um hi everybody
the reason that i'm blind is because a
gypsy woman cursed me my disability
means everything
takes a little bit longer the wheelchair
and ipad and heaven
[Music]
i'm fully blind in my left eye and i
have about 15 vision in my right
like these glasses the left lens is just
a piece of plastic
the only reason i don't have a monocle
is because i can't afford the monopoly
man lifestyle
my name is josh davies i am
24 years old i also do stand-up comedy
i have terrible depth perception from
only being out received from one eye
god do i really want this on camera i
don't think i can
like i can't really see the difference
between the stairs
i am visually impaired i'm fully blind
in my left eye
i have about 638 vision in my right eye
it is a genetic disorder called x-linked
retinoschisis
which i think sounds made up i really
feel like the doctor made it up on the
spot
reading the sky says sounds like a word
somebody forgot they were writing
halfway through
but what x-link rhythm disguises does uh
it attacks the x chromosome which is the
female chromosome so women don't
typically go blind from this because
they have two x chromosomes and if one
has it they've got a backup
right so my mom had two x chromosomes
and she gave me the broken one
i enjoy my house i've got it set up how
i like with my two flatmates
and we have a cat mulling about looking
for food
aren't you elvis looking for food alex
what's your opinion
on me as a flatmate i'm really good he
feeds me all the time
and i love him i get woken up at about
5.36 by my cat wanting to go out
for a pee back to bed until about seven
i do a bunch of push-ups and setups i
don't do it because i enjoy it i do it
because i
have to because i eat like a child
and then go to work
oh no light there
i mostly rely on public transport
because for some reason they don't let
blind people drive i'm not
i mean it's pretty ableist in my opinion
i rely on the buses
most of the time which isn't ideal
things like crossing the road are always
a bit more exciting
but i can tell the difference between a
car and a person
i work for blind low vision new zealand
as a trust and foundations
fundraiser helping to raise money
for blind and low vision the tools and
mobility aids that i
use are pretty minor in a lot of
respects
using a magnifying glass was very
uncomfortable doing out in public for a
long time
for that specific reason that it drew
attention to the fact that i couldn't
see
i have a pocket magnifying glass that my
mum got me
for christmas one year i think as a dig
but it turned out to be
incredibly useful i definitely feel more
comfortable at home
than i do out in the community out in
the world i know where everything is
i like to keep organized so i will like
make sure that the cutlery drawer
is in the correct order
i've basically ordered it like the food
pyramid with the most important things
at the top
down to the boring things at the bottom
the most accessible part of my home is
my bedroom i have it set up and all the
ways that i'm used to it
alcohol a card for my 24th birthday got
a nice big
screen for my computer and an even
bigger screen for my playstation
kept all the clothes in the correct
order and keep the room as tidy as i
want it to be
aside from the cat here that's a losing
battle my favorite thing to do
when i'm getting out of the house is
going for a walk somewhere nice and
quiet going up
mount eden this is my regular walking
spot
in terms of accessibility it's pretty
good
being a tourist spot there's plenty of
ways to get up
there's that way which is very
inaccessible and very slippery and
there's this way which has steps
i think having accessible spaces for
exercise is important
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i don't think i have anything
interesting to say on the topic of
exercise
other than it's boring as [ __ ] but
ultimately necessary
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i used to live with a flatmate who would
constantly worry
there we go oh three in a row there we
go see
i also do stand-up comedy so i will i
have to go out to do that
that you you get like sort of a
different experience growing up when
you've got low vision like
i spy was always a short game
i spy with my life something beginning
with b is it a blur
josh is it a blur
performing stand-up comedy can be can be
tricky with
my eyesight because it is always in bars
which are always
dimly lit and quite crowded um
it's quite narrow but it is well lit
so that helps as
the green room uh this is where the
comedians will hang out
uh going from the top which is always
risky is i usually wait
near the bottom for my name to be called
um okay so we're just getting a taxi
home because it's
night time and it's for an auckland
central that's just
easier and more accessible but that is
the tricky part
of trying to find
the taxi amongst a lot of cars
i got a taxi home which is a rarer thing
than normal because
because of the cost like that's i think
an issue with a lot of accessibility is
like the easiest option
is often the more expensive one if you
can make it easier for yourself why not
like life's hard enough without making
it harder for yourself by
denying access to something as simple as
a cane or an account with a taxi company
or to google maps or to a magnifying
glass
i've been josh davies thank you very
[Music]
much