As a person who has been disabled their whole life I have gotten used to many ableist interactions throughout my life, I have become a pro at handling the awkward, intrusive comments or questions and so much more. Including staring which doesn’t often bother me, because I understand that people can just be curious and sometimes its better than inturupting my conversation. Or they may not even realize they are doing it because they are in their own world. But todays staring incident really rubbed me the wrong way, I was on my way to the post office and this man on the street was leaning against a store that I was walking by. I could feel his eyes on me, so I turned and I see his mouth open, gawking at me, mind you this a grown man. So, I smiled hoping that would brake him out of this weird trance, but no he just kept on staring. At this point he is craning his neck to follow me, and observe me in my wheelchair. When you actually have to change positions to stare, maybe that should be a sign to stop staring! I am not a zoo animal to be gawked at, I am a person just going about my day! How would you like it if I just stared at you as you walked around mobility aidless? I doubt that he intended to make me feel like a zoo animal, but he really did just transport me back to when I was 5 and hadn’t learnt to ignore the eyes following me yet. It just really pisses me off that I have worked so hard to feel comfortable in my own skin, to be a good disability advocate and adapter but that man was able to make me feel so small so quickly.