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Beth, This is WAR!!! You wrote in part: ---------- > I'm finding simple things like shopping and paying my bills more and = more > embarrassing. I feel such a goon when I can't put away my change; when > my left hand refuses to release the goods when it - and I! - arrive at > the checkout; when things just won't go into the silly bags I'm sometim= es > left to stuff them into; and when staff give me 'that' look that is > somewhere amongst impatience/exasperation/frustration/pity. Beth. PD is your problem, Bad manners is theirs!!!!! If you really need to take the offensive try "I have Parkinsons Disease, Sorry if my disability has inconvenienced you." It usually gets you the = moral high ground. Better yet is knowing that if you are the biggest problem they are going = to face today they are really very lucky. This lets you look at them with a sweet= smile. That really throws them. >But let's just say I'm feelin' it. And I don't like it. Question: What can't get its words out, and shakes with more than rage? Answer: A parkie with attitude! Beth it is all I can do to get my own head in the right place, but at lea= st that is a battle I can win. I was recently invited to speak on PD to the stud= ents at my local TAFE college. My address coincided with a meeting of the principals of all the SE district campuses. These senior educators fille= d the 10+ disabled parking bays thoughtfully provided by the college. Have you ever= tried finding parking in a TAFE parking lot at 10 am. My point is that as a rule society is happy to provide facilities to the = disabled AS LONG AS WE DON'T INCONVENIENCE ANYONE TO MUCH. Its going to take a long time to change society so we better get a grip of ourselve= s first. Hell, I'm no inconvenience, I'm a chance for a non parkie to shine. Go get 'em!! Dennis Dennis Greene [log in to unmask]