[nfbmi-talk] Tree trimming for blind people?

Thu Dec 2 01:52:29 UTC 2010

Awe come on now Chris, we have a need to know here...grin...

I'll tell you all what I'll share a few recipes if Christine will give up 
this one on list. I mean openess and transparency should be the rule of the 
day right? Big smile...
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Christine Boone" <Christine_Boone at comcast.net>
To: "'NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List'" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 2010 8:16 PM
Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Tree trimming for blind people?

> Well, they are really  not very hard to make, but if I put that recipe on
> this website, well then I just wouldn't be famous for anything at all any
> more...Such a dilemma.  I shall have to think about this one for a little
> while.
>
> Perhaps Laura, if you are a very good girl, I might send you a Braille 
> copy
> if you would not mind sending me your address off line.
>
> Warmest Regards,
> Christine
>
> Christine_boone at comcast.net
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
> On Behalf Of Laura White
> Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 2010 10:41 AM
> To: NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Tree trimming for blind people?
>
> Oh Christine!
> those sound so good!   Are they easy to make?
> We put up our artificial tree yesterday.  Fluffing out the branches took 
> an
> hour!  Can't wait to decorate.
>
> Laura
>
> On 12/1/10, Christine Boone <christine_boone at comcast.net> wrote:
>> Oh man, I can't believe you still remember my chocolate mints.  Yes
>> indeed, they are still a family favorite.  In fact, Kate now makes
>> them at school and walks around the dorm, handing them out to friends and
> strangers alike.
>> They are a hit!
>> I am flattered, thanks Dave and a very Merry Christmas to you and your
>> kiddo's.
>>
>> Warmest Regards,
>> Chris
>>
>> On Nov 30, 2010, at 2:40 PM, David Andrews wrote:
>>
>>> Thank you for the kind words.  At least  for now I have retired from
>>> the Christmas Party business, but do miss it some.  I also miss your
>>> plates of homemade Christmas goodies -- especially the mint fudge or
>>> whatever it was yum!!!
>>>
>>> Dave
>>>
>>> At 11:42 AM 11/29/2010, you wrote:
>>>> SURELY THERE IS NO PARTY SO GOOD AS ONE THAT IS HOSTED BY DAVE ANDREWS!
>>>> NO MATTER WHAT HE IS COOKING, IT IS BOUND TO BE ABSOLUTELY
>>>> SCRUMPTIOUSLY DELICIOUS!  YES INDEED, DAVE IS FAMOUS FOR HIS
>>>> CHRISTMAS PARTIES,  , AND THAT FAME IS RICHLY DESERVED MY FRIENDS!
>>>>
>>>> WARMEST REGARDS AND A HOLLY JOLLY HOLIDAY TO ONE AND ALL!
>>>> CHRISTINE
>>>>
>>>> On Nov 28, 2010, at 11:35 AM, David Andrews wrote:
>>>>
>>>> > The way I got my tree trimmed a couple times was to hold a "tree
>>>> > trimming Christmas Party."  I provided lots of good food and
>>>> > drink, a bare tree in the stand, lights, and encouragement.  I
>>>> > asked everyone to bring an ornament, and everybody did, and put
>>>> > the lights and bulbs and ornaments and garland on.
>>>> >
>>>> > I am known, or at least was known, for my all you can eat chili
>>>> > Christmas party, so I think people were glad to participate.
>>>> >
>>>> > Dave
>>>> >
>>>> > At 04:05 AM 11/28/2010, you wrote:
>>>> >> Well Fred, you could be more lazy and put an evergreen-scented
>>>> >> air freshener next to, or a few inches to the tree--LOL!
>>>> >>
>>>> >> --------------------------------------------------
>>>> >> From: "Fred Wurtzel" <f.wurtzel at att.net>
>>>> >> Sent: November 27, 2010 22:56
>>>> >> To: "'NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List'"
>>>> >> <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>> >> Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Tree trimming for blind people?
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Hi Jim,
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Mary and I have a stylized star for the top of ours.  It is
>>>> >> pretty old and too heavy for some trees.  I sometimes have to
>>>> >> trim the point down to get a stem strong enough to hold it up.
>>>> >> But, that is tradition for you.
>>>> >> \
>>>> >> Re: angel hair, I do not think we have any of those ornaments,
>>>> >> though I do like them.  The fiber glass is a little irritating to
>>>> >> the skin if it is handled much.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> We now have an artificial tree.  I basically object to this, but
>>>> >> I am too lazy to fight about it, since I will have to go out in
>>>> >> the weather and cold and wet, bring the tree home, let it dry
>>>> >> out, mount it in a stand and have it tip over a couple times
>>>> >> before I get it right, then clean up all the needles after we
>>>> >> take it down.  I love the smell of a real tree.  I like the
>>>> >> ecological reasons for having a real tree.  Real trees create
>>>> >> more jobs than artificial and the disposal is more ecologically
>>>> >> friendly than a plastic, glass and metal tree.  So, convenience
>>>> >> and laziness, in me, is turning me into an environmental
>>>> >> hypocrite.  Just like a liberal like me, huh?
>>>> >> (smile)
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Merry Christmas,
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Fred
>>>> >>
>>>> >> -----Original Message-----
>>>> >> From: nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org
>>>> >> [mailto:nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
>>>> >> On Behalf Of Jim Prather (Jim in Detroit
>>>> >> Sent: Saturday, November 27, 2010 10:43 PM
>>>> >> To: 'NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List'
>>>> >> Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Tree trimming for blind people?
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Does anyone use Angel Hair nowadays?  It was big in the 50s.  Do
>>>> >> you put a star or angel on top of the tree?  Because of
>>>> >> ordinances, we can't have REAL trees in this complex.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> --------------------------------------------------
>>>> >> From: "Fred Wurtzel" <f.wurtzel at comcast.net>
>>>> >> Sent: November 27, 2010 21:49
>>>> >> To: "'NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List'"
>>>> >> <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>> >> Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Tree trimming for blind people?
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Hi,
>>>> >>
>>>> >> I prefer starting at the bottom with the lights.  The lights go
>>>> >> on first.
>>>> >> Then garland if you use it, then ornaments then tinsel if you use
>>>> >> it instead of garland.  Garland and tinsel are optional.  Most
>>>> >> people don't use both, though there are no rules. We started
>>>> >> using garland because cats are vulnerable to choking on tinsel.
>>>> >> A more earth friendly alternative is to string popcorn with or
>>>> >> without cranberries and use it instead of garland.
>>>> >> This takes a lot of patience and that is why I don't do it.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> One of the most annoying parts of lighting a tree is knowing if
>>>> >> the string actually lights.  Our color identifier has a light
>>>> >> probe on it, so we can use it, now, to know if a bulb is lit.
>>>> >> You can also plug them in and feel if they get warm.  Most tree
>>>> >> lights are wired in parallel and so if 1 goes out, they all go
>>>> >> out.  I find this to be the most annoying part of decorating.
>>>> >> So, plug in the lights before you string them on the tree to make
>>>> >> bulb replacement easier.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Unless there is a window behind the tree, I do not totally
>>>> >> encircle the tree.  I start nearest the electrical outlet then go
>>>> >> straight across proceeding around toward the opposite side near
>>>> >> the wall opposite from where you start, then go up six inches to
>>>> >> a foot, depending on how many lights you have and then come back
>>>> >> across, keeping the second string as near parallel to the first
>>>> >> as possible.  Keep repeating until you reach the top  It is
>>>> >> sometimes necessary to adjust if you come up with too few to
>>>> >> reach the top, or have too many left when you reach the top,
>>>> >> though this is not as much a problem since you can simply reverse
>>>> >> and go back down.  You may end up with more lights at the top if
>>>> >> you do this, which really isn't a big problem, depending on how
>>>> >> fussy you want to be.  If possible, imagine where most people
>>>> >> will view the tree from and consider that most of the decorations
>>>> >> should be visible from that point of view and look relatively
>>>> >> evenly distributed.  My only rule is "do my best have fun and don't
> worry."
>>>> >>
>>>> >> With the ornaments, I start with the larger ones and try to
>>>> >> distribute them evenly from left to right and top to bottom.  I
>>>> >> then fill in the blank areas with smaller ones.  We have been
>>>> >> married for 34 years and have lots of ornaments collected over
>>>> >> the years.  Our first tree was just 2 feet tall, sat on a table
>>>> >> had maybe a dozen ornaments and 1 string of lights.  I bought it
>>>> >> for $1 very near Christmas and all the needles fell off within a
>>>> >> couple hours of bringing it into the house.  We loved the tree,
>>>> >> just the same.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Some people have theme trees and some people have all the same
>>>> >> colored lights and ornaments.  We are very eclectic.  We have
>>>> >> ornaments that remind us of people and events in our lives and
>>>> >> they range from computers to pets, sports, food, reindeer to
>>>> >> abstract curiosities.  I like eclectic, myself.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Hope this is useful.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Merry Christmas and Warmest Regards
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Fred and Mary
>>>> >>
>>>> >> -----Original Message-----
>>>> >> From: nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org
>>>> >> [mailto:nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
>>>> >> On Behalf Of trising
>>>> >> Sent: Saturday, November 27, 2010 7:19 PM
>>>> >> To: NFBofMichigan List
>>>> >> Subject: [nfbmi-talk] Tree trimming for blind people?
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Nick and I want to do our tree without sighted assistance this year.
>>>> >> Last
>>>> >> year, because of the encouragement of our NFB friends, we put the
>>>> >> tree together and put up the ornaments. This year, we even want
>>>> >> to tackle the lights. Both of us are totally blind from birth. We
>>>> >> have never seen lights, or been asked to help put them on.
>>>> >> Can
>>>> >> we
>>>> >> get some instructions from other blind people who have put on
>>>> >> their own Christmas tree lights?
>>>> >> Terri and Nick Wilcox
>>>> >
>>>
>>>
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>>
>>
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