Vegas Pool Time

VEGASSSS!!!!!! What an amazing time was had by all. Now, I am NOT going to go into detail about the whole trip but I wanted to share a small story of the weekend. It was one of those "wheelchair moments" that sneak up and catch you by surprise. With that being said on with the story....

So we stayed at The Flamingo, which was a pretty accessible hotel (minus the thick carpet) and is HUGE! Like most places the accessible ramps take some searching to find, but overall I was pleased with my access to everything. On Saturday we went to the pool to catch some rays. First I had to take this ramp up to the smaller pool that was super over grown and felt like I was going to be raped (my dramatic girl brain at work). Once we made it into the pool we decided to claim our chairs. But we couldn't find the ramp down to the actual pool part. After being bumped up and down (which means the girl carried my up and down three steps) the stairs a few times one of the life guards showed me to the ramp to get to the actual pool. It is was completely hidden and I needed to be escorted by an employee who knew the codes for the security gates. Which that isn't a big deal because I am used to having to deal with being taken in or out in a super secret path. So after a few hours, making new awesome friends and cocktails in the pool it was time for me to use the restroom which I had to go up the longest/secret ramp to get to there. I asked the lifeguard to let me through the gates. She let me through the first gate and I couldn't remember the exact way but before I remembered the second gate the lifeguard had disappeared. I was in this courtyard area and no one in the pool area could see me because the fencing was all covered. I reached in to my wristlet for my cell but I had left it on my lounge chair. I started getting frustrated, so I decided to set out to get back to the front of the pool. I was mad that I was going to have to wheel around in just my suit and back to the front entrance of the pool. Well as I began to look for a way out I quickly realized the only way down was stairs... my heart sank. I was in a courtyard surrounded by fencing and stairs and no way to contact my girls. I had to take a second to gather myself and figure out how to get myself out of this situation because really even if the girls figured out I was missing they would have no clue where to find me. I was 24 years old and trapped like a child. I was incredibly scared and frustrated that I was in this position. I should be able to go to the bathroom without an escort. I wanted to throw myself on the ground screaming and crying. After what felt like an hour I noticed a building I could get into and hoped someone was in there to help. Thank the good lord there was a girl working and she was able to let me back into the pool area. By this time I was about to pee my pants and I had to scoot into the restroom. Did my business and returned to the party only to find out I was gone for a long time and my sister had gone looking for me. We found each other and continued on with the party. I didn't let the moment ruin my fun and quickly forgot about the bull shit. The time at the pool ended up being the best time of the whole trip.

I am not writing this looking for pity but to be able to show you all just how frustrating this life is. My daily life is filled with moments like what happened at the pool. It is incredibly hard to be an adult and know that there are times when I can't be alone or be completely independent. There are times when I just want to be able to do whatever I want or be carefree but I am always quickly reminded that the wheelchair removes all possibility of being carefree. It is a hard life but this life allows me to never take the good times for granted.