This month is about accessibility, and how far we have come... but also how far we have to go. I give you an update on my old Holden, can't wait to get the new motor in.
What are you doing for your mental health?
I share what I've been doing to look after mine.
Have a read and feel free to write to me on any of my stories.
I’ve seen a lot of changes in my 30 plus years of pushing a wheelchair. When I first got hurt there were not even cut outs in gutters and footpaths. I had to push my wheelchair along the edge of the road.
Slowly, I have watched as councils and governments legislated changes and made slow progress to allow wheelchair users to get around in the community. Public buildings such as libraries and community centres, council buildings, public toilets and many other facilities started to include ramp access, lifts or accessible buildings. We also started looking at ways to make it easier for all disabilities to live and work, simple things like tactile surfaces for vision impaired people, audible traffic lights, Braille on signs and many more…
But we still have a long way to go. I’ve been to a few places in the last 12 months that still need to do a bit of work to “Get it right”.
While I’m on this topic, I should say that I understand not EVERYTHING can be made accessible. There are natural landscapes and areas that will never be fully accessible to someone with a mobility impairment. The one thing that really pisses me off, is people who say that their venue or facility is “Accessible” but in actual fact it is “Not”.
Imagine for a second that you had to use a wheelchair like me, and you wanted to go somewhere with your family or friends. So you do the right thing and call them up and ask “Is it wheelchair friendly?” and they say “Yes”.... so off you go and when you get there, you find a couple of steps out the front, or a doorway too narrow to get a wheelchair through. It’s extremely disappointing and usually ruins the day!
So please, please, please…
If you can’t provide access just be honest and upfront, do say “I’m sorry but our venue/facility/event is not very wheelchair accessible”. At least it then gives me the opportunity to find somewhere that is!
Some of you know that I’m a fully fledged petrol head. I’ve had more cars than most people and I am constantly playing, driving or working on my “Toys”.
The latest project is my 1971 HG Holden Kingswood. Since my last update, I’ve put some time (and money) into her and she is slowly coming together.
I’ve concentrated on the steering and suspension over the last few months, every ball joint, tie rod end, sway bar bush, shock absorber, spring and steering joint has been replaced with new ones. I’ve put a thicker front sway bar on it and I’m thinking about a rear one.
Meanwhile the engine block has been at the engine builder. The engine builder took it out 30 thou, put forged pistons in, checked the crank and rods to make sure they will handle 5500rpm (it’s a cruiser) and all new race bearings. The bottom end is balanced.
I got it back and put in a head from Head Stud Developments (HSD), which is a copy of the old Yella Terra heads. I’ll run screw in Yella Terra roller rockers with hydraulic lifters.
The cam is a Crow cam, quite mild but with good power from 2000-5200rpm, which is where it spends most of its life.
I’ve got a 350 two barrel holley carb and manifold ready, I bought an ICE electronic distributor, coil and ignition controller and will fit it after I get the motor run in.
I really should do the auto transmission but it’s still running and shifting fine, so I might wait and see how it goes with the new motor.
Stay tuned, I’ll post a video of the motor running once it's in.
We are slowly learning to live with COVID, restrictions are easing, states are opening, businesses are adapting, and employees are evolving…
Myself and the other speakers have been getting out to workplaces and sharing our stories but the way we have been getting there has changed.
Firstly, there are online workplace presentations and then we have the “old school” face-to-face visits.
I’ve done both in the last few months but I’ve decided that where possible, I will drive to a workplace.
I have been lucky not to have experienced COVID and I’d like to try and avoid it for as long as I can. Not only that but it is good for my Mental Health. A six-hour road trip (with breaks and toilet stops of course) is so much more relaxing than a two-hour flight (plus an hour waiting for your flight and the collection of luggage, which can often end up being four hours in total!
I guess it’s all about CHOICES. We have a great mental health speaker, Michael Weston, who stresses the importance of work/life balance and I am taking his advice.
What CHOICES are you making to balance your life and
protect your mental health?
James’ story is relevant and real to the workforce. The simplicity of the incident which resulted in a lifetime of personal impact has immediate affect with the workers who are not naturally entertained by management presentations and documentation.
Ian Davidson
TransGrid
12 REASONS NOT TO GET HURT AT WORK by James Wood
Give your employees a reason to take their safety seriously and share the story behind the statistics.
Now available on Amazon and Audible, grab a copy of the eBook or audiobook today and hear Woody’s story from the man himself.
