Had my first strange interaction
I went to asda to do my usual weekly shop with my partner.
We were waiting for a taxi home, I'm ambulatory so I was stood with my stick and my partner was taking the wheels off.
A random dude with a motorbike helmet on came up to us. At first he asked if he could ask a question about my chair as his friend is looking for one. I was more than happy to help out a fellow wheelchair user if I could.
Was just normal questions, how do you go about it, is it important that the wheels come off etc, how fast can I go lol.
Then he goes 'but aren't you a bit young for that?' 🤦♀️ I was taken aback at the total lack of tact. I know it's an assumption we get as younger disabled folk but to just come out with it like that, in person, was jarring. I told him you can become disabled at any age and gave him a funny look and he said thanks and went on his way.
This man was in his 40s maybe. Never seen a disabled child? Wtf! I can't imagine he's actually that clueless and now don't know whether the questions were genuine or whether he just wanted to question my disability. Who knows. Why are abled people so strange? 🤦♀️