[nfb-db] A medium length report on my first turn in American sign language class at Portland community college.

[Darlene Laibl-Crowe]

Oh, yeah...that 5th guy, he....LOLz

Yes, I finished contracted in April or May of 2012.  I was appointed by the
governor to a board where I travel to various places in the state.  I always
Braille my agenda and use it to follow along while I am on the board.  I
represent Deaf-Blind Flolridians.  I use Braille in combination with
everything else.  I also have a Brailliant for my laptop and iPhone!  Yep, I
have an iPhone!  I have grown up!  LOLz

You are the BEST Braille teacher ever!  So glad to see you writing articles
and I want to learn more!

(smile)
Darlene

-----Original Message-----
From: nfb-db [mailto:nfb-db-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Scott Davert
Sent: Wednesday, March 19, 2014 4:17 AM
To: NFB Deaf-Blind Division Mailing List
Subject: Re: [nfb-db] A medium length report on my first turn in American
sign language class at Portland community college.

Hi Darlene.
Wow, I'm glad to hear that you have completed contracted braille. I know
that braille was quite a struggle for you for quite some time, so I know
this was a huge accomplishment for you! Just be sure to remember what the
5th guy did after the 4 walked  in to a bar! Big smiles.

Scott

On 3/18/14, Darlene Laibl-Crowe <dlaiblcrowe at att.net> wrote:
> Hello!  I think it is great that you took the liberty to learn ASL as 
> a blind person.  Yes, it isn't easy.  I, too, learned ASL last year.  
> I took two semesters of it at my local college.  The college provided 
> an interpreter who also became my tutor to work with me between 
> classes.  The students in the class were very helpful and wanted to 
> know about the Deaf Blind population.  All of these students were 
> sighted and hearing and they were so patient with me.
>
> There is much to learn and understand about the Deaf World.  First it 
> is a visual language.  The Wh Face that you mentioned is an example of 
> having to use facial expressions...the lifting of the eyebrow and so 
> on are parts of clearly understanding the sign.  But for someone that 
> is blind, that isn't possible so we must read between the lines.
>
> It is important that we take the time to learn whatever we can to help 
> us in our journey as a Deaf Blind person that includes Braille.  So 
> many who are like me that lose their vision as adults and have been 
> Hard of Hearing all their lives tend to not want to do this.  By the 
> way, I am in my mid-50s...and it took me a while to accept the fact 
> that I am Deaf Blind.
>
> When I was first approached to learn Braille, I lost the desire to 
> learn after the first couple of work books from Hadley and it was 
> because I still had some residual vision.  And it was also because I 
> couldn't understand the concept of the way Braille was taught.  About 
> 4 years later after I lost the ability to read large print, I tried to 
> learn Braille again.  This time I asked to learn it as I know the 
> alphabet...a, b, c and so on.  I also made notes of where the dots are 
> placed.  This helped me to have a guide to follow as I learned the 
> Braille.  A year and half later I finished Braille Literacy 4 
> (contracted Braille) and I am so thankful I have learned this.
> I
> use Braille often.  I am still not a fast reader but I can read it.  
> It takes practice, practice and more practice.  The same with ASL...
>
> Now that I also know ASL, I have to practice, but at the moment, I 
> don't have many that I can interact with this way but knowing 
> fingerspelling I should be able to communicate with the Deaf in the 
> future.  I know you will do well in the next semester, Maurice!  The 
> important part is that you stepped out of your comfort zone to learn 
> something to continue in your effort to know how to best communicate with
others!
>
> Keep up the good work!!!  Proud of you!!!
>
> (smile)
> Darlene Laibl-Crowe
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfb-db [mailto:nfb-db-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of maurice 
> mines
> Sent: Tuesday, March 18, 2014 12:37 AM
> To: NFB Deaf-Blind Division Mailing List
> Cc: Naryhelen
> Subject: [nfb-db] A medium length report on my first turn in American 
> sign language class at Portland community college.
>
> Good evening everybody, now that is the night before my final in this 
> American sign language class I've a few observations that I'd like to 
> share with the group first of all doing this as a blind person was 
> hard of hearing is definitely not easy. But I'm finding the more work 
> I put into it the better things tend to go. I certainly would say that 
> I really do think the instructor for her encouragement and the tutors 
> and interpreters for answering many of my questions. I think that now 
> that it's the end of the term I now have gotten a handle on how to 
> make certain that I remember size but it am working very hard these 
> days on internalizing those signs so that eventually they become 
> second nature not something that I have to really think about. And of 
> course I think do better and not mixing signs up such as the WH 
> science, I think once I get things like that straight in my head that 
> will help me somewhat. The two deaf community events that I did go to 
> the Washington state school for the deaf without an interpreter, but I 
> did get some auditory things such as at the basketball tournament what 
> I thought would be ones that of behaviors, turn out to be completely 
> the opposite of what I thought they would be. Let's just say lots of 
> foot stomping. And when I arrived at this event I ran into the deaf 
> schools human resources person.
> Who immediately asked me if I'd gone through the school for the blind. 
> I said yes, a small amount of history here for a few years the school 
> for the blind and the school for the deaf in the state had the same 
> business office which handles financial and personnel matters and also 
> some of the food that the two schools consume.
>
> Things that still somewhat make me somewhat nervous that occurred at 
> that basketball tournament while I think it was helpful for a deaf 
> person to mark ahead of myself and a classmate asking that the year in 
> which my cane had to our kin be cleared. Most of us on this list would 
> ask the question while did McCain meant to find obstacles? But I 
> think, when one looks at it from a blindness point of view that would 
> be the first thing that would pop into our head. But if one looks at 
> it from a deaf culture point of view I think it just boils down to 
> being nice and having good manners. The last event is past quarter 
> that I went to was a deaf poetry reading competition at the same 
> school for the deaf, one of my classmates describe both the pole in 
> the accompanying video presentation to me.
>
> We are however working on some changes to these community events in 
> the future. PCC, said that they will be in an interpreter assigned to 
> go with me for writing back notices given far enough ahead. And 
> because I live in Washington state not Oregon, I'm asking for some 
> weekend tutoring put together by the state of Washington's umbrella 
> agency which apparently is what the Deford served under. Where's the 
> agency for the blind is paying for the classes in might pay for 
> one-on-one tutoring if it is needed. Or the deaf agent C will pay for 
> the tutoring on the weekend only. These two latter things are still in 
> the finalization stage. So hope to talk more about that in the next 
> quarter's note. I guess when one looks at how things work in the 
> classroom, for the most part I think things went the way that it 
> should think towards the end of my classmates when we had signed to 
> each other time essentially tried their best, but because I'm new, I 
> think I was some things that I that I normally would catch when it's 
> the instructor during the signing. But I think that's to be expected. 
> And the interpreters I think it an outstanding job Amy were all 
> learning how to do it yourself from the deaf blindness perspective. 
> And I would say that is a definite work in progress.
>
> Now that I've written all of that what I'm asking is for some 
> suggestions from some of you about what you guys think might be 
> helpful during the next term. I will be watching this list during 
> spring break which for me starts as soon as I take the final tomorrow 
> morning. Does one ever get to a point when one is signing spot up 
> sentences just to remind one where ASL syntax is supposed to be? And 
> of course as I stated earlier realizing that one is still mixing up 
> the WH signs. But of course knowing what a lot of work that that will 
> eventually go away. I guess I can say one thing uncertainty not 
> nervous about signing anymore. Just need to continue practicing, 
> practicing, practicing.
>
> And of course thinking about Federation spirit and determination to 
> see this endeavor through. The other thing I think that has been 
> brought home to me, not just me but all of us in the deaf blind 
> division where possible to try reaching out to the deaf community at 
> large, to start a dialogue that just like we're doing with the general 
> public find a way to explain to them that blindness is not the tragedy 
> that society at large makes it out to be. And if we do find someone 
> who is becoming deft line that when in wherever possible if they want 
> to help them ease into the community. Because I think it will help 
> whatever we wish to do in terms of national legislation and work 
> policy suggestions would be helpful. I think the adage that Rome was 
> not built in a day, a week or a year, definitely holds true here. 
> Remember our adage please don't take this the wrong way though, we may 
> lose the battle every now and then but we shall win the war 
> eventually. Stated another way I think all of us if we can should 
> start taking ASL classes so that we can talk with the death is much as 
> possible without filters so that we can truly understand each other's 
> issues so that we can find common areas to work on. Such as RSS. 
> Resolution and making sure that death line kids, get the education 
> that they need and deserve. We in the national Federation of the blind 
> have fought for that for blind people for many years. And those of us 
> in the deaf blind division should fight for that for the deaf blind.
> respectfully submitted, Maurice mines.
> national Federation of the blind of Washington Park County chapter 
> secretary.
> Voicemail phone 360-524-0791.
> School/work email address, Maurice.mines at PCC.edu.
>
> Now I must go to sleep so that I can actually be awake to get through 
> the final exam in the morning. Because I unfortunately have a smooth 
> the commute to the campus. Also please note that I'm using Dragon 
> dictate version 3 to dictate this message there may be some phrases, 
> or syntax that may be incorrect. If portions of this email are 
> incorrect please know that it is either the software, or the dictation 
> process. If you don't understand something please let me know.
>
> Yours in Federation is him Maurice.
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