My teeny little office got turned into a full-blown production line this week when the Checkered Eye Project got flooded with orders from across… View More

I was prompted by a reader to get back on the horse and write something current for this blog – thanks Robert! Here’s some great news… The Checkered Eye Project (CEP) is now officially registered as a Not For Profit Corporation. This means we can potentially qualify for grants, will have better chances of receiving monetary support from the… View More

Years ago, there was a public service announcement on tv. It was put out by an agency that provides services to blind people. I believe it was inspired by my requests for them to help with the awareness effort for the checkered eye symbol for low vision. One of their reasons for not helping was that there is a symbol for blindness already; the white cane. I acknowledged that and told them that I use… View More

YOU’RE GOING THE WRONG WAY! ARE YOU BLIND! Image description: an angry exasperated emoji face. There are signs posted everywhere. There are arrows… View More

Each year during Canada’s White Cane Week the Checkered Eye Project does a little extra awareness boost. Our main focus is of course ensuring that as many people as possible understand that if they see someone wearing the checkered eye symbol, it means that person is communicating the fact that they are on the blindness spectrum. We also include information about the different kinds of white canes… View More

In a brain storming session for some awareness posters related to the checkered eye, it was suggested that we address the question: okay, now I know what it means, what do I do? My immediate reaction was “nothing”. Wearing a checkered eye or carrying an I.D. cane is not supposed to elicit action from onlookers. It is to add the little bit of… View More

I'm going to pull a 60 ton plane across the tarmac by myself! I'm getting a bit cranky about how slow this awareness effort is going so I've decided to ramp things up a bit.  Here's a press release I've been sending out in hopes of catching some attention: Partially sighted Grandmother to single handedly… View More

In Ontario we have a law called the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act or AODA. Part of what is now required of businesses in Ontario is to have a policy stating how they will manage accessibility issues. As a person with a vision disability access to information is a major challenge for… View More

On Sunday, May 6th, 2018,I had a ball at the first ever Checkered Eye Ball! Five different bands performed and kept everyone grooving. People were interested in the blindness simulations. The Old Nick, a downtown Toronto bar where we held the event, had a busier than usual Sunday, and the Checkered Eye Project told some more folks that people wearing the checkered eye symbol are on the blindness spectrum. We gave away and sold some… View More

Today for the first time ever I walked uptown and back carrying my white ID cane the whole time.  I’ve had one for many years and used it lots when I’m travelling  on my own but never here in my home town.  I still don’t need it to feel my way around but since my sight has deteriorated a bit recently and I’ve been having a bit more trouble determining whether or not there is a car coming, I decided it’s safer to use it than not.… View More