there in '80 and '81 off
RW>  and on.  BUddy of mine and I were busking on a corner
RW>  with acoustic guitars there once and found out we took
RW>  some other guy's lunch hour spot.  .


          :-))



RW>  I just never liked umbrellas, I have to carry a white
RW>  cane in my hand to get aboutt safely, and the umbrella
RW>  in my other is a pita.  FOr the same reason I don't like
RW>  traveling with suitcases for personal luggage, but prefer
RW>  backpacks, or maybe a duffel bag.


          Yes, I like to have a hand free too.  I use various bags which I
can hang on my shoulders and/or on the back of a wheelchair.  :-)



RW>  FOr me personally though I like those cheapy plastic
RW>  ponchos, or (if I must) the grab a garbage bag.


          We've used cheap plastic raincoats similar to those the teenagers
in Ketchikan were laughing at.  They're light & they don't occupy much
space... I think they're great for travelling.  I also take extra garbage
bags along when we're camping.  They can be adapted to serve many purposes
if need be....  :-)



[re Hawaii]
RW>  I've heard stories like those of your relative there too.
RW>  ONly way I'll ever end up going back probably is if Kathy
RW>  and I become affluent enough to book a cruise, because
RW>  she's like Rain Man, won't fly.


          Uh-huh.  We thought flying would be impractical even before we
heard Mayor Sam's power chair went missing upon his return from Torino. 
Fortunately he had a backup chair at home.  But if the chair had been lost
or damaged when he was on his way to Europe... arghh!  Long ago, when I was
in Montreal with a community band, one of the gals wasted a whole day
getting her flute repaired. It's difficult when you're new in town &
don't know who speaks English.

          A word of warning about cruises, should you ever have an
opportunity to travel that way.  We investigated several cruise ship lines
before going to Alaska & found only a few which would take the type of
chair we have.  Many of the others claim they take wheelchairs... but
somewhere in the fine print they say they won't take anything with more
than three wheels, anything which can't be folded up, anything you're
unwilling or unable to leave in the corridor all night, etc.  Maybe what
they have in mind is a jogging stroller... [wry grin].



RW>  BLind folks who are affluent enough to make the trip as
RW>  a vacation and who are dog guide users used to avoid it
RW>  because of the canine quarrantine laws.


          Yes, that could certainly be a problem.



RW>  iirc some dog guide using businessman who had to travel
RW>  to/from the mainland quite a bit filed suit on that a
RW>  few years ago.


          Guide dogs are valued by their humans & well taken care of. 
They're also very serious about their work... and not likely to have
contracted rabies in a territorial dispute with a wild animal.  I think it
is reasonable to make exceptions there.  I prefer the term "service
dog", however.  I once read that somebody in EchoLand was making
arrangements to get a dog trained to alert the nearest adult when her
eight-year-old daughter was about to have a seizure.  I think of her &
cringe over signs saying "Guide Dogs for the Blind" are allowed
to enter a drug store or food store where other dogs aren't.  Yes, this
mother could put up a fuss.  But it's tiresome when one must do it
routinely....  :-(



RW>  Wasn't a problem for my visit there though .


          Because you didn't have a dog with you, or because some
exception(s) had been made to the rules by then?  I'm a bit hazy on the
time frame....  :-)




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+