Greetings from Our president
Navigation
Word on the Street
Guess Who Just Took another Trip around the Sun
Our Out-Of-Sight Superstar
The Book Shelf – 2 selections
My Story – In the
A Poem with a Twist – Twas
the Night before Christmas
Flick, Swipe, and Tap – DoItWrite
The Latest Research – Reading the Pancreas
through the Eye
In My Opinion – Would I Want My Vision
Restored?
Experience Descriptive Video with a New iOS7
App
Hi-Q Puzzle Solution
Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program – iCanConnect
Do You Have Sitting Disease?
And Survey Says
A Quick Tech Tip
A Huge Salute
The Recipe Box – Sweet Potatoes
Dear Betty Blunt
Think Tank
A Round of Applause
Oosabell’s List
What is Happening on
Out-Of-Sight
That surely cannot be snowflakes falling and
sleigh bells ringing. I cannot believe that it is already December.
I imagine that everyone is in the midst of decorating
for the holidays and hoping that Santa Claus does not forget them no matter
what their behavior has been this year. Unfortunately I am not holding out much
hope because my letter to Santa came back stamped returned to sender: better
luck next time!
Maybe that Christmas letter writing course led
me astray after all suggesting the opening line of hey you old fatso listen up.
Well, the good news I have for you is that the
News Letter staff has outdone themselves again with another excellent edition of
News and Views. They have packed it with more interesting and informative
articles for you to enjoy reading.
As this
year winds down with next year on our doorstep, I want to take this opportunity
to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a blessed and fulfilling future
in the New Year.
Let each of us remember to take the time to
tell our Out Of Sight family just how much they mean to us and how much we
cherish their friendships because that is what family is all about.
I am
looking forward to seeing all of you in the coming year.
And as always, if you want to see anything else
included in this type of format, write an email to:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net
Best
regards,
Lee Richards
To navigate quickly to the different articles in
this newsletter using JAWS, System Access, or Window Eyes, press
the letter H to move through the headings.
For MAC users, press Control Option Command plus the letter H.
Ruff! Ruff! Congratulations to Jairo, for completing his guide dog training at Guide Dogs
of the Desert, in
After a 7 week stay in the hospital, Franklin
Johnson finally went home, and is continuing the therapy on his knee. We miss ya
Wedding Bells!
Congratulations to Maria and Todd, (Darkwolf and
Deadeye) on their upcoming wedding in January!
We wish you the best!
Congratulations to Adonna
and Chikodinaka on their 2nd wedding anniversary on
December 24th!
Got any news for us? We would love to hear what is going on in
your world, so please keep us up to date and write to:
We look forward to sharing your news with our extended
family, here on Out-Of-Sight!
Help us celebrate our December birthdays:
December 2, Cynna Anderson - Cynna, from
December 3, Craig Zolkivski - Bluesdog, from
December 6, Chris Judd -
Announcer1980, from
December 8, Franklin Johnson - Franklin Johnson, from
December 10, Gary Greico – PianoTuner.
December 12, Walt Cone - Alt
Key, from
December 14, Nat Armeni - Spuntino, from
December 19, Charlie Barnett - Guitar Man, from
December 21, Ted Galanos
- Tedster, from
December 21, Lee Smiley - Irish viking,
from
December 27, Kate Dolosa - PinkaLicious, from
December 29, Todd Freitas - Todd, from
December 30, Geoff Eden - Geoff Eden, from
December
31, Lee Richards - Lee from WV, from
Please help us build our birthday list, by
sending your Username, first and last name, date of birth, (year optional), and
where you live, to:
By Karen
Santiago
Thanks to
everyone who wrote in with your suggestions about who should be our Member of
the Month for December! There were several names put forth, and it was a
difficult decision as all of the candidates are members who deserve this
recognition! Unfortunately, only one member each month can be the recipient of
this honor. Keep those submissions
coming, because we recognize a member for each month. So, without further ado:
Congratulations
to Kaye Zimpher for becoming our December Member of
the Month! Now, here is a bit more about
our friend, Kaye.
Out Of
Sights very own
Kay grew up with a much older
brother and sister. Her mother raised her to be as independent as she could.
Kaye was very shy and had an introverted personality. Yes, I know, hard to
believe, right? She attended blind school for less than a year, since her
mother decided it was not the right thing for her. Kaye then was mainstreamed
throughout the rest of her early education years and attended camp every summer
during her teen years.
Kaye went
to
In
December, 2004, Kaye left for
Kaye came
into some difficult times, and during 2008 - 2010 she did some serious soul
searching. She was not happy with her quote, I am a
tough blind woman attitude, end quote. Yes, she had a good job, great income,
and a lot to show for it. However, she was realizing that there was more to
life than materialistic things. She would ask herself, quote What
could I have done? What could I have changed? end
quote. She started to believe in God and to see the good in things and people.
Kaye says she is a much better person now. She is more loveable, giving, and
willing to help those in need.
In 2010,
a friend of hers encouraged her to try out beep ball. Kaye was rather nervous
at first. A sighted player came up to her and asked if she was going to play.
Kaye said that she was but she wanted to know one thing. Kaye asked the person
if the players are all blind how they prevent each other from getting hit in
the face with the ball, or just plain getting hurt. The sighted person told her
that the pitcher on the team is sighted, and that relieved Kaye’s fears. She
really enjoys the game and played for the Atlanta Eclipse till August 2011.
Then the Wichita Sonics recruited her to play in the Beep ball World Series.
She continues to play for the Sonics. Her schedule may be a bit hectic since
she is playing for a team in
It was in
April of last year that Kaye joined Out-Of-Sight. She found out about OOS
through an announcement on RS Games. You will find Kaye participating in trivia
games, password, tech talk, and chatting with others. Kaye is a member of the
tournament committee, host for password, and she fills in for other hosts if
needed. Kaye feels that we all come to the sight with a common bond, that being
some kind of visual impairment. However, we talk about a wide range of topics;
such as food, politics, current events, sports, shopping, and many many more. , It is these discussions and good times that
make it so much fun.
As of
August 2013, Kaye has been involved in Panoramic Radio, which is located on the
internet. The manager, and good friend of hers, is the one who got her
interested. She is a behind the scenes contributor, working on public
relations, announcements, editing of
sounds and voices, just to name a few. Her recent trip to
Kaye is a
very independent, single, woman of 43 years. However, rumor has it that there
is some kind of plan between her and Roger. Apparently, she and Roger are cyber
husband and wife. Roger has plans to wed Kaye at some cathedral in downtown
Kaye enjoys
reading, listening to music, shopping (especially for clothes and shoes), and
playing games. She has been a member of the NFB since age 20. She is a
dedicated advocate, and had lobbied her congressmen for things she feels strong
about. One of her goals is to visit all 50 states throughout her lifetime. She
is half way there, with 25 states and the
Congratulations
Kaye!
If
you would like to send Kaye a message of congratulations, or recommend someone
for our January Member of the Month, please write to:
We look
forward to your suggestions in selecting our next Out-Of-Sight Superstar!
Do you love to curl up with a good book? Been meaning to read that best seller? Here are two of our book club
selections. They are to be read for our
next book club meeting, which will be held, Friday, December 20, at 8:00 PM
eastern, in the Library. See you there!
The
Heist: A Novel
DB 76803
Author: Janet Evanovich
and Lee Goldberg
Reading Time: 8 hours and 30 minutes
Read by John Polk
Suspense Fiction, Bestsellers
After many failed attempts, FBI agent, Kate OHare, finally catches charming con artist Nick Fox. When
Nick manages to escape custody, Kate goes after him, only to learn he is going
to be putting his scamming skills to good use--as her new partner.
Violence and strong
language. Bestseller 2013.
Official
Privilege
Author: P T Deuterman
Read
by J. Charles
When
the body of a young, black Navy Lieutenant is found chained inside the boiler
of a mothballed battleship in a
May 21,
1969
1:02 AM
By Dean H.
Pedersen
The time and place above is where I was when I
was wounded, but before I get into that, I want to back up a bit to explain why
we were there at that time.
I was a M-60 machine
Gunner in the 2nd Platoon of Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion, 503rd
Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade.
On April 17, 1969 our Platoon was split up
between 3 villages to fix up their bunkers, and the perimeters around these
villages. The village that my group was in was about 8 to 10 miles from our
Battalion Base Camp of BaoLoc, which is approximately
100 miles north of
I only had a few weeks left until I was supposed
to go home, so I had already turned the Machine Gun over to another guy on my
Gun crew, my assistant gunner was going home about 2 weeks after I did, so
there was going to be a complete new gun crew after we left. I was supposed to
leave the field on May 20th (which was a resupply day) to go for an
in country R&R, and I was going to visit my cousin David Bruhn, who was
stationed at QuiNhon. When I got back from
that, I would process out, and be heading back to the States, but all of that
changed when the resupply Trucks came out on May 20th. The
1st Sergeant had come along out with the resupply to talk to me about staying
until the next resupply being we only had 12 guys in our group. There was
supposed to be a couple of guys that were on R&R that the 1st Sergeant
thought would be back by that time, so of course I stayed. We got resupplied
every 3 days. After the resupply trucks had left to go back to our Base Camp in
BaoLoc, I was kind of down in the dumps. I was
sitting on one of the bunkers when
My Aunt Eileen and Uncle Don, who was a
Commander in the Navy, were stationed on the
I am going to insert a note from my Aunt Eileen
here:
Hi Deano,
Thanks for sending me your
story. I also remember the day I went to the hospital in
I remember giving you that watch and
telling you I wanted you to tell me the time when I came back. Then I went
to the PX and got you some tapes and a recorder.
You told me the time when I got
back. I also remember tucking that recorder in your shirt before you flew
out on that chopper. I watched that chopper fly off from the room I was
in.
I am glad life is good for you
now. You have a wonderful family.
Love you very much,
Auntie Eileen
The Flight from Travis Air Force Base in
I arrived home on June 16, 1969, the same day I
would have gotten home if I had not been wounded. After I had been home for
about 2 weeks,
I was one of the first to be wounded, what I
didn’t know is that the same grenade that got me also killed the guys on each
side of me. The one on my right was the guy that I had turned the Machine Gun
over too. The guy on my left was a rifle squad leader, he also had 2 weeks left
in
After I had been home for a month, I went back
to Fitz Simmons for my plastic surgery, and was there for about 2 weeks. My
military records had not caught up with me yet, so I was sent home again, which
ended up being the rest of the summer. Finally around the end of
September my records got to Fitz Simmons, so I had to go back to Denver again
to get checked out of the Hospital, and then it was back home for a week, and
then off to Chicago to Hines VA Blind Rehabilitation Center. I was at Hines
from October 16, 1969 until March 27, 1970. I had surgery on my left ear while
there, that affected my balance etc, so I was sent home for 3 weeks to heal up
from that surgery. Also many of the weekends my mother's cousin Ruth (Boots)
Lehman would pick me up on Friday afternoon, and bring me up to her Lake home
at
I had a plate put in my head to fill in the hole
from the grenade in February of 1971, and have had 3 surgeries on my right ear
over the years, the hearing in that ear is just about gone now, both ears ring constantly with a high pitched squeal.
I got married to my wife Betty September 2,
1972; we have 2 children. A son Matthew, he works for Microsoft, his wife Jen
works for Mountain Hardwear, a part of Columbia
Sports Wear. Our daughter Sarah is the Librarian at the High School,
she is married to a classmate of Matts. Mike is a
Funeral Director here in
Betty and I are both active in the Disabled
American Veterans, of which Betty is a past State President of the Ladies Auxiliary.
I have been very active in the VFW as well, and I am a Life Member of all of
the Veterans Organizations. My wife and I are also very involved in our Church.
I am the President of the Trustees, and have been for quite a few years.
I have a wood work studio called Pedersen Wood
Craft. I have been doing wood work since 1972. I am also on the V-500
Scholarship Board of Directors at
PS. My assistant gunner
Submitted
by Debi Chatfield
Twas the night before Christmas
but the spirit of Yule
Was not what it should be
in olde
The stockings all hung
by the warm chimney
grate,
Were still sadly empty.
For Santa was late.
Yes, midnight had come,
and midnight had fled.
The children were lying
awake in their beds,
Unable to sleep,
and beginning to fear
That Christmas was really
not coming that year,
When off in the
distance
there came a strange noise
Was Santa arriving
at last with their toys?
Those surely werent sleigh bells
they heard from afar,
It sounded like drums
and electric guitars.
Now up in the sky,
as the music drew near,
A strange silhouette
began to appear.
Could those be reindeer?
It seemed that they
must,
But instead of a sleigh,
were they pulling a bus?
The reindeer drew
closer,
and yes, it was true,
Behind them a bus,
all yellow and blue.
And out from the windows
strange voices there came,
Which called out to each
tiny reindeer by name.
Now, Maxwell! Now,
Martha!
Now, Prudence and
Pepper!
On, Sun King! On, Sadie!
On, Jude and Loretta!
The bus was soon landed.
The slightest of pauses
Then out through the doors
came four Santa Clauses!
But these weren't like Santas
the children had seen,
For under the white beards
their beads could be seen,
And clothing that wasn't
just Santa Claus red,
But rainbows of dazzling
color instead.
They all had long hair,
some had curling
moustaches,
And one of the four
wore round little glasses.
They carried guitars,
except for the one
Who staggered along
with a full set of drums.
They spoke not a word,
but as quick as a mouse
They carried their instruments
into the house,
And, moving the Christmas tree
out of their way,
They plugged in their amps
and started to play.
The room seemed to
sparkle
with magic and then
That sparkle grew brighter,
then brighter again,
And exploded like fireworks,
filling the air!
Then the stockings were filled
there were gifts everywhere!
But the four could not
stay
to admire the scene
They sprang to their bus
and were gone like a
dream.
But their voices called out,
as they vanished from
sight,
Merry Crimble to all!
and, What a hard day's
night!
By
Charles Rivard
I have
never gotten the hang of handwriting, but, through the use of this fascinating
app for my iPhone, maybe I will. Blind since
birth, I have always been a Braille user, but, because sighted people do not
read Braille, I think it would be cool to be able to write well enough that
they can read what I am trying to convey, and the app described here just might
be my inexpensive ticket to success! I figured that a lot of other site
members can take advantage of this, too, so here is the info. Learn to
write in a fun way, as I am going to do!
Greetings
gamers,
We are pleased to announce the immediate availability of our first application
for iOS!
DoItWrite is an educational tool and game to teach
visually impaired users of iOS 7s VoiceOver
screen reader how to draw printed letters and numbers for use with VoiceOver's handwriting feature in iOS
7.
Learn to draw lowercase letters, uppercase letters, and numbers for use with iOS 7s VoiceOver handwriting
feature!
This app is primarily intended for the blind or visually impaired, teachers or
instructors of same, and other users of iOS 7s VoiceOver screen reader.
Many blind or visually impaired people are not familiar with the shapes of
printed letters or numbers. DoItWrite teaches you how
to draw them in a simple way that has the best chance
of being correctly recognized by VoiceOver, even if
you have never learned the shapes of the characters previously. Once you get
them down, practice your speed and accuracy with a fun game to blast characters
as they tumble down the screen!
* Learn how to activate the VoiceOver handwriting
feature in iOS 7
* Learn how to draw lowercase and uppercase letters, as well as numbers in a
simple and accurate way.
* Practice your newly acquired skills by blasting letters and numbers as they
tumble down the screen.
* Use the app to improve your onscreen typing skills by using the keyboard
during game play.
* Automatic feedback and coach via audio queues and speech output.
* DoItWrite automatically detects when VoiceOver is not running, and permits the tutorial to be
browsed with the onscreen keyboard. Great for sighted teachers and tutors!
* Share your game scores with others.
* Many ways to customize your
learning experience.
DoItWrite is available on the iOS
App Store for $1.99 USD. (Prices will vary for your local currency.)
http://appstore.com/doitwrite
For more information, visit us online at
http://DracoEnt.com
Happy gaming.
Submitted
by Roger Khouri
Nov.
18, 2013 - ScienceDaily: Eye Care News
Researchers at Karolinska
Institutet in
The endocrine part of the pancreas, the Islets of Langerhans, produces and secretes insulin, the hormone that
regulates blood sugar levels. After a meal, the hormone is released into the
blood at an amount that is in direct proportion to the amount of food ingested;
blood insulin levels therefore vary from one meal to the next and between
individuals. In the case of conditions such as obesity, large amounts of
insulin are needed to compensate for the high consumption of food and
insensitivity to the hormone.
The Islets of Langerhans try to adapt
themselves to this condition by increasing the number of insulin-producing
beta-cells and/or modulating their individual secretion of insulin in response
to the intake of sugar. This plasticity is essential to the maintenance of
normal blood sugar levels, and its dysfunction leads to diabetes, a serious
disease that has reached pandemic proportions.
The greatest obstacle to studying the exact workings of the Islets
of Langerhans and how they adapt to individual
conditions is their relative inaccessibility, in that they lie deeply embedded
in and are distributed throughout the tissue. Now, however, researchers have
found a new way to study the insulin-producing beta-cells: by transferring the
Islets of Langerhans to the eye.
Quote. What we have done is made the cells optically accessible by
grafting a small number of, reporter islets, into the eyes of mice, which
allows us to monitor the activity of the pancreas just by looking into the eye,
End Quote, says Per-Olof Berggren, professor of
experimental endocrinology at Karolinska Institutets Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery,
and director of the Rolf Luft Research Centre for
Diabetes and Endocrinology. Quote. We
are now able to really study the insulin-producing beta-cells in detail in a
way that was not possible before. End Quote.
The eye may be used, as a kind of reporter reproducing the
activity of the pancreas and allowing readings of the status of the pancreas
under different conditions in health and disease.
Quote. The Islets of Langerhans can be
visualized repeatedly over a period of several months, and our work shows that
during this time, functional and morphological changes occur in them that are
identical to those occurring in the pancreas, End Quote, says first author Dr Erwin Ilegems, researcher at the Rolf Luft
Centre.
Using the new monitoring system and pharmacological treatment, the
researchers have reduced food consumption in obese mice models and thus stopped
the enormous growth in beta-cell population. This means that they are now able
to individually tweak drug doses.
Quote. We will also be using the system to identify new drug
substances that regulate beta-cell plasticity and function, End Quote, says Professor
Berggren. Quote. In the future we may
also conceive a similar use of reporter islets in humans in order to find
unique, tailored treatment principles, to measure the effects of personal
medication, or to diagnose problems with the pancreatic islets. End Quote.
By Doug Zebell
That is a very
interesting question. I have wondered about that for many years, too.
I would like to have my sight restored, but I would like to have the option of
taking it, or leaving it. I was born totally blind, so I have no idea what it
would be like to be able to detect something miles away, discern what colors
look like, or recognize things that you cannot touch, hear, or smell. I
have always wondered what it would be like to look into someones
eyes and see emotions. I wonder what these look like.
You know, it is kind of interesting to note that one really does not see with his
or her eyes. We see with our brains. And, it is also interesting
that, not everyone can look at something and see the same thing. People view it from different perspectives,
and will give you their own unique description.
Even though they are looking at the same thing, what they, quote see,
end quote, is often different. The same
often holds true when listening to sounds.
I read a book a
few years ago, which told about a man who lost his vision and he was able to
have some of it restored when he was in his 40s. His brain did not know what to
do with the information that it was recieving.
Actually, his brain was able to interpret some of the information at times. It
could interpret things that a three year old child could see, which was the age that he lost his sight. He said that the reason
for this, was that when a person is born, there are
things called neurons located in the brain that can be stimulated to do
different things like hearing and seeing. they can be
taught to do different tasks. After about five years or so of life, these
neurons are not as easy to train to do what the body wants them to do. It
is kind of like exercise. If you do not exercise your muscles, they just waste
away. it is the same way with the neurons in the
brain. This man could see like a three year old child could, but his
brain could not develop his vision any further, because the neurons in his
brain were no longer active. Since he
had used a guidedog, he had to continue to learn to
trust it, and let the dog do his job, rather than rely on his new found low
vision.
I think restoring
a persons vision would work, especially if they have about a good 20 year span
of time to allow their brain to process all of the information needed to see properly.
I do not think it would work to have the sight restored in someone who has been
totally blind since birth, unless they could figure out a way to restart the
neurons in the brain which process the information seen through the eyes. I guess this months question really makes you
think.
Submitted
by Debi Chatfield
Many theaters around the country are starting to offer the visually impaired the option of listening to the descriptive audio track while they are watching a film. Sadly though, this technology is not available everywhere, and sometimes it does not work. The team at Solo-DX wants to make the experience better by having the blind film-goer use a smart phone app to listen to the descriptive audio track instead. Last week, I had the opportunity to test out the new MovieReading app. The interface is very simple. Once you are logged in, you visit the Marketplace, download the descriptive audio track for the film you are going to go see at your theater, and than start the track when your film begins. The app will listen to the audio in the theater and sync the audio track with where the film is so that the user does not have to try and match the two tracks themselves. To test the app, I downloaded the Princess Bride track and then watched some Youtube clips from the film. In all three cases, the sync option worked perfectly. The MovieReading apps latest version is expected to be released before November 22nd, the opening day of the film, Philomena, which will be the first movie to use the apps new features.
MovieReading is currently available on iOS, and they hope to have an Android version soon. Pasted below is a press release from Solo-DX about the MovieReading app and, Philomena.
As exclusive U.S. partners with Universal Multimedia Access, Hollywood Access Services is releasing Solo-Dx on MovieReading, the first ever auto-syncing audio description app available for first-run movies. The debut title on this exciting new platform will be The Weinstein Company¹s Philomena, in theaters November 22. Using acoustic fingerprinting technology, this new auto-syncing method will completely change moviegoing for the blind and visually impaired via their smartphones. It is really easy to use -- download the app, download the description track, go to the movie theater, and enjoy!
Even if you arrive late, you can simply hit sync and your audio description will pick up in the right place. Right now, if a visually impaired person wants to go the movies, they either have to have someone next to them explain what is happening on the screen, try to enjoy the movie just by listening to it, OR request audio description headsets sometimes offered by theaters. These headsets pick up an infrared signal from the projector that plays audio description through headphones. However, they're not currently available for every movie or at every theater, and even when they are available, they oftentimes do not work correctly. These obstacles make going to the movies too much of a hassle for many blind and low vision individuals.
Solo-Dx on the MovieReading app makes moviegoing simple and enjoyable! Hollywood Access Services is thrilled to provide unprecedented access to blind moviegoers across the country with Philomena, the first film to be made available in the U.S. on this new auto-syncing audio description platform. Starring Judi Dench and Steve Coogan, and based on the book, The Lost Child of Philomena Lee, Philomena is the true story of one mother's search for her lost son. Philomena is directed By Stephen Frears and written by Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope and opens in New York and Los Angeles on November 22 before going nationwide on November 27.
Developer link: http://www.solo-dx.com/
To download the movie reading app go to:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/moviereading/id460349347?mt=8
By Charles Rivard
In a previous newsletter, an article I wrote
was published, describing a fun little game called Hi-Q. I described the layout, the object of the
game, and how you could make one of your own if you could not find one to
purchase. Being a rather ornery cuss, I
did not give the solution. I figured
that you could work on the game for a while after buying or making one, and
then find the solution in a later issue of the newsletter. So, now that you have had a bit of time to go
crazy, I will give a brief description of the layout of the board, the object
of the game, and the solution. If you do
not want the solution yet, do not look at the last section, but save it for
future reading.
Board layout:
The top two rows, and the bottom two rows, each contain 3 holes or
squares. The middle three rows contain
seven holes or squares. Each row is
centered across the board.
Object of the game: Place a peg in each of the holes, or coins in
each square, and remove the peg or coin from the center hole
or square. Now, jump over pegs or coins,
as in a game of checkers, removing the jumped peg or coin on each move. The object is to finish with only one peg or
coin on the board, and that peg or coin is in the originally vacant center hole
or square. To make it more interesting,
place a different colored, or a marked peg or different coin in the correct
hole or square at the beginning of the game so that it is the only remaining
game piece, in the center of the board.
Now for the solution:
In your mind, number the holes or squares on
the board from top left to bottom right, moving across from left to right. For example, the top row,
from left to right, are 1, 2, and 3.
The second row is 4, 5, 6. The third row is 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and
13. And so on. The vacant center hole at the beginning of
the game is number 17.
To finish with only one game piece remaining on
the board, with that piece occupying the center square, perform the following jumps
and removals in sequence:
1. 29 to
17, removing 24.
2. 22 to
24, removing 23.
3. 8 to
22, removing 15.
4. 21 to
23, removing 22.
5. 7 to
21, removing 14.
6. 24 to
22, removing 23.
7. 31 to
23, removing 28.
8. 16 to
28, removing 23.
9. 33 to
31, removing 32.
10. 31
to 23, removing 28.
11. 18
to 16, removing 17.
12. 16 to 28, removing 23.
13. 21
to 23, removing 22.
14. 26
to 24, removing 25.
15. 12
to 26, removing 19.
16. 27
to 25, removing 26.
17. 13
to 27, removing 20.
18. 24
to 26, removing 25.
19. 27
to 25, removing 26.
20. 28
to 16, removing 23.
21. 30
to 18, removing 25.
22. 10
to 12, removing 11.
23. 3 to
11, removing 6.
24. 18
to 6, removing 11.
25. 1 to
3, removing 2.
26. 3 to
11, removing 6.
27. 12
to 10, removing 11.
28. 5 to
17, removing 10.
29. 17
to 15, removing 16.
30. 4 to
16, removing 9.
31. 15
to 17, removing 16.
You are finished, with the only remaining peg
in space 17, which is the center of the board.
And, oh, by the way, to really impress people, start with that odd
colored or sized peg or coin in space number 5.
If you follow the jumps and removals above in sequence, the odd one will
be the only one remaining on the board, in the center.
I believe that, in the previous article, I mentioned that a
triangular version of this game can also be obtained from a few places. One such place is your nearest Cracker Barrel
restaurant, in their gift shop area. It
is made of wood, and uses golf tees as pegs.
The concept is the same, but the solution is different. Hint:
The easiest way is to leave one of the corners blank instead of the
center hole. From there, you're on your
own. To make one, just drill 15 holes
into a piece of scrap wood. Drill them
in the shape of an equilateral triangle, as in a rack of billiard balls. All rows centered , the first row contains 5, the second 4, the third 3,
the forth 2, and the fifth 1.
Submitted by Suzy Barnes
This
holiday season, millions of Americans will learn about a successful federal
program that offers no cost communications technology to people with combined
vision and hearing loss. Television stations across the country will soon begin
airing a new animated public service announcement highlighting the National Deaf-Blind Equipment
Distribution Program, which is promoted
as iCanConnect.
Now
in its second year, this Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) program has
already changed the lives of more than one thousand people who were unable to
use modern technology to stay connected with their community or access
information on the Internet. Approximately a million Americans live with
significant, hearing and vision loss—many of these people are not aware they
could be classified as deaf-blind.
The
television spot shows how people with combined vision and hearing loss can use
technology to access everything from school assignments to social media to a grandchilds dance recital.
Quote,
Whether it is a grandparent who has lost vision and hearing due to age-related
conditions or a young person born deaf-blind, iCanConnect
is transforming lives, end quote, explains Steven M. Rothstein, president of Perkins, which is working
with dozens of partners across the country. Quote, Especially
at this time of year, when families are giving thanks, it is important to
recognize how access to technology can mean the difference between isolation
and independence, between segregation and participation. End quote.
iCanConnect offers hundreds of pieces of equipment such as computers
equipped with screen reading software and iPhones
attached to Braille displays and simple phone amplifiers. iCanConnect trainers meet one-on-one with each client
to determine what equipment will best suit their needs and also to offer expert
instruction on how to use the devices. The assessment, training and technology
are all offered at no cost to qualified individuals who meet income guidelines.
The
new iCanConnect Public Service Announcement was
created by Fablevision in Boston, MA, and
was closed captioned by the Media Access Group at WGBH in Los Angeles and
Boston. You can view the spot here: http://www.icanconnect.org/news/new-icanconnect-promo-videos.
iCanConnect is available in all 50 states, the
Submitted by
For most Canadians, the average day is a
blurred haze of work, commuting and relaxing at home. And most of that time is
spent comfortably seated. Unfortunately, there are
deadly health consequences associated with our fondness of sitting. Researchers
have found our cosy respite brings diabetes, heart
disease and early death – all due to an illness experts
call sitting disease.
Sitting disease? Seriously?
Sure, have a laugh. Get the giggles out of your system. Sitting disease, as it
is known, might sound wacky (or made up to snatch newspaper headlines), but it
is a real concern. This relatively new health phenomenon has made its way into
the spotlight and is here to stay. The term sitting disease is used by the
scientific community to corral the host of life-threatening health woes that
are proliferating in our society because of our penchant for a sedentary
lifestyle. We've all heard the stories of bum-numbingly long flights on which
air travellers were plagued with deep-vein thrombosis
(a serious circulatory condition in which blood clots develop due to lack of
movement in the legs), but sitting disease is something much more common and
sinister. And we are all at risk – even if we do not know it.
According to Dr. Mark Tremblay, the director of Healthy Active Living and
Obesity Research at the CHEO
Research Institute in
Think your kids have escaped the sitting trap? Think again. On average,
Canadian children spend two-thirds of their daytime hours being sedentary.
While their static lifestyles haven't quite caught up with those of their
parents, these kids are on the path to becoming couch potatoes, and they're
already falling victim to
diabetes, heart problems and
obesity. This fall, with students heading back to classrooms
where they'll be seated for almost six hours a day, parents, teachers and
education administrators should be making this problem a top priority.
Dr. Emma Wilmot, a clinical research fellow from
Yes, sitting is deadly – especially when done for prolonged periods. The
illnesses that sitting disease can unleash do not discriminate; they strike
people without regard for age, sex, culture or income bracket. And, most
surprisingly, gym aficionados aren't necessarily safe either.
Why sound the alarm now?
People have been sitting since the dawn of time, so if the recent hype over it
has left you baffled, you are not alone. To better understand, turn back the
clock a few years to when many researchers, physiologists and health experts
were looking for an explanation for the worldwide obesity epidemic. Waistlines
of the young and old were expanding at a frightful pace. By comparing the
lifestyles of previous generations to our own, researchers made an eye-opening
discovery: The rise of technology had altered our lives for the better – but
also for the worse. Quote, In the past, most people
did not sit at work, end quote, says Tremblay. Quote, A hundred years ago, they
may have had agricultural-based lifestyles, worked as tradespeople
or did other tasks that involved standing and moving. Today, we drive when we
would have walked or biked. We sit in front of a screen when we would have
shoveled, nailed or carried. And all of our discretionary time is in front of a
computer or television screen.end quote.
Think about it: In the era of your great-grandparents, most people toiled on
their feet, not in an office, and moved regularly all day long. Sitting glued
to a chair for nine, 10 or even 15 hours a day was unheard of. Quote, The problem with todays society is
that we are obsessed with labour-saving devices,
anything that makes life easier, end quote, says Joseph Henson, a PhD student
at the University of Leicesters Department of
Cardiovascular Sciences. Quote, As a result, people are not moving as much and
obesity levels have increased. End quote. Technology has made our day-to-day
lives less physically demanding. We are moving less, sitting more and thereby
making ourselves vulnerable to disease.
And here is the inside story
Hour upon hour spent planted on your tush means your
body's tissues, organs and metabolism are not engaged. The longer you sit, the
less efficient your body's systems become. Eventually, they start to stumble.
Quote, The metabolism of fats and glucose gets
disrupted, and you are not burning many calories, end quote, says Tremblay.
Quote, Your heart, lungs and muscles go into
hibernation mode and they atrophy. Over time, they decay. End quote. Quote,
Your leg muscles, which are the largest muscle mass in your body, are not
stimulated while sitting, end quote, so you're effectively shutting down large
parts of your active tissue, says Peter Katzmarzyk,
an epidemiology professor and associate executive director for Population
Science at the
But if sitting slows internal processes to a crawl, how does disease gain a
foothold? Katzmarzyk says studies linking excessive
sitting with negative health consequences commenced only a few years ago, so
researchers are still trying to work out how inactivity causes disease. In that
time, however, a clearer picture has developed of the toll that sitting takes
on the body, and the way it corrupts normal processes. For example, when a
healthy person eats a meal, the pancreas releases insulin into the bloodstream
to help the muscles absorb glucose from the food. Routine physical exertion,
such as standing or walking, aids in this absorption process and prompts the
muscles to burn glucose and refill their stores.
If you are sitting around for most of the day, metabolic activity stalls.
Insulin is not used effectively and, instead of being absorbed by your body,
glucose builds up in your blood. Cholesterol levels increase as well. Quote, We think that these metabolic changes are what is linked to
the increased risk of disease over the long term, end quote, says Katzmarzyk. Eventually, you will become a candidate for
insulin resistance (also known as metabolic syndrome), type 2 diabetes and
other frightening problems including heart attacks or strokes. Quote, Diabetes
is a major risk factor for heart disease, end quote, says Wilmot. Quote, If you have factors that put you at risk for diabetes, they
also increase your risk for cardiovascular disease. It is all related. End
quote.
Inflammation, obesity and, particularly, increased weight gain around your
middle are other possible consequences. Deep-vein thrombosis, once solely the
scourge of long-distance jet-setters, is now plaguing people on the ground as
well. While these blood clots are not life-threatening when they are located in
the legs, if they start travelling up toward the lungs, they can cause life-threatening
pulmonary embolisms. And if the metabolic symptoms and diseases have not scared
you out of your chair yet, you should also know that a sedentary lifestyle
creates poor posture, curvature of the spine and painful protruding discs in
the neck and back. Sitting is anything but pretty.
Is Regular exercise enough?
Surprisingly, meeting
Despite all of these findings, Henson stresses that you should not abandon your
daily workouts; they are still a key component in maintaining a healthy
lifestyle. Katzmarzyk agrees. While exercise might
not reduce the risks of sitting disease, quote, there is clear evidence that it
is important [for good health], end quote, he says. And fortunately, it is
during those nonsitting hours that you can make
positive changes to your health and lower your
risk for sitting disease.
No-brainer ways to lower your risks
Reducing your risk for sitting disease is pretty easy.
There is no gym membership or expensive workout gear required. The answer is to
look for opportunities to reduce and frequently break up your sitting time,
says David Dunstan, head of the physical activity laboratory at the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in
You may not have known that standing up every time you answer a phone call is
good for you, but that simple movement can help combat sitting disease. You can
also stand up and walk around during meetings at work or take a stroll to pick
up documents from a printer located farther from your desk. Incorporating these
kinds of basic movements into your day can drastically reduce your risk. Quote,
The more you move, the better your health will be, end quote, says Henson. Quote, It
is quite simple. The more people get up, the slimmer they become, end quote, he
says. So take a shower instead of a bath. Purchase standing-room tickets for
your next concert or sporting event. Play pool or darts while hanging out at
your favorite bar. Walk around stores instead of shopping online. Drink more
water so you have to walk to the bathroom more often. Do your dishes by hand. When
watching TV, stand up or do squats or lunges during commercials. Instead of taking
your family to a movie, try bowling, mini-golf or indoor rock climbing. Walk
your kids to school. Get the whole family involved in making beds,
housecleaning and yard work. Every bit of movement helps.
Of course, it is only natural to wonder: How long can I sit without consequence
anyway? Save yourself the trouble and do not go looking for guidelines. Sitting
disease is a relatively new area of study, and science has yet to discover how
much sitting is too much. For now, the experts suggest that you be more mindful
of extended sedentary periods and proactively increase your movements. Quote, It is like sun exposure, end quote, says Katzmarzyk.
Quote, We do not have guidelines that say we should
only go out in the sun for 10 minutes a day. We say that you should limit your
sun exposure and wear sunscreen. It cannot be
prescribed down to the minute. That is where we are in this field. End quote.
In other words, move as if your life depended on it.
Want more information? Find out if sitting for too long is
really killing you. Here are four exercises you can
do at work to keep yourself
moving throughout the day.
If you have any questions for
By
Roger Khouri
This
section in our monthly newsletter is where we get a snapshot on how some of you
think about a given survey question. The
topics have been varied, and I will continue to get a pulse on interesting
topics for you to vote on. The result of
votes will be posted in the next newsletter.
If you
have a suggested survey question, please do not hesitate to send it to: newsletter@out-of-sight.net, for
possible consideration.
Last
month, I wanted to know if any of you, who are blind or visually impaired,
would be in favor of getting your sight restored. Or, for those of you who were
born blind, would you like to see? You
would receive 20/20 vision. It would be
free, permanent, and it would not carry any health risks to you.
Okay,
drum roll please ...
Survey
says that 90
percent of respondents would like to have 20/20 vision, while 10 percent would
decline. This is an interesting spread,
so, perhaps, while in the Front Porch, Doughnut Shop, or even the Dew Drop Inn
chat rooms, we could talk about this interesting survey result. Remember, all personal votes are kept
confidential, but, feel free to talk about it in one of the chat rooms.
A few
of you asked me how I came up with this survey question. Here is how.
a couple of years ago, sitting and chatting
with fellow visually impaired folks at camp, we were talking about different
advances in science and technology regarding sight restoration. Most of us in that group would give anything
to be able to see, while a few would decline any treatment or technology. It was interesting to hear the views and
reasoning of everyone, because it really took me by surprise to hear that
someone would actually decline the opportunity to be able to see. Yet, I
respect the opinion of everyone, and I can appreciate their reluctance. All
views were equally valid and important.
Now,
as Santas elves are hard at work making toys for all
the little boys and girls, and tuning up the sleigh, I wanted to pose a
question to you about that magical time of the year--Christmas. There are so many songs and stories about
winter and snow that go along with the celebration of Christmas. Yet, many parts of the
Would Christmas feel the same for you bearing in mind the opposite
weather conditions?
Please
send in your Yes or No survey reply to:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net
and our elves will tabulate the responses and have them
ready for the January newsletter. We
hope you share your feelings on the survey topic in your e-mail, but, none are
necessary. All responses will be kept
confidential. Next month, we plan to post some of your comments, as it is
interesting to see the reasoning people use when voting, but of course, they
will be anonymous! Merry Christmas from your Survey Says team!
By
Charles Rivard
Here is
a quick tech tip:
When in
one of the rooms, if you want to let people know that you have stepped away but
will be back, just hit the Alt key and go down through the Files Menu until you
see a submenu called My Status, and right arrow. There are 2 choices: Online and Away. Up or down arrow to "away" and hit
enter. A message is sent to the room
that you have stepped away. When you
come back, just key up when you are ready to talk. A message is sent to the room letting
everyone know that you have returned.
You do not have to do anything else.
Note: The people in the room will hear that you
stepped away and returned, but you will not hear it on your end.
By
Roger Khouri
On the
evening of November 11th, we gathered in the Fox Hole for a special
Out-Of-Sight production to salute, and honor, all our veterans, past and
present. They were the ones who put
their lives on the line, and some of them even made the ultimate sacrifice, so
that we would live in freedom and peace. We are forever grateful and indebted
to them. The Veterans Day - Remembrance Day Salute was a labor of love--a
special gift to our military veterans.
We concluded the program with establishing the Out-Of-Sight Veterans
Wall of Remembrance. We inscribed the name of our beloved Bing
Wack on it. We
will remember all our Out-Of-Sight military veterans for generations to come,
whom the Lord will call home. They are
more than just a name on a wall. They
are our bretheren who served with courage, bravery
and unyielding patriotism.
May I
take a moment to offer my heartfelt gratitude for all those who attended and
participated in this production. First and foremost, thank you to the 15 blind
military veterans who took part in our service and for their guidance. Second,
thanks for every one who saluted their family members who had served in the
military. Last, and certainly not least, in alphabetical order, a huge thank
you to the following people who shared their
talents by assisting with the program, because it could not have been
done without them:
Bob Bartlet,
Cheryl
Spencer,
Della Lausch,
Jack
De Oliveira,
Karen
Santiago,
Kaye Zimpher,
Lee
Richards,
Mark
Dew,
Sue Burdyshaw,
And Suzy Barnes.
Thank
you to the following people, who recorded a message especially for this program
for Out-Of-Sight:
Julian
Fantino, Minister of Veterans Affairs,
Dwight
Sayer, National Association of Blind Veterans,
And
Mike Malarsie, Wounded Warrior, blinded in
If you
would like a copy of the program, you can use a link in the Fox Hole chat room
to download it. Just press F6 after entering the room, or click to download the
tribute. If you have difficulties, please let us know, and we can e-mail you a
direct download link.
Thanks
again to everyone who made this program such an Out-Of-Sight and memorable
tribute!
(Not the usual ones)
By Suzy Barnes
These
were a hit at our Perry Thanksgiving 2012, and even for those who do not normally
eat them.
Ingredients:
4
cups, grated raw sweet potatoes
1 1/4
cups, milk
1 1/2
cups, sugar
1
stick, butter
Pinch
of salt
Pinch
of nutmeg
1
tablespoon, cinnamon
2 eggs
Directions:
Mix
altogether, and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Then, make topping. See below.
Ingredients
for Topping:
1 cup,
brown sugar
3
tablespoons, melted butter
1/3
cup, all purpose flour
1 cup,
chopped nuts
Directions
for topping:
Combine
topping ingredients, spread on baked sweet potatoes. Bake an additional 30
minutes. It is so much like a dessert, we thought it
would probably bake well in a deep dish pie shell.
There are two questions this
month!
Please
note:
This submission is not to be taken seriously. It is just for fun! If you would
like to submit a question for Miss Betty Blunt to answer, please write to:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net
She may or may not answer your question seriously, and she may or may not give
you the answer you were hoping for, but one thing is for sure, you will get a
good laugh out of her witty, bold, and blunt advice. She will often make
comments that we all wish we could say, but are just too afraid to make. So,
send in your questions, and let us see if she can help you with your
relationship issues. If you wish, your initials, city, and state will be
altered to conceal your identity.
#1. Dear Betty Blunt,
We are just about to head out on to the open road to drive to
Sincerely,
Anne E. Adams
Dear Grandma,
Hey, did you not read the sign on the door? My advice is for matters
relating to the heart, that is, love and relationships between adults, but, I
will make a small exception in this case to offer you some guidance. It is a
bit outside my area of expertise, but, I can definitely make do. Santa is
watching, so, I want to make sure he thinks I am a good little girl.
Well, giving you advice is not much of a stretch, because this does involve
love and relationships nonetheless. So, here goes nothing.
Okay, so
you are a sap when it comes to the winter? Well, from my stand point, the
winter is harsh and so is hot and humid weather, too. So, obviously, you
picked your poison and chose to be sticky and hot, showing up your long
luscious legs in
Insincerely,
BB
#2. Dear Betty Blunt,
You are quite the wordsmith. I wanted to pick your brain for a few nice things
to include in a poem that I am writing to my wife. It will be on a Christmas
card for a dish washer that I bought her. Thanks very much.
Al Brazinski
Fort Collins,
Dear Mr. Suds,
Well, for starters, I want you to hook up the dish washer, put it on extra
spin, extra rinse, and whatever extra knob you can find, then, stick your head
in it, and let the turbo jets wash away the idiotic ideas floating around in
that large chasm between your ears! The only reason why you even need a
dishwasher at your home is because you are too busy pushing back beers on your
Lazy Boy. Your wife is not your maid and there is no way that she wants a
dishwasher for Christmas. Oh let me guess, that cute little sales lady at
the department store in the tight skirt convinced you, right? Well, now
that you feel like a total idiot, good! You should now know better then
to trust the advice of a teenie bopper, but, the time
tested and mother approved wisdom that I will give you will be worth its weight
in gold ten fold. Oh, did I say gold? Yep, I surely did. So, get out your
credit card, and go to an expensive jewelry store and get your wife some gold
and diamonds that she can wear. Put them in the dishwasher, so that when
she unwraps it, let her know that her real present is inside the dish washer.
Pray that she doesn't sock you one once she unwraps
the dish washer. So, you better stand back, and be quick to
let her know to open the dishwasher door for her awesome gift. Lord
knows she deserves it!Merry
Christmas!
Insincerely,
BB
By Rich De Steno and
Roger Khouri
Thank you to everyone
who submitted answers to last months brain teasers. Many of you were very close, but close only
counts in horseshoes and hand grenades!
Just kidding! It is apparent that
this month, many of you had your thinking caps on! So, congratulations go out to Lawrence MacLellan, Roger Khouri, and Suzy Barnes
for answering both brain teasers correctly!
Here are the November brain teasers and their
answers:
1. The
person who makes it sells it. The person who buys it never uses it and the
person who uses it does not know they are. What is it?
Answer: A
coffin.
Answer: A
peacock does not lay eggs. The female is
called a peahen.
Now, for our super duper brain teasers for
December! Can you solve these? Lets see who thinks
they are smarter than a fifth grader!
Please submit the answers to these brain
teasers to:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net
We will let you know if you are correct, and if so, we
will publish your name in the January newsletter. Have fun trying to solve
these puzzles!
Thanks goes out to you, our extended family on Out-Of-Sight! You participate
and spend your time getting to know one another on the site. Without you, there
would be no need for programming, no need for special activities, and no need
to even have a site. So, thank you very much! Thanks for making this community
an Out of Sight place to be!
Oosabelle’s List
No, this is not Craig’s List, but it is the next best thing! If you have
something to sell, or announce, send us your ad, and we will post it, as long
as there is space available in the newsletter. Send your ads to: Newsletter@out-of-sight.net
Well, look no further, Panoramic Radio
is here!
Check out Panoramic Radio at www.panoramicradio.com and enjoy all the great programming we
have to offer.
We have everything from Oldies, to
country, show tunes and even old time radio shows.
So what are you waiting for? Go to www.panoramicradio.com select listen and choose your favorite
player. You can also listen using a mobile phone or I device with apps such as TuneIn Radio or ooTunes.
To listen LIVE over
the Telephone, call our AudioNow Hotline: (712)
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please write a blank email to:
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That is all there is to it! You should receive a daily
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Stay informed with our daily announcement!
Also stay tuned for our monthly newsletter, which will be distributed on the
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the 20th of each month to:
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