Let’s just start by saying that this week has been SO BUSY! Or rather, this weekend.  You see, with moving to a new apartment, having a lesson to teach in my science class  about geodes, having my brother up for the weekend to help with the move, my husband receiving his Patriarchal Blessing, and with Stake Conference (I feel like I’m still missing something….), it’s been one crammed weekend.

Our new place is fantastic! The internet wouldn’t work for us until today, so that made doing homework a bit troublesome, but I have a few things I would like to report on here.

First, I did the simulation that requires us to stutter. The two scenarios I picked were ordering something at a restaurant and asking questions about that item, and then, at Target, I asked for directions to find an item.

Ok, first, the restaurant. It was an Indian Curry restaurant in Idaho Falls. I LOVE Indo-curry a lot! I would eat it all the time on my mission, and it’s hard to find legit places anywhere in the US, at least at a decent price. This was the place! Well, so since it is authentic Indian food there, I had a hard time understanding the menu in the first place. I had a lot of questions anyway, so I ordered what I thought I would like, and worked hard to stutter. The waiter was so kind, and didn’t even bat an eye. It was reassuring. I knew I was welcome there. He treated me normal.

Next, I had to ask for directions at Target. It was an interesting experience, because there we were, my husband and I, looking for a shower curtain rod, but we could find it anywhere! Then all of a sudden, the whole place went pitch black! The power went out in Target (we found out later that it wasn’t just target, but the entire street)! Luckily, Target had a generator and some of the lights came back on, and they were still in business. We continued our search for an employee, and for those shower curtain rods. We found one, but I’m pretty sure he was one of the floor managers. They were busy trying to assess the situation, but I said “Excuse me!” and he stopped and listened to my question. I asked, stuttering, if they had shower curtains. He immediately began leading the way to the shower curtains, and then I realized I hadn’t said all that I needed to! I wasn’t looking for shower curtains, I was looking for shower curtain rods! I was embarrassed! I had worked so hard to just get out my first question, and then I realized I had asked the wrong question! When we got to the shower curtains, I had to clarify, and asked if they also had the rods. He showed us where those were too. Once, when I was having a particularly difficult time getting the word out, he perceived what I was going to ask for, and finished the word for me. Although it was awkward, he was very kind about it.

OK! NEXT! Today, I did the simulation with the visual impairment, and boy did that make my eyes tense up when I took them off! It was interesting. I had very limited vision, and yet I was able, with great difficulty, to complete tasks. I was able to walk around, and do other things. Looking at my phone was difficult because of my limited range of vision. I had to hold the phone up higher or strain my neck downward so that I could see it straight. Then, I had to eat dinner. We had stopped at Taco Bell on the way home, and I struggled to feed myself that 7-layered burrito. I must confess that I spilled sour cream all down my shirt and didn’t even notice until my hand slipped right into it. Then, I decided that in the last hour of the simulation, I would make dinner. It was an easy meal–ramen–but I spruced it up with green onions, some added spices, and chicken. Cutting was the hardest thing to do!

These simulations have been eye-openers so far. I am looking forward to the other two. I hope that the wheelchair one doesn’t prove too difficult for me, since I am seven months pregnant. It will be a whole different perspective!

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