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On this week’s show, Mastodon has been buzzing with the news that Voice Dream Reader will charge an annual subscription for those who don’t yet own the app. We discuss the pros and cons of app subscription models in general, and look at what contributed to a PR debacle in this specific case.

In many of our cities, they’re everywhere, making our lives difficult. Blind people have tripped over them, been given a blow to the stomach by a handlebar, and even been knocked over and seriously injured by them. E-scooters are making life hell for many of us. What’s it like where you are, and what’s being done to promote and restore pedestrian safety?

It has been yonks, many many yonks I say, since we’ve had a Bonnie Bulletin. She’s back this week to start chronicling all the hoops she has to go through to get Eclipse, the dog to eclipse all dogs, back into the country when she heads off on holiday to the United States. She also discusses a podcast that’s got her thinking about crimes where blind people are the victims. Are police sometimes less inclined to thoroughly investigate crimes because of low expectations of blind people. We would be interested in hearing your experiences.

There’s plenty of tech in the mix, including a thoughtful contribution on the ultimate Braille device, wireless mesh systems so you can have pristine Wi-Fi coverage all over the house, and reading poetry allowed when you’re not a Braille reader.

All this and much more coming up this week on Living Blindfully.