Tuesday Report

     I had sort of an odd day yesterday. I have been posting makeup looks on Instagram. It amuses me and this week I started a new challenge to use one eyeshadow palette a week and see how many different looks I can make. It's fun to me and I share the pictures because I have people who also like to look at different makeup looks. Today I got one of the random comments about a company wanting to do a "collab" with me. Most of them are scams but I sent them a message anyway. Yup, scam. They sent back a very upbeat message about how they would send me a code for 20% off and I would post a picture of me wearing their lashes and if I got enough likes I could earn free products. And they want to help me get more likes and followers because I deserve it! Lol, sending me free lashes would be OK, but me buying your products and giving them free advertising is just silly. Plus, I don't actually use false lashes. If they were free I might. Also I am not motivated by likes and followers. 

     

     Tuesday is always laundry day, and I managed to get done what I meant to get done. I wanted to work on gluing some of the pieces of the saddlebags I started the other day. I managed it! I didn't do tons and tons of work, but I did some and that was my goal. 

     

I got to listen to the latest episode of Mares in Black and I learned that Bethany Shaw wrote a really excellent blog post about inclusivity at model horse shows. I really enjoyed it! I sent Bethany a message to tell her how much I loved it. We had a really great conversation and it got me thinking about inclusivity at horse shows. In general, both my kids were always very welcome at horse shows. I have often gotten my seat of choice. Many of the hostesses over the years have let Travis sit with them at the host table, where he usually had a bit more room, some have put in an extra table just for the kids. Most hosts have been amazingly accommodating. Usually things are great. That is not always the case, and it's not necessarily common universally. Bethany's post got me to thinking about accommodations in general. I work in special education so I think about accommodations all the time. Some of the kids I work with are ashamed of needing accommodations and I say that there is nothing to be ashamed of in needing something to help you learn. I need contacts so I can see far away more clearly. At horse shows, if Travis comes with me, it's helpful to be close to an outlet. He has a mini DVD player that he only gets to use at shows. So it's always new and fun. It does not hold a charge well so being near an outlet is sort of essential. Other than being near an outlet not being in the middle of the hall is good. I like corners. Sometimes Travis needs to get up and sort of dance around a bit. Sitting still all day is hard on everyone! But a lot of people need different things to make them comfortable. Some people may be a bit hard of hearing, so they might need to sit closer to whoever is doing the announcements, or near the speakers. Some people like to be close to a door or the bathroom, or far from the bathroom. Here are some of the accommodations Bethany listed:

A roomier seating choice

A darker seating choice

A quieter seating choice

A ‘groom’ to help move horses

Extra space for a dependent child or spouse

Letting an entrant know it’s okay to bring a tool that helps them; ie noise cancelling head-phones, a phone, fidget toy, food (hall permitting), dark glasses, a blanket, etc.

     Those are some excellent things! One of the things she mentioned was that a show host could invite the showers to share what accommodations might be useful to them. If there was a space on the entry form to put anything that might make it easier for a shower, that would be great. And that's true. Sometimes just asking people what they need is enough to get them to speak up. Depending on what people need, the accommodation may or may not be possible, but you never know if you don't ask. 
     Another really important thing Bethany pointed out was that some people have food allergies. I work with a lot of people that have really severe food allergies. If showers were invited to share any concerns they have they could let the hostess know and a sign could be posted, or a notice put on the website. So many things I just never thought of.
     What sort of things can you guys think of that might be an accommodation that people might need? Having an extensive list is not possible, especially on an entry form, but sometimes people don't know what they need until they see it. Does that make sense? For example, you are at a horse show and vaguely uncomfortable but you don't really know why. Then you see on a list that you can request a quieter part of the hall, the hostess seats you further from the speakers and all of a sudden your whole show day is better. I really like the idea of asking show entrants what they need to have a more comfortable day. Thank you Bethany for getting me thinking on accommodations and what I might need for Travis, or even for myself (I don't like the inside seat at a shared table). Now I kind of want to make a list, I need help with this!