Posts Tagged ‘Frankfurt’

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Worldwide App for Disabled Toilets!!!

Wednesday, September 12th, 2012

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One of the main issues for us wheelers is the question, where is the next disabled toilet.

As pedestrian it is hardly imaginable that trips into the wild have to be planned from loo to loo.

For many wheelers the question of the next toilet is rather the biggest handicap, and many don’t dare to leave home for this reason!!!

Ingenious…!!! Finally it is available, the

Worldwide Google Disabled Toilet Finder App

www.wheelMate.com


Source photo: www.wheelmate.com

There you can display worldwide with Google the nearest disabled toilet on the street map.

I know my hometown Frankfurt very well, but I would never have thought that there are so many disabled toilets in the city center.

This is awesome… Post, post, post…

Because this app or website is interactive as well you can also comment on the disabled toilets, if e.g. there is a narrow door, or add not known disabled toilets.

The option to display disabled parking places exists, but there have to be added some 1000 existing parking places.

I am asking all readers to make this website known:

Post the Link on Facebook, other social media,… or wherever:

http://www.wheelmate.com

or my blogpost:

http://www.eigude.de/blog/?p=14426

Thanks in advance!!

I have found a similar website from a manufacturer of Australian public designer toilets for Australia and New Zealand:
www.exeloo.com ;-)

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Simply great, Technical Aids, Technical Aids for Quadriplegic | 1 Comment »

3. Addendum: Eigude Shame XVIII

Tuesday, August 21st, 2012

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Addendum to blogpost Eigude Shame XVIII from 25.07.12

Other posts: 31.07.12 and 06.08.12

Last week I have heard from my informant in Rödelheim that my favourite sign

Passing prohibited for wheelchair users

at the train station Rödelheim in Frankfurt has been unfortunately removed after three month
 sniff
 :-(

New sign:

Attention!

Ramp gradient approx. 10% Use at your own risk!

Photo: Rödelheim Blog und P._

The new ramps still aren’t any less steep, and we hope that the lifts will always be running.

But when these are defective at least we wheelchair users are now allowed with kind approval of the city of Frankfurt and the German railway company to most officially tumble down the 10% ramp “at our own risk”.

According to the information of the commissioner for disabled of the city, a flattening of the ramps is not planned.

Allegedly, the ramps would have a floor heating!!!

There is a special blog about the never-ending story of the reconstruction of the train station: Bahnhof-Rödelheim-Blog

Kindly our letter of thanks which was actually referring to the original sign was not removed. Whereas
 the text still fits! ;-)

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Chock, Eigude- Shame | 1 Comment »

2. Addendum: Eigude Shame XVIII

Monday, August 6th, 2012

Sorry, this entry is only available in Deutsch.

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Addendum: Eigude Shame XVIII

Tuesday, July 31st, 2012

Sorry, this entry is only available in Deutsch.

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Eigude Shame XVIII

Wednesday, July 25th, 2012

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Inconceivable…!!!

Passing prohibited for wheelchair users

As born-and-bred citizen of Frankfurt I am proud of my hometown, but too much is too much!!

I have read in the internet forum Rollingplanet  that a new underpass was built at the train station in Rödelheim (a district in Frankfurt Germany). Looks a bit like an amphitheater.

This underpass is such a political issue that meanwhile a citizens’ initiative has been formed. The “WutbĂŒrger” (enraged citizens) are on their way from all directions


Amongst other things it was discovered during a job-site inspection upon almost accomplished completion of the underpass that the brand new mighty concrete ramps on both sides of the tracks have 10% gradient.

Ramps in the public area always have to be built with maximum 6% and without transversal slope according to DIN 18024-1 und DIN 18040-1 (source: barrierefrei bauen mit nullbarriere.de)

The result is that the ramps are very steep not only for wheelchair users, but also for rollator users, cyclists and people with strollers.

The city of Frankfurt has proven creativity and has hung up a prohibition sign without further ado, which prohibits the passing of the ramp for all wheelchair users.

You could use the lifts, which is basically right if it would be ensured that these lifts would always be running. I don’t know any wheelchair user who wasn’t standing at least once in front of a defective lift.

Words fail to describe the prohibition sign!
Inconceivable
 How can you globally prohibit the passing of the ramps for all wheelchair users!

Passing prohibited for wheelchair users

This sign has no other reason for the municipality except to escape responsibility from an insurance perspective if something should happen to someone.

This is just the start. From now on bad planning will be compensated with prohibition signs.

We met yesterday at the train station with unfortunately only three wheelers to have a closer look at the ramps and to duly celebrate the introduction of this new prohibition sign with a glass of sparkling wine.

Highly illegal, the ramps were passed on both sides. We came to the conclusion that a fit wheeler, somebody with an electric wheelchair, a motor-supported active wheelchair or the help of a companion can surmount the ramps.

The sign does not comply with the road traffic regulations and is mounted so high that no wheelchair user will see it anyway.

An acknowledgement letter and a few flowers were fixed to the new “favourite wheelchair user sign”.


Thank you city of Frankfurt

for the successful introduction of this new

 Prohibition Sign!!!

 This sign is forward-looking.
We wheelchair users
hope to see this sign more often in the city in the future!!!
Thanks again that the municipality is
so much concerned about the
physical integrity of us wheelchair users!!!

We thank again the city of Frankfurt for the duty of care which is shown to us wheelchair users with this “Passing prohibited” sign.

With best regards from Steffen Löw and Jens Maspfuhl

Kontakt: rollinator@eigude.de

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Chock, Eigude- Shame | 18 Comments »

Eigude Shame XVII

Friday, June 22nd, 2012

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Wheelchair Ramp Occupier

I have currently started to write a few new blogposts.

But these have to wait to be published, because what happened yesterday has to be told…

When I bought a flat back in 2005 still as pedestrian together with my wife and a friendly bank, a parking place directly opposite the entrance was included for a little surcharge as well.

Awesome… Our own parking place in Frankfurt!!!

Unfortunately the parking place is too narrow for me to transfer from the wheelchair into the car, so that I have applied for and got a disabled parking place in the street (see older blogposts).

I have a lot of visitors like physiotherapists, friends and other people who are helping me with various things.

They probably only come that often to use my parking place… ;-)

I have a good relationship with all my neighbours.

One of them owns a couple of taxis which are sometimes parked in our courtyard or street a little unconventionally during driver change, especially when he has new drivers.

Last week at least three times such a beige vehicle was standing on my labelled parking place (see lifter picture), and this even when I had a visitor on Sunday morning, when you don’t know anyway where to park your car!!!

When I met my neighbour on the same day I told him in round terms to tell his drivers that I don’t want to see one of his taxis on my parking place any more.

Yesterday on Friday I descended with my

platform lifter

from my flat in the 1st floor and wanted to leave the house on my Flower Ramp (see older blogposts).

My low blood pressure was healed promptly.

I don’t tend to hyperventilate, but yesterday it was almost the case.

After about 2 minutes and the photo I had calmed down again a little and rang at my
Wheelchair Ramp Occupier:

REMOVE THE TAXI IMMEDIATELY!!!

 

I should mention as well that no car was parking on my parking place.

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Handicap Parking, Chock, Eigude- Shame | 6 Comments »

Eigude Shame XVI

Friday, June 8th, 2012

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Yesterday, after a long time, I wanted to see a movie at the cinema with my wife.

The seat reservation proved to be a little difficult because this was only possible online, and although you could click on the “one” wheelchair place nothing happened.

I tried to call the cinema several times and learned that after around 30 times ringing you get kicked out the line by the telephone system.

We reserved the two seats next to the wheelchair place (apparently the places were next to each other) and drove with the car to the cinema.

Surprisingly there were actually all two disabled parking places at the rear exit vacant, whereas on one two pedestrians with lots of tools were standing who immediately made room for my “parking”.

I turned my car in a one-way-street and parked the wrong way round because at the pavement side getting off the car is hardly possible for me even with assistance, and my wheelchair loading system is not working properly.
For this purpose I made up an additional “permit card” so that our friendly officers hopefully won’t find a new parking place for me.

“Due to wheelchair loading system parking in opposite direction of travel.”

In the meantime a hired minivan arrived, parked on the other disabled parking place, and the two guys stored away their tools. I didn’t say anything, the loading couldn’t last forever.

At the cinema box office I got the explanation that it was possible to book the wheelchair place online, but sometimes it wouldn’t work. Great
!!
Nevermind, we just had to pay for one ticket, and the wheelchair place was still available.

At half height in the cinema, nobody directly in front, that’s quite nice.
The seat numbers were a bit strange, seat 13 and seat 91, but that would be right.
Some construction engineer has excelled himself. It was probably built according to the latest EU directive for inclusion (equal treatment of handicapped and non-handicapped). Ingenious, our own

wheelchair waiting zone in the cinema.

Praiseworthy, the emergency telephone on the wall and the spacious place directly next to an emergency exit.

Please note the especially high raised

Anti-Snogging-Wall,

which also prevents rigorously undesirable conversations with the companion during the movie.

There was actually just a wall between us and a romantic cinema date.

The movie was great, it even had a guy in a wheelchair.
It played in a country where traditionally fried, amputated amphibian extremities are eaten*.

When I was back at my car I was a little bit annoyed that the minivan was still standing on the second disabled parking place.

I know that the fire protection requirements in a cinema are strict, but

TEAR DOWN THIS WALL!!!

I am still a little unclear about what I should actually wait for in the waiting zone, there was not even anybody coming to sell ice cream.

*France, (frog’s legs) ;-)

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Car and Hand Throttle, Handicap Parking, Chock, Eigude- Shame | 7 Comments »

Wheelchair Excursion Mallorca Part II

Thursday, May 31st, 2012

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I was standing in the more or less private bus with my Minitrac in front of the plane on an outside position at Frankfurt Airport.

As often before, I was waiting for the

lifting bus

to beam me up to the plane.

Meanwhile my Minitrac was loaded to the plane.

In the meantime also the other passengers had arrived with busses and were waiting on the other side of the plane which I didn’t know.

The lifting bus didn’t have its best day and acted a little stubbornly. It absolutely didn’t want to lift upwards. After at least 10 minutes I finally arrived at the door of the plane.

Then everything went fast. Two strong paramedics lifted me on the small plane wheelchair which is nothing else than a sack truck in chair format and pushed me almost through the whole plane to my seat.

Then they lifted/threw me as usual across two other seats on to the window seat.
I learnt on the return flight from a flight attendant that as of late due to the anti-discrimination-law you don’t have to necessarily accept a window seat even as wheelchair user.

What a nonsense
 the seat neighbour on the window seat in the plane would certainly be happy if I had the middle seat and he would have to proof his sportiness in high and long jump when going to the toilet!!!

In each aircraft there are specially labelled handicap seats with pictogram on the wall. My intelligence wasn’t sufficient yet to understand why the seats are so far at the rear end of the plane.

This time I didn‘t have one of these labelled VIP seats, what a shame!

(photo from return flight.)

After I was finally “stowed away” properly in the plane the other passengers were allowed to board as well.
It was my fault again, we had about 15 minutes delay.

Short before take-off there was as usual an announcement from the cockpit, roughly like this:

Dear passengers,

We are pleased to welcome you on board of the flight from Frankfurt to Palma de Mallorca.

I would like to apologize that you had to wait in the busses.

We have a wheelchair user on board for whom the boarding took a little bit longer!!!

Ehhh…… I have been in a plane quite often, but a, let’s call it personal welcome from the captain was new to me.

I was a little sorry for the two pedestrians who were sitting two rows ahead of me on the two VIP seats with handicap pictogram on the wall, they probably got some nice looks ;-)

I was briefly considering to ask a flight attendant if they had smoked something up front in the cockpit, but I didn’t, I was in a good mood and had a good day.

I plead guilty as aircraft take-off delayer.

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Holiday | 3 Comments »

Wheelchair Excursion Mallorca Part I

Tuesday, May 29th, 2012

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After I have tested the canary islands for accessibility already several times (see older blogpost), the choice was Mallorca this time.

Although I have never been to “Malle” before the challenge shouldn’t be too big, German is spoken
 ok, English and some Spanish are there as well ;-)

The number of accessible accommodations seemed rather limited, if you know any please write a comment.

I selected one of 3 accessible studio apartments in a normal hotel complex in Palma Nova. I had the suspicion to be the only wheelchair user in the complex, this could be funny.

ATTENTION, PRODUCT PLACEMENT OUT OF CONVICTION:

I have booked like several times before through a special travel agency for handicapped www.runa-reisen.de, with whom I always made good experiences. They additionally organized a vertically adjustable bed and a shower commode chair.

Should you need an ambulant nursing service on Mallorca the situation gets a little bit tricky.
In the internet you find immediately around 10 addresses of nursing services. Some of these don’t exist anymore for years, but the website is still online. Great
!!!

I talked to a physician in Germany who has sold his nursing service on Mallorca 10 years ago which is bankrupt in the meantime. The doc is still named in the website credits and doesn’t get his name deleted ;-)

I had some nice conversations with private persons who had involuntarily taken over the contact phone numbers of these websites, but they have given me other possible addresses of nursing services which they knew.
At some stage even I was successful, German nursing service, top service, address on request.

After extensive planning, I “only” wanted to go for 12 days to Mallorca to the sea and not to climb the Kilimanjaro, we finally started.

Without major difficulties I arrived at some stage after transfer, check-in and security check in the handicap service private shuttle on an outside position at Frankfurt Airport in front of the plane to Mallorca!!!

To be continued


Translator BL

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Posted in General, Holiday | No Comments »

Inconceivable
!!!

Tuesday, April 24th, 2012

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Post a comment!!!

I don’t have a description for “this” any more!!!

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Handicap Parking, Eigude- Shame | 19 Comments »

Special Edition!!

Tuesday, April 24th, 2012

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Aachen : Eintracht

0 : 3

Mission completed, direct repromotion.

The orthosis was helpful!!!

(see older blogpost)


For the championship celebration 2013 I voluntarily put on the orthosis again.

I am still slightly in „repromotion-mania “!
If my neighbour wouldn’t have called and reminded me of an appointment my car still would have winter tyres
 well then
 never mind ;-)

Translator BL

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Chock Part XII

Friday, March 30th, 2012

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On Tuesday I was with my wife at the

Farewell Match of the Frankfurt football player Birgit Prinz.

She has been FIFA player of the year several times and scored 128 goals for the German national team. The match was great, but until I got there…

The organisation of a wheelchair ticket directly at the German Football Association (DFB) proved to be quite difficult this time. So far I had made only very good experiences during the women’s world cup (see older blogposts).

After my first e-mail with the ticket order apparently ended up in the digital nirvana, it worked out a little better with e-mail number two.

Well, apparently you have to see it sportingly. Such an e-mail doesn’t harm, but doesn’t necessarily help either…

Now the whole event approached rapidly… 3 or 4 days!

I had not received a confirmation if I can pick up my ticket at the box office until the moment when I hit the road to the stadium.

On the matchday I also tried to find out by phone where I could possibly park my car because my e-mail inquiry wasn’t answered either.

When I drove to the stadium I was hoping that an admission ticket would be deposited at the box-office for me, and the parking thing was still not clarified. I knew about the bad parking conditions there.

At some stage I didn’t care, I picked up my wife and drove directly to the entrance of the stadium. It was quite busy there!

Although I didn’t have an admission ticket, not to mention a special parking admission, the very kind marshals actually found an adequate parking space next to the OB vehicle of the regional broadcast station on which I could transfer easily into my wheelchair. Thanks again from this side.

Why the German football association as organiser of the event didn’t create a designated handicap parking area, they probably don’t know themselves. At least 15 wheelers were in the stadium. Where did they park?

If now no ticket had been deposited at the box office, or I hadn’t been able to buy a ticket, even a weekly dosage of my medication wouldn’t have calmed me down.

I got an envelope at the box office in which not only my ticket, but also a VIP parking admission was inside. A little too late, but as a proper German of course I laid out the parking permit in the car ;-)

 

Then in the stadium I actually would have needed my mountainbike tyres for my wheelchair, because the main stand currently consists just out of small homeopathic pieces and some rocks.

Luckily I had a ticket for the opposite stand, which was there ;-)

It was a great farewell game and I am a little sad that Birgt Prinz is quitting her active career.

When I was back home I read an e-mail from the German football association where all my inquiries about ticket, parking… were answered.

The e-mail was sent at 16:45 h, kick off 18:00 h.

The staff member was already at the stadium at this time as she wrote, and I totally uninformed on the road!!!

What a pity that I haven’t met the lady ;-)

I could inquire at the German football association if they wouldn’t sponsor a smartphone for me so that I can be always up to date online about my ticket status.

Translator BL

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Eigude Shame Part XXIV

Thursday, March 29th, 2012

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At this stage I would especially like to thank my wife, who consistently takes many great photos without which this blog would never be possible in this way.

The long and winding road that leads to election!!!

I live in Frankfurt/Main near the “Riedhof“ primary school.

Since 2008 I visit these premises regularly for local, federal state and Bundestag elections
 (see older blogpost).

 

For years there was a mobile “do-it-yourself wooden ramp” placed at the right school entrance, which according to my perception slightly exceeded the regulated 6 degrees and bridged two steps of a stairway.

I am asking the electoral assistants since years to forward this deficit to the appropriate positions.
I know that there is a wheeler who has to use this ramp regularly.

On Sunday we citizens were supposed to elect a new mayor in a run-off election. Thus I could undergo the ramp test for a second time this year.

Each election has a certain charm for me, if something might have changed in the meantime. This is a good reason to vote ;-)

2 weeks ago at the first ballot my wife noticed immediately that the ramp on the left entrance had to bridge just one step.
The ramp was somehow different, something had changed
???

Actually there was something different, but somehow it still wasn’t any less steeply, or am I misled???

I asked my wife once again to take photos!

When I compared the ramp pictures with those from a year ago, even I was once speechless.

A real specialist has sawn through the ramp horizontally so that it fitted on the one step of the left entrance of the school.
Have a look yourself, although the ramp is shorter, it is steeper than before.

If the person who shortened the ramp or let it shorten has converted the ramp according to the latest mathematical conclusions which I am not aware of, and if today the angle of 6° is something different than during my schooldays, I don’t know.

Just yesterday I came to the conclusion that nobody can be accused for the steepness of the ramp. Angulations like e.g. calculations with old uncle Pythagoras exceed the subject matters of primary school.

If the city of Frankfurt would be engaged one day in the scientific fundamental research of calculating wheelchair ramps, I am hereby offering my help.
I would immediately provide my old set square free of charge.

Are we going to help the city of Frankfurt together with the calculation of the ramp length???

Word problem for you:
To bridge a 90° steep step of 25 cm height measured from the ground, to allow wheelers the civil right to get to a polling place by themselves, a 1,2 m wide ramp shall be built.
How long does it have to be if the angle of elevation must not exceed 6°?
Please disclose calculation method.

Post your calculations as comment, or as usual to rollinator@eigude.de

Maybe I will forward these calculations directly to the Frankfurt electoral office ;-)

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Chock, Eigude- Shame, Technical Aids | 4 Comments »

Feedback on the shinbone fracture part II

Monday, March 12th, 2012

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Whereas for a pedestrian the growing together of the bones after a leg fracture without surgery is assessed with roundabout 6 weeks, it is around 6 months for us para-/quadriplegics. This is related to paralysis, blood circulation etc.

After the fracture of shinbone and fibula in early September a plastic leg orthosis was my permanent companion.

I have reported extensively about the fracture, hospital stay,
(see older blogposts), then you know the complete story.

As self-confessed football fan of Eintracht Frankfurt I got of course the special edition Frankfurt.

leg orthosis type: direct re-promotion

In the complete time during which I was wearing the orthosis Eintracht didn’t lose a single match. I am closely connected to my club and sit out almost everything, but eventually I wanted to get rid of the orthosis.

Just in the moment when I slowly began to do without the orthosis – how nice
 -, a match was lost. The re-promotion was at risk!

I wasn’t sure, was it my fault???

What next
 should I have to wear the orthosis until the German championship title 2013???

Yesterday I didn’t put on the orthosis the whole day and was worried that Eintracht wouldn’t lose the match.

Of all things the opponent was Rostock. There was an occasion in the early 90s, I don’t want to remember this match
 (translator’s note: 20 years ago Eintracht lost against Rostock on the last matchday of the season and thus didn’t win the German championship title.)

Rostock : Eintracht

1 : 5

The spell was „broken“ and the fracture will heal soon!!!
The orthosis is standing well next to the closet and is only put on when needed.

For the championship celebration 2013 I voluntarily put on the orthosis again.

Translator BL

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Posted in General, Simply great | 1 Comment »

Addendum to Eigude Shame XXII

Sunday, March 11th, 2012

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I have reported on 26.01.12 (see older blogpost) how I was fighting against windmills similar to Don Quixote.

My windmills were just wheelchair tickets for

Sunrise Avenue,

in the Jahrhunderthalle in Frankfurt (an event hall), which basically shouldn’t have been a big challenge.

I didn’t let up for months and amongst others wrote directly to the band asking why I was ignored??? I am still waiting for a message on their part
 so be it
!!!
Meanwhile the concert was sold out!

In the meantime I wasn’t keen on going/rolling to the concert any more although eventually the desired object was lying in front of me.
Yesterday the day had finally arrived, the concert moved a little into the background, I was rather curious if I would be the only wheeler, and how possible other wheelchair fellows got their tickets.

I already saw a couple of wheelchair busses on the parking lot, which made me hope not to be the only frequent driver.

The guys from the Red Cross accompanied me with the lift to the first floor (see older blogpost).

They told me I should go directly to the wheelchair tribune, there were already some wheelers there, and it could get a bit tight. I was also told about the difficult ticket organization.

It was “organized excellently”. A very strong employee of a security company, he made me fear with his figure, pushed me up an extra steep designer ramp, probably there was a sculptor at work, on a small tribune.

The tribune wasn’t big, even for us small people. In the end it was fully occupied with 13 wheelchairs. Later I saw two wheelchairs which were not standing on the tribune and wouldn’t have fit onto it either!!!

I don’t know how many more fellow wheelers were standing in the audience, but the companion had to stand among the pedestrian crowd due to lack of space.

For rehabilitation purposes I have to admit that the guys on stage in front – although they can’t write e-mails – are real stage hogs, and I have seen/heard a great rock concert.

After the concert as usual it got a bit cramped in the crowd. On a bistro table in the crowd there stood a giant with estimated shoe size 46. I dared to struggle through the crowd with my wheelchair exactly where he stood.

He didn’t bother to take his splendid foot out of the way by only 5 cm and send a contemptuous look downwards.

I looked up, grinned and said to him:

I will make myself small!!!

Then he took the foot away ;-)

Translator BL

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