So today I lost my voice. Woke up with a splitting headache and my ears were sore and my throat was killing me. I talked to the BF on the phone for an hour while I was driving the #VanLife van when it just hurt too much. 2 hours later, *poof!*, no more voice. (I’m sure that would make some of you happy, you f*ckers.) So I figured I’d just rest and let the Excedrin Migraine do its thing. Meanwhile, after leaving the @WalmartStores with said pills, I saw this amazing old motorhome parked next to me. Pictures were taken, but before I posted them to @Instagram, I wanted to find out exactly what it was. So, I preemptively typed out (on my phone) “This is beautiful, what is the year/make/model? What tranny? Also, your power cord is hanging down, just FYI.” So then I knocked on the door and this 50-something lady said “What?” in a not-so-friendly way. I waved, smiled and then pointed to my phone and put it up against the screen. She says “I can’t read that, what do you want?”. So I handed her the phone through the little slider that she had opened on the screen door. She looked surprised that I would pass her my phone. She read it and then said “Are you deaf or just dumb?” I shook my head kind of in disbelief that someone would be so insensitive, inconsiderate. But she took that as a “No, just dumb”, I guess, because then she said “Well good, at least you can hear me.” (Wow.) So then she asks her husband who answered everything and then she says “Yeah I know the cord is hanging out.” No “thank you”, no kindness in her anywhere. I signed to her “Thank You” in ASL, which I swear every hearing person knows for some reason and she said “Yeah, no problem. And you’re not the first to take pictures of it. I saw you out there taking pictures with your phone. I should delete them (she still had my phone) but since you can’t talk I guess you share stuff with your friends with pictures. Then she gave me my phone back. I smiled, signed “Thank You” again and then bent down and pet her little dog’s head through the screen door… you know, jail-style. When I was walking away I thought to myself what a b*tch that woman must be. She was nasty to a person she thought had a disability? I felt sorry for her.

Fast forward 2 hours later when I was at an Arby’s drive-thru. I realized I couldn’t place my order so I drove to the window and typed what I wanted to order. “The big-*ss roast beef with tomato and lettuce. I don’t know what it’s called… Thank You”. The lady read it and said, “OK hun, is there anything else?”. I shook my head “no” and she goes “Hold on a sec…”. Then she came back, told me how much it was and asked if I wanted Arby’s sauce and catsup. I held up my finger saying “1”. She goes “Of each or just the first one- Arby’s sauce…?”. I nodded to the “Just Arby’s sauce” option. She says “You got it, be right back.” When she came back she had an extra nice smile on her face and told me I was a cutie and to drive safe. I signed “Thank you.” and went to a shady spot to pig-out. When I was done being a #BigFatF*ckingPig, I saw there was something else in the bag. It was a cherry cheese yummy desert thingie. How damn sweet was that?! So, I grabbed one of the very cool folded thank you cards that my friend Kirby made for me (to write out and give to people I met along my travels to say thank you…) and I walked into Arby’s. The guy behind the counter gave me a pen and I slid the card up and wrote “Thank You so much. You are a very sweet person.” And I drew a heart. And then signed it “@VocalVirgo”. I handed it to the guy and pointed to the drive-thru window. He smiled and said “Sure thing.” And as I was walking away I heard him call out her name and say “That kid brought this in for you.” As I was walking back to the van I was hoping it would make her day as much as she made mine.

See, it took less effort for the lady at Arby’s to be amazing than it took for the mean lady to be… well… kinda’ mean and rude.

This was just one day with no voice. Imagine the hurdles the hearing impaired or mute folks have to go through on a daily basis in this world. #LoveOneAnother.