Full Transcript
Jeff:
I’m Jeff Thompson, and you’re listening to Blind Abilities. Today on the show, we got Thomas Reid from Reid My Mind Radio. He’s got a great perspective on the state of affairs in America with disability and marginalized communities. I think you’re gonna really like this one, I really do. And remember, you can download the Blind Abilities podcast wherever you want to listen to podcasts, download and subscribe to Blind Abilities. That’s two words, blind abilities. Alright, without further ado, let’s bring on Thomas Reid, the conversation. Hope you enjoy.
Jeff:
Allow, I like how you analyze the words, words are important. And you know that just that word right there, you know, just allow-
Thomas:
Yeah.
Jeff:
Ask permission, you know, if you want to do something, if you want to have goals and stuff, who’s stopping you but yourself, really?
Thomas:
Exactly, exactly. And it takes a while to realize that, I mean, you know, even as people who are blind, as any marginalized person, sometimes that’s the thought process that seeps in there. And it’s unfortunate, but you know, we have to catch ourselves. And I include myself in that, you know, so.
Jeff:
Yeah, like in your introduction and how you talk about your communities that, you know, I just talk about stuff, it’s just talk, but it’s more about the message.
Thomas:
Yeah.
Jeff:
By listening to your stuff, I listen for the message, your storytelling, but there’s a message there, you know, it’s just not just talk that’s just gonna fall to the wayside. There’s a message that can be carried out, too.
Thomas:
Yeah, absolutely. That’s what I for, I think I’m- maybe that’s too strong of a word, but I think I’m fearful of, you know, it’s never been a desire to just sort of speak, and not really saying anything? You know what I mean? Like that, you know, it happens right? We hear it.
Jeff:
Oh, yeah.
Thomas:
We hear it all the time. And I don’t want to be, you know, I don’t want to do that. So.
Jeff:
Welcome to Blind Abilities, I’m Jeff Thompson. Today in the studio, we have a podcaster, a voice artist, an advocate and someone that carries a strong message on his Reid My Mind Radio Podcast. Thomas Reid, welcome to the show.
Thomas:
Thank you so much, sir. Appreciate it.
Jeff:
I enjoy listening to your messages. I gotta say, I would say it’s just not a podcast, it’s- you’re just not talking, as you say. But the message that comes out of them, you know, especially, I recapped the 2020 just recently and it was like-
Thomas (recording):
2020 is ableist AF! I’m talking about this idea of perfect vision-
Woman:
Struggling with low self-esteem growing up, I think it had a lot to do with the fact that I was reading Essence magazine, Ebony magazine, Jet magazine, reading the stories of Toni Morrison, and hearing the black struggle, but I never read about the disability struggle. It matters-
Thomas (recording):
20/20 vision is seeing as expected. A person with 2200 can see from 20 feet away what a normally sighted person sees from 200 feet. When it comes to an awareness of police brutality, black people been having 20/20 vision. But too much of America has been hovering around that 2200 acuity, they’ve been legally blind to police brutality forever.
Man:
I realized, okay, God gave me this talent. And with this talent, he’s kind of helped raise me up from that bed of poor self esteem, lifted me up and encouraged me and inspired me. And I have to take care of this talent, I have to like nourish it, be kind to it, treat it right. And try to use it.
Thomas (recording):
There’s no lens to help them see the systematic racism, not only in the police departments across this nation, but also throughout our society. At least, not long enough to actually do something about it. The COVID-19 pandemic created the environment enabling the magnification of the brutal killing of George Floyd, the murder of Brionna Taylor, and the injustice that followed. I wanted to be hopeful that the initial attention and outrage would be a catalyst for real change throughout society. I talked about how these events have and continue to impact me and my family.
Jeff:
Wow, you did a lot of traveling there, all in your- with your voice, you know, people are listening.
Thomas:
Oh, yeah. I appreciate that. Yeah, you know, that’s sort of the goal, is to just sort of pull out the messages from the people that I’m presenting. Right? Because I think everyone does have a message, and while the podcast I think initially started specifically- and it still is, to anyone adjusting to blindness, to disability, those messages often intersect with other marginalized groups. Anytime to have the opportunity to incorporate that or choose to speak on it, I think, you know, it’s great, when we can say something.
Jeff:
You use adjusting, that word, a lot.
Thomas:
Yeah.
Jeff:
It’s a continuous thing in life.
Thomas:
Absolutely. You know, sometimes I wonder if I use it too much, but it is what it is, right?
Jeff:
It’s what a lot of us have to do, the times they are a-changing.
Thomas:
Yeah, yeah. If we’re lucky, we all have an opportunity to adjust at some point in our life, right? We always have the opportunity, but we should take it. And sometimes it’s forced upon us by something, whether that be disability, whether that just be life circumstances, right, people who may fall in and out of love, get a divorce, or whatever the case may be, there’s adjustments that need to be made there, too. It’s something that with my experience with blindness, I really became, and I still am, I’m just really amazed, I really like to think about the adjustment process. I think there’s so much there, that has a lot to do- I mean, it’s life, it’s life. And so it applies to all aspects of our lives. And so I find it fascinating. I like to really hear what people do in their circumstances, how they make these adjustments, how they adapt, I find adaptations fascinating. And yeah, they’re just all around us. And I like to explore them from the perspective of blindness and disability.
Jeff:
You know, I’ve heard the statement, people change, sometimes they accept change, some people just change to make change, but this last year, the pandemic, and I’m coming off your 2020, the year of adjustment, not just the just thing. There’s lots of things that happen. And I’m so glad that you’ve carried some messages that we don’t usually hear out, you know, that this is the blindness community typically but you covered some hard topics there and you didn’t wince.
Thomas:
Yeah, I definitely- I hope I didn’t wince, and I don’t want to do that. And I hope those messages come across, because, yeah, to me, especially with COVID, COVID brought out everything, right, it just put it all out there. And that was great. That was great. Not COVID, COVID wasn’t great. COVID is not great.
Jeff:
We got a disclaimer.
Thomas:
I definitely have to throw that disclaimer out. And I find myself saying that a lot in different ways, right? So the accessibility that COVID sort of brought about, it’s really unfortunate that it had to come about through COVID, or through anything negative, through death, through sickness, right? But there were gains made for the disability community. It was extremely unfortunate that, you know, these things, police brutality, police murders, like all of this inequity comes about, but COVID to me, I still believe that it was because of COVID that the world, and to just be quite frank, the non-black world, the white world, you know, people- the privilege, paid attention. And I don’t think that would have happened without COVID, because folks would have had the opportunity to just shut their phones off and move around. Because it’s not new. It’s just not new. This man was killed. And this was not the first time, but this was the first time- and it wasn’t even the first time something like this was captured on video. But this was the first time, thankfully, that some sense of justice happened, right? It ended up happening that this individual was found guilty. And yeah, I don’t think that would have happened without COVID. I really don’t. So in- that’s the sense where I say COVID was a, you know, well, whatever, y’all fill it in, because I don’t want to say it! Because it wasn’t a good thing, but you know, it was helpful.
Jeff:
You know, you first started by saying stuff about the blind, visually impaired, people with disabilities and the COVID, you know, working from home. I mean, and now what do you got all the companies doing?
Thomas:
Exactly, exactly. What many people have been doing or been definitely asking for, right, folks have been seeking work at home opportunities. Why? Because transportation is not great, right? It’s often very difficult for people, depending on where they live, and that’s all people with disabilities, right? Then all of a sudden, yeah. No one can leave. Oh, we’re gonna make work from home an easy thing for everyone to do. Okay, you know, let’s hope that continues. Let’s hope that’s still an accommodation that folks don’t turn up their nose to, after things get back to quote-unquote normal.
Jeff:
I don’t think there’s going to be a new- well, a new normal, but I don’t think we’re going back. I think we’re moving forward.
Thomas:
Yeah. I believe that too. I’m hopeful. I’m hopeful.
Jeff:
Yeah, whether systemically how we look at society and racism and disabilities, all these communities, I don’t know if people being home, gave them time to sit back and think about it, and actually think about it without, you know, talking with all their friends and at the water bubbler, you know, blowing things off and just this, that, the other thing, but I think it gave people time to really think about themselves, think about their neighbors, think about the world differently.
Thomas:
Yeah, I hope so. And so when I said- I’ll be totally honest with you, Jeff, when I said optimistic about it, I was thinking more so from the perspective of work at home accommodations. When it comes to the relations and how we look at one another I want to be optimistic. That’s- I feel like I have to work more on that one. Like that takes more effort for me, you know, I’m a student of history. And I think I try to stay involved with the news and what’s happening, and there’s so many things that make me say oof, is this still so much work? So much work to be done? And I know there might be people, oh, well, look at what happened. We got a guilty sentence, Chovawn, Chauvin, how do you say his name? He was found guilty. Yeah, but they’re still- every day, every day during that trial. Every day during that trial, there was someone, a black person who was shot by a cop.
Jeff:
I’m from Minneapolis, we had the phones going off, the alarms at the curfew times. It was just, you knew it was gonna happen. You knew what was happening, but when your phone actually goes off and gives that sound, it’s a piercing sound, you know, it’s like, it should be piercing. You know, it’s like, wake up, you know?
Thomas:
Yeah.
Jeff:
This is real. This is real. It’s right here in River City. I mean, right here in Minneapolis, but Brooklyn Park, right across the river from me. You know, if I could see better, I could probably see the trees over there. Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Minneapolis, just a few minutes away, you know, so this area, it was interesting. My wife had to go down through Minneapolis, through the town, you know, it was real. I mean, It’s not just something happening somewhere else. It’s- and stuff is happening now in Louisville, and all over, all over, I should say, Ohio.
Thomas
I hope more people realize that, right? So because you are in the midst of it, right? You’re right there. But I’m wondering about folks who are still able to sort of look away, for whatever reason, right? For whatever reason, but you know, we’ll see. We’ll see what happens.
Jeff:
I’m glad you covered that topic, so it gives me a chance to listen to it. And I don’t have to worry about where this newspaper or this article or this news article on the TV is coming from, it’s coming from Reid My Mind Radio. So I know I’m getting an honest opinion here. Something that’s heartfelt. You have a passion for the story, you have a passion for the message, and it really shows.
Thomas:
Oh, good, good. I’m glad, because I definitely have passion for stories, and I have passion for people. You know, maybe that sounds corny, but I really do, like I love connecting with people, period. Because I think when we connect, it’s like, everything else doesn’t matter. Like I can- that’s why it’s, sometimes I have a really hard time when people say, oh, you have to appeal to this, appeal to that, you know, like, damn, aren’t we all people? And, again, I don’t mean that to sound corny. But hopefully people don’t take that, because, you know, I’m, like you said, I hope I do, and I do say the truth. And I’m glad you said that. And I say how I feel. But at the end of the day, like when I talk to people, I just love that, because there’s usually something to connect on. And when we can all be just cool and just relate to one another. It doesn’t mean that we have to love everything about each other, right? But there’s usually something that we can connect to and respect. Like, that’s the word for me. It’s just a respect. I don’t have to agree with your politics. But, man, if you respect me and I respect you, there’s a lot we can do with that. So that’s the vibe that I want to put out, and that I want to come back to me, so.
Jeff:
Yeah, an argument is not really a four letter word. It’s a form of debate. It’s a form of stating you’re arguing your side and someone else, you can still respect each other. They used to debate for four hours, you know? Hash it out, let’s see where it goes, you know?
Thomas:
Yeah. And I mean, you know, we, I think we all want to live, like we all just want to live and be with our families and be with our friends and just have an opportunity, just, you know, just have the same opportunities as everyone else. This idea that whether it be people with disabilities or anyone else, or any marginalized community, black people, whatever, want more than someone else does or are looking for handouts and stuff. It’s like nah, nah, we just, I think most people- it’s like that James Brown line, just open the door, I’ll get it myself. You know, just stop locking the doors and you know, that type of thing.
Jeff:
It’s funny you mentioned James Brown. I told someone one time we were going to do a podcast, you got to start it out like James Brown, just boom, right? First note, just boom.
Thomas:
On the one, baby.
Jeff:
I remember when I first started out, I think I was talking to Will Butler, he turned me on to Reid My Mind Radio. It goes way back. I think when you and I first started podcasting, it wasn’t a household name. What gave you that medium? What was that like? I suppose you had to tell people, I’m doing a podcast and they go, huh?
Thomas:
Yeah, yeah. What’s that? Now, well, I’ve been into podcasting as a consumer, since I’m gonna say like very close to the very, very beginning, right? I was listening to Adam Curry’s podcast, because it tied right into my vision loss and getting back onto a computer. And so for me, the computer was a way to access everything. You know, and like it is for so many people. But like, I had just moved from the Bronx out to where I live now in the Poconos. And so even just turning on the radio, where I get, it’s not a good signal, there weren’t the stations. So even on that level, there wasn’t great access. So getting on the computer I was looking for whatever I could find, and then that’s when I started to find these podcasts. And there was a pod catcher that I was using, and just grabbing whatever I could that looked interesting, and it wasn’t that much stuff, you know, remember, the early days, there weren’t that many things. But I fell in love with that really quick. I was like, whoa, this is cool. Like, this is pretty cool. This idea that you could just create audio, and then just easily get it out to people. So I knew, I knew I wanted to do something with that. Right? I had no idea what it was. And then I was also using a digital recorder, so the creation of audio started to happen more for me, because I was using the digital recorder like I would talk to, like I used to use a video recorder, and capture moments with my daughters. And then just being able to start editing, first that was with Goldwave, later on Reaper came about. And so yeah, so it was just all of that stuff in combination, doing, creating podcasts. I wasn’t calling it a podcast, because we didn’t have it on iTunes or anything at the time. But I was doing that for the Pennsylvania Council of the Blind, making a lot of different content for them. Yeah, but that was the beginning. But even during that process, I was like, oh, I want to create a podcast. I have no idea what it’s gonna be about, but eventually figured it out, and here we are.
Jeff:
Pennsylvania, Joe [unintelligible]. I remember that one.
Thomas:
Yeah, yeah, that’s my guy. Joe [unintelligible].
Jeff:
I go back-
Thomas:
I appreciate it.
Jeff:
Joe’s a good guy. Apple TV plus C Series.
Thomas:
Yeah, yeah, he’s the big guy at Apple. That’s what I’m calling him.
Jeff:
I want to congratulate you on your show, your message and all that. I’ve said that already. But you know, it’s substantial. It is substantial. But you’ve also, you know, with the microphone, you’ve also become a voice artist.
Thomas:
Yeah. Yeah. I think that was something that was in the back of my mind for quite some time. There’s some episodes where I was probably starting to throw that out into the universe. And yeah, the opportunity came about again. I’ve done some things before COVID, done a couple of projects before that. But again, COVID brought that opportunity about, and so really, really happy that between COVID and the podcast, in fact, those opportunities came about. And so I always like to shout out Eric Wickstrom, from IDC, who is the director of their audio description unit, and he was listening to the podcast, and he agreed with the idea that there should be more blind people narrating and believed that it could be done. He liked the production value of my podcast, so he realized, okay, he could do it. And so when COVID came around, it was great timing. Because yes, like we said earlier, everyone is working from home. And so he wanted to work out the process. And we talked about it, and we created the process, and the rest is history. So it led to that, and so I’m really appreciative of that. You know, I’m appreciative of it for my own personal gain, in terms of just having those opportunities, but I’m also appreciative because, you know, it created a process that he’s using with other blind folks who are doing narration and I think that’s awesome.
Jeff:
That’s really cool. I’ve heard you on Clubhouse, the 15%?
Thomas:
Probably too often.
Jeff:
Oh, no, no, you guys, you guys rotate it up a little bit here and there, but it’s good to hear. And, you know, I had someone contact me who said hey, you should turn on 15%, Thomas Reid, he’s a pretty good speaker there. And I said, yeah, I know him. I’ve heard his stuff. So I pop in there once in a while. A lot of different times, a lot of different schedules. There’s something for everyone I think, depending on which group is monitoring, but you guys tackle some good old topics there.
Unknown Speaker
Yeah, the 15% is really cool. I love how that sort of came about, too. I had met Adriana just on a- because of some inaccessibility with the app in the beginning. I was on Clubhouse in December. It was a challenge. It was definitely a challenge to get around with the unlabeled buttons, and just, you know, not being able to get back, you had to figure out that you had to turn off voiceover in certain cases, and hope you hit the right button, like all of that stuff. Yeah. So my focus on Clubhouse has been around the issue of access to the app for everyone, not just voiceover users. And we made some strides, we’ve been trying to work directly with Clubhouse, but we’ve been working with them, quote, and I put that “with” in quotes, because we’ve sort of been publishing what the issues were. And they kind of responded, but we never had a dialogue. And that’s sort of the thing that bothers me, to be totally honest with you. I’m not gonna lie about it. It bothers me, because I don’t understand why they wouldn’t want a dialogue. Because, again, and you know this, and we know this, right, that accessibility goes so beyond just one community. And we know that it would be not only helpful for the various disabled folks who need that access, but we know that it would end up helping everyone else and just making it a better product. And we’re only asking for like a few minutes of their time to have a conversation. And then, you know, and then we get these little shout outs, hey, thanks to the 15% Club, we improved the XYZ. And it’s like yeah, but why don’t you…why don’t we talk? Why don’t we have a conversation about it? So we’ve been having these conversations on Clubhouse with or without them, right? And it’s been without them. But it’s- to continue to keep accessibility in the minds of folks who are there. And I say that, and most of it occurs within the 15% Club, although it’s open to anyone else. But I think probably most of the people who come into those rooms are disabled, or identify in some way with that. And that’s important, too, because the strides that were made with Clubhouse have been for the voiceover community. But there’s a lot, there’s a lot there, right, this is folks with low vision who need some things to take place that will make it a better experience for them. There still hasn’t been anything done for the deaf and hard of hearing community. And we see that there were things done recently on TikTok, and the deaf community is using these hacks. And that’s really cool that we have to do that sometimes. But you know, it’s called the 15%. And so that’s the reference to all people with disabilities, right, around the world it’s supposed to be around 15%, it’s probably more than that. So it’s really important, I think, that we make sure that we’re always advocating for everyone. And I’d like to see more of that, like us all just kind of working together and supporting each other, not just within the blind community, not just within the deaf community, but let’s just, you know, work together and support access for us all. Because if one group doesn’t have it, well, you know, you’re not safe, man. You might get another app that’s not going to be accessible to you, or someday the same app might not be accessible to you and your needs, if there’s someone’s needs who aren’t being fulfilled. So that’s just my way of thinking.
Jeff:
That’s perfect. You know, someone explained to me what 15% meant, and I listened to them, but I don’t know, they said it represents the 15%, but the effort is to get out and talk to the 85%, to let them listen here. So then I thought, hmm, I think it’s a place for everyone to come together, but I don’t know how to say this, but I think there’s so many different opinions on Clubhouse that it’s hard to, you know, I take some things with a grain of salt. But when I drop into the room, I just listen to see what the topic is. And I listen to it and I gain something from it. And I really gain something when I do hear someone from a different disability than I have, you know, we all have a disability of some sort in there. And then there’s some people that are sighted that, well, I just like the topic and I never knew, you know, that- they didn’t know about a screen reader or voiceover or anything like that. So it is an opportunity to educate people.
Thomas:
Absolutely. Absolutely. There’s always that opportunity in a sense, but I’ll be honest with you, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong me saying this, I’ll say it, like my- and I’m not representing the club or anything when I say this, this is specifically my view. I’m sort of at a place now where- and I get the idea of wanting, for example, the non-disabled community to listen and to learn, but I don’t want to focus my efforts personally there, I find. I think I used to, I think I used to feel that that was the way, and maybe that’ll change. So I’m saying this as of whatever date today is. But I really do feel this way, that I’m more concerned with the community of people who are disabled, right now. Because I think there’s a lot that we can do, and maybe it’s because I’m getting older and I’m becoming like a, you know, curmudgeonly, whatever that word is, old man or something, I don’t know. But-
Jeff:
Wiser.
Thomas:
Maybe, right? Maybe. Thank you, Jeff. But I just don’t know if I want to put all my effort into them as much as I want to do into us, it’s sort of like that thing, like, if you want the world to change, you have to change yourself, right? So I think I’m kind of vibing with that right now. And so, you know, I want to put my effort into the community of people with disabilities, and let’s just do what we need to do, because we can never change them. But we can do some changing if we need to, and figure out how best to make this work for us. I think there’s more possibilities there for me personally. So that’s the way I’m thinking about it, and that’s kind of my approach to the- to everything that I’m trying to do right now.
Jeff:
Work with what you can.
Thomas:
Yeah.
Jeff:
Change what you can.
Thomas:
Exactly.
Jeff:
I like how you highlight so many people. You had a podcast that was called- what was it, Young, Gifted, Black, and Disabled.
Thomas:
Yes, sir.
Jeff:
And you had quite a few talents out there. And you brought- it kind of reminds me of the 15% because you didn’t just do people with visual impairments. That was good.
Thomas:
Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, no, I mean, the topic was right there, Young, Gifted, Black, and Disabled. Nah, that was some- what I call them, heavy hitters, right. Rasheera Dopson, D’Arcee Charington- D’Arcee Charington, boy, oh man, every time I talk to him, he leaves me with something to think about. So if folks didn’t listen to that, I’d say please go ahead and listen to that, and I’ll just highlight what he was talking about with Blade like that really made me stop, and man, what? I never thought about a movie that way. And yeah, so I love that, and shout out to AJ, who co-produced that episode with me. So he’s an amazing talent too.
Jeff:
Oh, and Blade, when he recited the speech, the “We’re still here.”
Thomas:
Yeah, no, no, that one was from The Matrix. But he was talking about- what he was saying is that Blade, which was never marketed or even, you know, considered, like the name, the word disability never came out. But he was saying how Blade was like a representation of black disability, because he viewed Blade as having a disability. And the way he broke it down was like, oh, my goodness, you’re absolutely right.
D’Arcee:
He’s a half vampire, half human being. He basically has some weird combination of sickle cell and an autoimmune disorder. I see it as a rare disease. He was working with a, wait for it, black woman, who was also a phlebotomist, she develops an immunotherapy that he inhales via an inhaler, that allows him to function.
Thomas:
Told you! When he breaks it down for you-
D’Arcee:
It affected me so deeply. I saw that movie and I was just like, this is a disabled black dude, who is a superhero who is saving people and he’s black AF! With his barber who makes his weapons, with his Camaro car with the high rims. It was a marriage of like, blackness, and disability, unlike anything I’d ever seen before. Black disabled people have already been there, but they’re not being discussed that way. Storm is a black disabled woman. If she were a real person, she has the same chromosomal disorder as a person with Down Syndrome. She just shoots lightning bolts out her eyes. She would be covered under the ADA, technically.
Thomas:
And just the way you have to think about that. It was really cool. And so he does that every time I talk to them, and it might be another movie or something else. I’m like, hey, wait, he’s right. So I love that. I love that.
Jeff:
Yeah, some of your guests out there. They all have a quote, like, I can’t remember all their names, one of them said “It’s been 400 years, give us a minute.”
Thomas (recording)
-their race, ethnicity-
Woman 2:
Hold on a minute, 400 years, we haven’t had the opportunity to do a lot of stuff. Take a seat for a moment, because I guarantee, your seat for a moment will not end up being 400 years. Then when we get to the place where everybody can do everything, that’s fine, but we’re not there yet, and we need to catch up. So give us a minute, okay?
Thomas (recording):
There it is.
Thomas:
I can tell you who that was. Inger Tudor, a voice actor? Yeah, she does audio description. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah, it’s the truth. People want to, sometimes people want to- this idea that change, okay, things are different now, everything is equal. No, come on. And folks are now learning that no, there’s systematic things that happen all the time, and you can’t expect things to be equal right now and just move on, just because one change has happened. So, yeah, yeah, I appreciate it. Jeff, you got the quotes man, I appreciate that.
Jeff:
Well, I’ve heard you for quite a few years here, you know, it’s always good, especially, you know, your style. I don’t want to say NPR or something, but you know, it’s a, it has a, it’s a story. It’s storytelling, you’re not just interviewing the person, they talk, you talk, they talk, it’s like there’s something hidden here and you got to flush it out. And I think when you’re editing it, then you do your narrative, you know, your voice artist work and even your songs, your music, Young Ant and Girl Gone Blind. You did some stuff there, too. But I think you’ve really polished up the presentation, the message, you know, typically they’re 30 minutes long, but you tell a story, you tell something, you don’t let people guess at it, you flush it out. You tell them what’s going on. So I really like that.
Unknown Speaker
Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, I think it’s about- well, there’s two things. Number one, I just don’t feel very comfortable, and I said this a bunch of times, but I don’t feel very comfortable, at least in the beginning, with my extemporaneous sort of talking, you know, people, people can grab a microphone, and just sound great to me, and have these conversations and the flow is just seamless, and the transitions are there naturally. Uh-uh, that doesn’t happen with me. So when I’m listening back to the interview, and to the conversation, I’m like, ugh, you know, I learn all of my idiosyncrasies. I’m like, I’m not putting that out. I don’t want people to hear me say those stupid things, right? So that was really the initial reason for doing the editing. But it also comes down to- there’s often things, you want to be respectful of people’s time, right? And, like, you know, yeah, let’s cut out all the stuff that you don’t need. Well, let’s cut out the repetition. And then let’s just make it sound cool. Let’s make it sound funky. And let somebody enjoy that and push it along, move the story along and add some things- I wish I had, I still want to get better at that and get better in the whole process, because like, honestly, I would love to just spend like a lot of time just doing that. The sound design and, and adding all the things that I would want to add and thinking about it. Like I love that part. But I love all of it, so.
Jeff:
It comes down to time, family- you got two daughters.
Thomas:
Yes, sir.
Jeff:
There’s some time right there, too.
Thomas:
Indeed, indeed. Although less now because they’re grown, you know, they’re grown and they’re moving on, and by this time, let me see, not this time, but in August, I will be a version of an empty nester because they’ll both be out of the house. My youngest is starting college and my oldest is going back to grad school.
Jeff:
Congratulations.
Thomas:
Thank you, thank you, yeah, so that’s a cool thing. If I can take a proud Papa moment, just proud for both of them, but the youngest one also just pretty much getting a full ride, Jeff, so I just want to say that’s amazing!
Jeff:
That’s cool. That’s really cool, you know, you always- that’s my kid. Yeah, and then she’ll graduate and she’ll- the camera will zoom in and she’ll say hi mom! What about dad?
Thomas:
You know, actually I’m gonna put my money on that she will definitely include that, because that’s just how we got- we’ve got down like that all our lives, so I put my money on the fact that they won’t leave me out, yeah. So- and I’m gonna make sure she hears this, if you include this I’m gonna make sure she hears this so she will have to, the both of them will have to, but no, I think I’ll be alright.
Jeff:
So it’s been quite a journey though, from what, 2004, cancer and you lost your eyesight, to today. Just the blindness aspect of it, plus family, plus, you can’t just, it all gets muddled together, doesn’t it? Sometimes having kids forces you to learn something a little better, a little more, adjust.
Thomas:
Oh yeah. Oh, yeah. My kids, yeah, they made me really look at my- so they continue to make me look at myself in more ways than one. My oldest one is always talking about the fact that I have a bald head and stuff, which used to be by choice. It’s not much of a choice anymore. No, I mean they’re so introspective, like naturally, and I guess it’s also the generation, and I just admire that. I think that is really, really cool, because I know it took me a while to become, you know, and I don’t even think I’m anywhere near them, but introspective like that and just self-aware the way they are, you know, both of them can just say hey, look, I need some time to be alone because I’m working on some stuff and I’m just, this is not the right time to talk. You know, and for me, like when I was that age, I probably stormed out the house, I was like, you know, doing some other things if I didn’t want to, I didn’t have those words, I didn’t know how to process those feelings. So I think a lot of that has- I’ve benefited from being a dad, from just kind of learning from them and watching them.
Jeff:
When you first started facing your blindness, you started an advocacy group. And I mean, it seems like you just took the bull by the horns a little bit here. And I’m sure there were moments you go through, but it seems like you, like you’re saying, you found podcasts back in the early days of- a form of getting information that once you got it, you didn’t have to worry about the bad reception or anything. You could download it and get it and go, so was your journey of learning assistive technology and the tools smooth?
Thomas:
Yeah, that was smooth. That was pretty smooth. I was fortunate. I had an IT background. So I was an IT developer, I was naturally interested, always interested in technology, and any chance to get my hands on a new piece of technology, I was gonna take it, I was one of those nerds, who was, you know, has subscriptions to the PC World and to these other magazines back in the day. And I was a nerd where I was reading magazines about computers before I had a computer. So I was like, wow, I can’t even afford one of these.
Jeff:
You knew “byte” was spelled b-y-t-e, right?
Thomas:
Yeah. You know, like, I remember the the magazines, like just, oh, like, we say, we talk about inspiration porn, it was like computer porn, because I would just look at the- first of all, the magazines used to be so pretty, I don’t know what they look like now, but they were so pretty looking, just they did tremendous graphics, and the coloring of it was just really pretty to look at. But these- anyway, I’m babbling about that. But-
Jeff:
It was a new world.
Thomas:
It was, it was and so to make that, you know, to align that with the conversation about access technology, so that was my mind frame already. So my goal, when I first lost my sight, was to get back to work. And so I figured, okay, I need to learn how to use a computer. And so I was ready to go, I was ready to go, I was, you know, I came home from the hospital, I’m like, okay, when, when can I get these appointments? When can we do that? And so it was like already self-advocating, right? Hurry up, let me get these appointments, let me get affiliated with the Bureau and all that stuff. So then yeah, when I had the opportunity to start learning it, it was great. I was just like, okay, give me the tools, give me some basic knowledge, and let me go home and play. And that’s what I did. And so I only had a few classes, but I was- again, I’m just gonna open up, you know, and JAWS at the time, and they still do, I mean, they do a great job with providing tutorials and all that stuff. And so a lot of that was like right there within the CDs that you received to install. So I just worked through all of that stuff. And then again, just putting it into practice, right. So I was able to get online. And initially, that was why I started my blog, because I just wanted to be able to practice stuff. And unfortunately, when I tried to get back to work and doing what I was doing, that’s when I was really introduced to inaccessibility. And in terms of the advocacy stuff, I was fortunate, I was really, really lucky to be able to get teamed up with some folks. I was in a support group out here for folks with vision loss. And it was like seven, eight of us who started the chapter of what became the chapter of the Pennsylvania Council of the Blind. We started the Monroe County Council of the Blind and that was mainly because we all were similarly minded, we were around the same age, there was some youthfulness there at the time. And we wanted to do things, we wanted to try to make some change we just wanted to- we wanted to do and there were a lot of other people who weren’t really in that mind frame. So we got together privately and sort of did what we did.
Jeff:
You were radicals.
Thomas:
Yeah, we were a little radical at the time. We definitely made some noise.
Jeff:
Probably a breath of fresh air though, sometimes, going through those chambers. You know what, I mean, the way things used to be, and it seems like right at the turn of the century here, you’re just talking 2004, 2010, right? There are big changes. There are big changes, what, this iPhone thing came about, you know, and another huge change, you know, pre-iPhone, you know, it was different, and then I remember when they first talked about this slab of glass, it was like, hmm. I just went huh, no buttons.
Thomas:
Yeah, exactly.
Jeff:
Thanks, Jobs. Thanks. But that, now look at where Apple is today, the technology that we have and students today! What a journey they have with the tools we have. But you know, I’m sure it’s just as challenging because everything else escalates as much as times did before, you know? I mean, just because we have an iPhone doesn’t make it easier. There’s more challenges because everyone has an iPhone. You know, I mean-
Thomas:
That’s right.
Jeff:
So what advice would you have for a student who is transitioning from high school to college and looking towards the workplace today?
Thomas:
Wow. Well, technology, obviously, right? And so, like you said, many of them are probably really, really good with their tech, but you have to continue, you have to learn what’s new, and when I say learn what’s new, I don’t think just learning- like, this is the way I feel about technology in general, not just learning it for the sake of learning the technology, but figuring out the application of that technology, and being good with that, right? How to apply these various tools that you have access to, and to make yourself marketable. I think that’s really, really important. Even before that, I’m a big proponent of doing what makes you happy, and, you know, kind of going for the things that you’re interested in, and I know that if it’s like when I was growing up, you know, when I was growing up it was the adults in my community were all about, you know, you do what’s gonna get you a job. And I get it, it’s practical, I get it, but I think there’s- especially if you’re of the mindset, if you’re a hustler, if you’re somebody who can kind of get out there and you’re gonna put the work in, then why not put the work into the things that you really enjoy? And I totally, totally believe that, and I think I’m sort of going with the universal thing, where the universe is gonna bring you to where you’re supposed to be if you’re fortunate, if you’re lucky. And so why not just start out with what it is that you want to do and where you’re trying to go, you know what I mean? And just focus- because then at that point you can put everything else that you’ve learned, so the idea of using your technology, the idea of all the great advice about how to talk to people and use your personal skills, all that stuff comes into play. But man, if you’re doing what you love, like that to me is the goal, so why not just start there, you know?
Jeff:
Yeah, that’s great advice. I really like- I’m taking away a lot from this interview already, I’m the first to take away from it because it hasn’t, doesn’t exist yet, really, but what you said about learning the technology, learning the tools, not just, okay, this is how it works, but applying them to you and making yourself marketable for the job, you know, these tools aren’t things that we can just play with, oh, we can do this, we can do this, but what can you do with that tool that you can sell yourself, that you can go out and say I can do that, and those tools are just, they’re tools, they’re not toys.
Thomas:
Exactly.
Jeff:
I mean, yeah, we all have our toys.
Thomas:
Like a young person- yeah, yeah, there’s nothing wrong with a toy. There’s nothing wrong with a toy. But, you know, like a young person, I would love to see like a young person who walks into a company and is like hey, I’ll just take Clubhouse, whatever, and they come up with idea for this particular business on how to use Clubhouse, and it’s gonna generate business for them or something, that’s not being done, you know what I mean? Things like that, things like that, that’s awesome. That’s gonna stick out, and it’s gonna be noticed as someone who can create and someone who can think, you know, you can train anybody in anything, we know that so many things- AI, right? Technology is training anything to be done by a computer, so you better stand out.
Jeff:
What are some of your tools on a daily basis, do you use? Assistive tools.
Thomas:
Assistive? I mean, the two- really the main two are my iPhone, I don’t go anywhere, I barely leave my room without my iPhone.
Jeff:
It’s embedded.
Thomas:
Yeah, it is a part of my hand. My screen readers, and I say screen readers because I use both JAWS and NVDA, I’ve been trying to get away from JAWS, but JAWS is like that, you know, I try to get away, they keep pulling me back!
Jeff:
It’s a workhorse, yeah.
Thomas:
It’s a workhorse, and it’s also because I’m just ingrained in the shortcuts and everything that I do, I’m just, you know, no matter what I do it’s just so hard to- I don’t know, no matter what I do it’s getting harder to teach this old dog new tricks when it comes to his screen reader, but I’m trying. I didn’t renew JAWS just yet because I’m still trying to get to NVDA, so we’ll see. But whatever does the job.
Jeff:
Efficiency too, though, and I mean, you want to get the job done, you don’t want to sit there for three hours going round and round, you want to get it done in 20 minutes and move on.
Thomas:
Yeah. But I used to be the guy who would just kind of, you know, find something new and just get it, and that’s not happening.
Jeff:
Kind of like when you left Goldwave and went to Reaper. There must have been a learning curve there that, ah, I can just get this! That’s why I never bootcamped Microsoft into my Mac, because I know what I would be doing. I would switch right back. I was a JAWS user for 13, 14 years, and then I got into audio, so I got a Mac and I said no, I’m not gonna do it, because I’ll switch back to it. I’ll switch back to it.
Thomas:
Ah, okay. So, what do you use on the Apple side?
Jeff:
I’ve got an iMac, I’ve got a Macbook Pro. I’ve got the orchard.
Thomas:
In terms of audio, though.
Jeff:
I use something that’s old. I’m an AS Pro, and you know, for doing voice work like podcasts and stuff, it works. I mean, I really like the undestructive nature of Reaper, like you’ve got a gigabyte, a file, and you write instructions, it’s still a gigabyte, where in Amadeus Pro or Goldwave or something, you save, you save, you save, now you’ve got seven gigabytes because you’ve got seven versions, and you have to get rid of all that other stuff, it’s problematic, a little bit, that way, but you know, I’ve been using it and I just took some lessons on Reaper, so now I’ve got to go home and practice like you said, you’ve got to take those three hours and spend time using the machines, and that’s good advice for anybody that’s just newly blind or once you get a tool. It’s not cool just to get the tool just to have it, but use it, sit down and play, go home and practice.
Thomas:
Yeah, the best way to learn. The best way to learn is- well, you have to practice with something that you’re interested in, you know? Or you think you’re interested in, and figure all of those things out together.
Jeff:
Just like you, you’re interested in music, and sound, you got the podcast, took all of that voice artistry, and you’re still doing it. You carried through with it, that’s cool.
Thomas:
Yeah. I have to, right, like I’m in the second- that sounds terrible, but I’m in the second part of my life, the last part, I mean, you know, the last half, right? I don’t think I’m gonna go past 100, so I just gave you my age. But like, you know, why not? Why not do the things you really want to do? I don’t want to have those regrets. I really don’t.
Jeff:
You just gotta believe. Believe, apply yourself, and do it. I don’t always ask this, but I bet you have a quote- which quote, do you have a quote that you love? Or 20 of them?
Thomas:
I have a file that has quotes, but the first quote- so I’ll give you this quote that always stays in my mind, and it’s not the traditional quote, it’s not a traditional quote that folks would probably ever think of, so I’ll be different in that sense, but it’s a quote that comes up a lot, and it’s from Chuck D of Public Enemy, so a rap group. And it’s the opening line to a song called “Welcome to the Terror Dome.” And it’s “I got so much trouble on my mind, refuse to lose.” And so it goes on, but just that part right there, that was sort of the quote that was running around, and occasionally runs around, but was definitely running around with- when vision loss first appeared for me. And it says it right there, I got a lot of trouble on my mind, so much trouble on my mind, but I refuse to lose. And that’s it.
Jeff:
That’s great.
Thomas:
I refuse to lose.
Jeff:
It’s great that you found that.
Thomas:
Yeah. And just, that’s a loss as I see it, right? So what is loss to whoever is using the quote, whoever is listening to that, you define your own lose, like I’m not in competition with anyone or anything like that, I just refuse to lose by my definition.
Jeff:
Thomas Reid, Reid My Mind Radio podcast, check it out. Thomas, I want to thank you so much for coming on here and talking, and taking this little interview, extemporaneous as it was, you did it, you knocked it out.
Thomas:
Yeah, see, you did it, you had those nice transitions, like that’s what I’m talking about, that was all- no, I’m serious! And that you have to think on your feet, and you have to make it smooth. My transitions are so corny, like yours are great. Yours is great!
Jeff:
I actually, I spent a couple hours before this coming up saying I got Thomas Reid coming on, Thomas Reid, Reid My Mind, I just had all this stuff going through, I though you would just interrupt and go what is Jeff thinking? People.
Thomas:
You know, I thought about it. I appreciate this, Jeff, this was fantastic, man, I really enjoyed this.
Thomas (recording):
Hey, email reidmymindradio@gmail.com, or call 570-798-7343 and leave a voicemail. You want to stay updated? Subscribe wherever you get podcasts. Transcripts and more are over on reidmymind.com. That’s r to the e-i-d, d and that’s me and the place to be-
Jeff:
Be sure to check out the Reid My Mind Radio podcast, Thomas Reid, thank you so much for coming on. Such a great interview, such a great time sitting down and chatting with you. And people, he just released another Reidcap, it’s the first half of 2021, end of the season there, and his new season will start up in July, so check it out, Reid My Mind Radio. And for more podcasts with a blindness perspective, check us out on www.blindabilities.com, on Twitter @BlindAbilities, and download the free Blind Abilities app from the app store and Google Play store. If you want to give us some feedback or just want to chat, give us a call at 612-367-6093, we’d love to hear from you. And from all of here at Blind Abilities, to you, your family, and friends, stay well, and stay strong. I want to thank you for listening, hope you enjoyed, and until next time, bye-bye.
[Music] [Transition noise] -When we share
-What we see
-Through each other’s eyes…
[Multiple voices overlapping, in unison, to form a single sentence]
…We can then begin to bridge the gap between the limited expectations, and the realities of Blind Abilities.
Contact Your State Services
If you reside in Minnesota, and you would like to know more about Transition Services from State Services contact Transition Coordinator Sheila Koenig by email or contact her via phone at 651-539-2361.
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