[Nfb-krafters-korner] Braille, on different notes than before

Sat Aug 5 23:54:52 UTC 2017

Good evening,

I haven't been reading emails much and today I had over 400 unread emails on this email address.  I am still getting settled into this house.  It has been an unimaginable nightmare which I will talk about at another time.  In a simple sentence, I bought the wrong house, and there is enough blame to go around to everybody involved.

On to Braille.  I read large print and went to a public school until second grade.  I went to the school for the blind in second grade and was taught braille which I have read and used daily ever since.  I learned the alphabet on a peg board that was divided into groups of six dots for individual letters.

I didn't read braille for enjoyment until highschool.  I discovered talking books in sixth grade, but didn't enjoy braille.  We were required to use it for all school work, so I became proficient before highschool, but I didn't like it.

I used to read to my sister after lights out at night.  My mother would come in saying, "I told you to turn off the light."  Of course the light was out.

I took piano, pipe organ, and cello lessons and read braille music for that and choir music.

I find braille essential when I am learning something scientific or technical.  I am also a visual learner.  

I use my Braille Note every single day all day at work.  Needless to say, I couldn't do my job without it.  I am much faster searching my braille note for resource info than using the lap top.

I prefer to have craft instructions as a hard paper copy.  I have tried to use my bralle note for instructions, but It just isn't comfortable and efficient.

Every week, my son-in-law downloads that week's church bulletin and I put it on my braille note so I can participate fully in the service.

I love playing cards and board games, so braille lets me to that also.

I hate unified braille code.  I also think it put so much extraneous stuff in the way.  Elliminating contractions has made reading aggravating.  Did they think we were to stupid to figure out that dots two and three means different things depending on the context?

The arthritis in my hands and shoulders makes reading large volumes of braille difficult, but for the smaller things I use it all of the time.

I'm going to work on getting some of the emails caught up after unpacking quite a few boxes today.

Bernice and the sweet Octane.
-----Original Message-----
From: Nfb-krafters-korner [mailto:nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Nella Foster via Nfb-krafters-korner
Sent: Friday, August 04, 2017 2:42 AM
To: 'List for blind crafters and artists' <nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Nella Foster <jellybeanfarm at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Braille, on different notes than before

Sandra, like you, I'm a visual learner and I really need to see something's in Braille before I can learn it.

People think it's funny when I say I'm a visual learner, but it's true.  I need to do it first or be able to really check it out before I can learn it.

I love that you're using Braille in so many ways.

Nella

-----Original Message-----
From: Nfb-krafters-korner [mailto:nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Sandra Streeter via Nfb-krafters-korner
Sent: Thursday, August 03, 2017 8:45 AM
To: nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org
Cc: Sandra Streeter
Subject: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Braille, on different notes than before

Hi,

Since I missed reading yesterday’s submissions, I hope it’s okay to continue with thoughts on Braille. As I just said, I am decidedly anti-UEB and have been since they did some surveys years prior to rolling out the new system. I have cancelled one Braille mag because of my frustration with it. Some of the new contractions make it harder for me to pronounce the words (e.g., r, ed, u, c, tion, gets pronounced “red duction” in my brain). Despite the supposed space-savings, I am finding a lot of clutter that a literary Braille user like me just doesn’t need to see. I wish that there had been two systems: one for academic work (in which you really do, often, need to see things like underline and bolding, if you’re doing a paper for instance), and one for those just wanting to have Braille for personal uses, like what I’m about to list:

I had it easy, since I am blind due to severe ROP and there was no choice but to learn Braille for me prior to all the audio tech options today:
So, these are the spheres in which I use Braille, on a daily basis, really:

* All my CDs, DVDs and NLS cartridges are labeled. I live alone, and even if not, wouldn’t choose to constantly check in with a sighted partner about what a given item is.

* Kitchen products, food items (once run through my ID Mate), cleaning stuff? All labeled!

* Perfumes, other health and beauty items, Braille labeled;

* Appliance labels

* Index cards for various oral presentations on blindness, eating disorders and poetry; handouts for said presentations, Braille-labeled at the bottom for easy distribution; Braille hardcopies of handouts also used.

* Notes for mastering new equipment—Brailled again;

* Recipes

* Craft patterns (either found commercially or transcribed from a recording from a borrowed Braille copy or someone’s print copy being read aloud); also, any mathematical conversions for sizing that need to happen—I’m a very visual learner, so just doing it on an audio calc doesn’t work well.

* French language materials—two very large goals, to read “Les Mis” in its original language, and to write an entire poem in French

* Directions for a travel route;

* Notes to self—from phone calls, conversations, etc;

* Phone #s and addresses—just getting them off a notetaker doesn’t work for me, since I’m a very visual learner

* Old mail—Braille labeled after scanning or meeting with live reader;

* Braille music scores for church choir and for Mystic River Chorale—no notation (I found Braille music too tedious, so devised a system of raised markings to help with the trickier aspects of mastering music);

* Braille Bible—especially useful for liturgist activities;

* favorite poetry in Braille—though I had to transcribe it from audio because unavailable in commercial formats;

* My own poetry—all Brailled, either initially, or if I’m up for a challenge and want to try writing something via computer first, transcribed later;

* Braille mags—at this point, several devotionals, “Dialogue” and “Poetry”, and several newsletters.

* Once in a great while,  Braille books—especially for reading aloud, or  mastering anything I have to really study; audio okay for leisure reading, but not for study;

* Short grocery lists too small to bother printing out;

I think I about covered everything.

Sandra

One can never consent to creep, when one feels an impulse to soar.
(Helen Keller)

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