The "Blue Vs. Green" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Playing my green #6 on top of Carol's red #6.  Jerry is next and he plays a blue #5.  "You can't do that," I tell him.  He responded with, "It's the same color so why can't I play it?"  I've known Jerry almost all my life.  We went to Brecht Elementary School together and were in the same classes most of our public school life.  Not only that, we lived about two blocks away from each other and played tackle football at the nearby train station together with the team from his block playing the team from my block.  In high school he helped me rebuilt the engine in my very first car, a 1953 Henry J.  But, it took a game of Uno when we were both in our 60's to find out that my childhood and lifetime friend was colorblind.  Luckily he never wanted to be an airplane pilot, electrician, house painter, interior decorator, chef .... etc. .... since he could never have been because you need to distinguish between colors to be successful in those types of occupations.  We both were teachers and as long as the chalk you were using to write on the board was white, you had no problems.  Most people think that being colorblind is a mild inconvenience, but it can impact your life's work or how you dress or even being able to stop at a stop light.  And, did you know that 1 in every 12 men or 1 in every 230 women are colorblind.  Hard to believe that 1 out of every 12 guys playing football on a Sunday afternoon might not be able to distinguish between uniform colors or 1 in 12 male city drivers can't tell if they should stop or go if they might encounter a traffic light that runs horizontal rather than the traditional vertical or 1 in 12 males playing a game of Uno not knowing whether to play a green or blue card.  There may be an awful lot of people who feel like their life is ruined because they don't see color as other do.  The trouble occurs when people are born without one or more of the three types of color-sensing proteins normally present in the cones of the retina.  For the ten million people in the USA who have colorblindness there has never been a treatment, much less a cure, for their problem.   That is until now!  A husband and wife team from the University of Washington have teamed up with a California biotech company to develop a gene-therapy that may cure colorblindness.  Wow!  It's in it's initial stages, but some day soon, through the use of a single shot in the eye, those with colorblindness may be able to see the world in full color for perhaps the first time ever.  Google Jay and Maureen Neitz and read about how they plan to help those who have red-green or yellow-blue colorblindness be able to see in colors of the rainbow.  I have read about it and don't feel qualified to write more than I have about it, but if you Google it you may be able to see exactly how their discoveries will help those like my friend Jerry be able to play a simple game of Uno without being criticized about playing the wrong color card.  I will admit thought that Jerry didn't let it bother him when we play and get a good laugh when he plays some crazy card that makes no sense.  Same for me when I can't understand something we are talking about when I forget to put my hearing aides in my ears.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.