The Extreme Annoyance of Extreme Temperatures

I am writing to you today from the seventh circle of hell, also known as Montreal in the midst of its umpteenth heat wave of the summer. I shouldn’t complain, my mom says all the time, because in a few short months it’ll be cold and snowy. And it’s true, Montreal winters are just as terrible. But I still do complain. Because I’m Canadian and complaining (politely) about the weather is what we do best.

But apart from the discomfort of ridiculous extreme weathers—tail ends of tropical storms to blizzards, heat waves to cold snaps—, does the temperature actually have an effect on my disability?

Yes and no.

Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier

A few weeks ago, I went to Place des Arts, Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, to see the Riverdance 25^th Anniversary Show. I am strangely fascinated by things my legs could not do in a million years, and those tap-dancing Irish gods and goddesses did not disappoint.

The venue, however, did.

Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve

Last September, for my 30^th birthday, I was fortunate enough to receive two tickets to the Montreal Formula 1 Grand Prix, on June 9, 2019. And not just any tickets; tickets to accessible stands, built especially for disabled spectators. I didn’t even know such stands existed, so I was looking forward to seeing them!