Out-Of-Sight News and Views


Issue #14
February 1, 2014

In This Issue


Greetings from Our President
Navigation
Word on the Street
Guess Who Took another Trip around the Sun
Our Out-Of-Sight Superstar
A Huge Milestone
A small step for Ash, a Giant Leap for Ash Kind
Volunteer of the Year - Our Very Own Buddy C.
First Prime Minister of Canada
Geography Lesson For Today
Bookshelf -
Audio Books For All
Gene Therapy Tested as a Way to Stop Blindness
Printed Eye Cells Could Help Treat Blindness
Did You Know? 10 Super Foods For Better Health
32 Apps to Help You Get Started with a New iOS Device
Top 10 Tips For A Fit 2014
And Survey Says
The Recipe Box -
Dear Betty Blunt
Think Tank
Words to Live By
A Round of Applause
Oosabelle’s List
What is happening on Out-Of-Sight

Greetings from Our President



Our sixth Out-Of-Sight birthday celebration was enjoyed by all. We appreciate those that hosted games and special events, and all of the members who attended and made this special day another memorable milestone for our site.

Let all of us continue to make Out-Of-Sight the wonderful community of friends where people care about others and are willing to lend a helping hand.

The monthly news letter is starting into its second year of publication under the leadership of a new editor, Kate Dolosa. Judging from the January edition, it continues to be a very interesting and informative format enjoyed by all of us.

We want to take this opportunity to thank the outgoing editor, Debi Chatfield, for spending countless hours each month compiling and editing the news letter for all of its first year run. We also want to thank all of those who contribute articles each month. Without your help, the news letter could not continue to exist.

As always, if you have anything else you would like to see contained in this format, send your suggestions to:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net

Regards,

Lee Richards

Navigation



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.

Word on the Street



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:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net

We look forward to sharing your news with our extended family, here on Out-Of-Sight!

Guess Who Just Took Another Trip Around the Sun?



Help us celebrate our February birthdays!
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:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net

Our Out-Of-Sight Superstar


by: Karen Santiago

Our superstar crown has just traveled 12082.93 Kilometres or 7507.99 miles, from California to India. Yep, Mohit Singla, from a suburb of New Delhi is our February superstar!

Mohit has lived in New Delhi for 15 years. He and his lovely wife, Aarti have been married for 12 years. They do not have any children. Mohit added with an ear to ear smile on his face, that he is a happy man because of that fact. In 1999 he graduated from Pune University with a MBA in marketing. Mohit has had several jobs, his first two being at Kimberly Clark and IBM respectively. Then he worked for First Advantage, a subsidiary of First American Corporation, which supplied companies with background screening checks on potential employees. Mohit worked as the head of the New Delhi branch for three years with an additional role as head of new initiatives. He then was the business head for an E Learning Company. There, he was involved in every aspect of the business except for sales. Mohit worked 12 - 16 hours a day seven days a week. In 2010, he decided to take a 3 – 6 month sabbatical.

Aarti had been working for 13 years on her own in publishing. So, Mohit decided that he liked being home on his butt, and he created a new business. He and Aarti work together on their business, Publish Our Dreams. They work mostly with new authors. They will publish just about anything: nonfiction, photo books, poetry, and recipes; just to name a few. Mohit deals with the clients, collects the money, and he confessed that he does whatever Aarti tells him to do. Now, that is a good man! Their business is doing quite well considering they have not yet marketed it.They get most of their clients through recommendations or word of mouth. That is a sign of a good business, and one that does professional work.

Mohit has retinitis pigmentosa (RP), which has continuously decreased his vision since 2003. It was just April of 2013 when he made the switch from a magnifier to a screenreader. Although he can still use the magnifier, he said he made the change for ease and comfort.

Here are some interesting facts about Mohit.
He followed wrestling religiously from 2001-2010. He said he never missed a match. It is reassuring to know that Mohit realized that wrestling was fake, and more like a soap opera. Mohit also was interested in Formula One racing. He enjoys video games such as Mortal Combat and golf. Mohit has an extensive collection of rock music from the sixties, consisting of about 35,000 songs. For those of you who do not know, Mohit is addicted to coffee. He has visited every 5 star hotel in New Delhi for their coffee. He and his friends would visit the hotel coffee shops 4 to 5 times a week and chat for hours while drinking coffee. Mohit added that it was great since they had to just pay for the first cup since free refills were included. Now, he and his friends visit local cafes, and only 3 or 4 times a week.

Mohit remembers when he got to use a computer for the first time, back in 1990. He really loves using them and figuring out the latest technology. He is always offering to help out others with their computer problems. If he cannot solve the problem he will research it to come up with some type of solution. Mohit never took a computer course, nor did he have any training. This brings me to another enjoyment of his, reading. He loves to read, and is always learning.

When I asked Mohit what he liked about Out-Of-Sight, his first reply was a flat out nothing. Yep, he said it, but of course he did not mean it. If you know Mohit, you know that he likes to bug or bother people, but in a nice, kidding kind of way. I am not so sure how much of it is kidding around when it is directed to his brother, Ashish. If you recall, Mohit tried to donate Ashish for the OOS Fall auction. However, he should be grateful for his brother, since it was he who told Mohit about Out-Of-Sight, last February. Mohit finally fessed up saying that he thinks the site is cool, and he has met really nice people. He enjoys having conversations with others on a variety of topics. However, due to the time difference he is not able to join in most of the games. He does participate in Mississippi, and recently Brenda and he created Lucky Roll, which he hosts.

Congratulations Mohit for being Our Shining Superstar for February!

A Huge Milestone Reached


by: Roger Khouri

It is hard to believe that this humble newsletter has celebrated its first birthday! Yes, it was on January of 2013 when the Out-Of-Sight newsletter first went to print. It was the brain child of Alan Dicey, a good friend of many people on this chat site.

When I first heard of this idea, I did not fully appreciate the powerful effects that it would have on our chat community. First, it gave people a way to communicate with one another through the written word. The breadth and depth of the articles illustrated our uniqueness and it showcased our talents of writing, researching, and submitting interesting articles. I have thoroughly been impressed with a lot of the creative work that folks have put into their efforts to make the newsletter such a huge success. The articles have been a great thing to talk about in our chat rooms and we have strengthened a sense of community among our membership as a result. We have learned more about one another and the world is a smaller place.

Much of the organizing during the first year was bore on the broad shoulders of Debi Chatfield. Many many hours were spent behind the scenes preparing and editing the newsletter to give it a crisp and professional look and feel. A debt of gratitude is owed to Debi, our first editor, who kept things running smoothly to go through a lot of growing pains and achieve one year of publication.

Now, the torch has been handed over to Kate Dolosa as the next editor. So, perhaps the newsletter will have a pink tinge to it. Nonetheless, the newsletter team is pleased to have worked with Debi and we are all pleased to now work with Kate. For all of you who wrote or submitted articles or ideas, offered suggestions, or cheered the newsletter team on during this first year, we owe you a big thank you because it could not have been accomplished without you!

The newsletter is a reflection of our diverse chat community and it has made a positive impact on us all and on the internet as a whole. The readers often remark that they really look forward to reading the newsletter. This is one of the best compliments to Hear and it is quite heartening. The best of success for the second year and beyond!

Small Step For Ash, Giant Leap For AshKind


by: Ashish Singla

It was the night of December 31, 2013, a time to bid goodbye to the year. As I sat reflecting on the personal highlights of the year gone by, an action kept reoccurring as the root cause of all major highlights. I realized how a small step by Ash can be a giant leap for Ash kind.

Although this small step did not come at a small price, ever since that decision, I have spent more than a thousand dollars on different things as a result of it. Right from launching my own website, purchasing a wireless headset, and getting an iPhone 5 are just a few of them.

So, are you wondering what was this small step? Well, it was joining Out-of-sight in the month of February 2013.
I still remember the first time I came on the site, and the warm welcome I received. Although I work for a telecommunications company, I would never imagine how I would be able to use a touch screen phone. When I came on Out-Of-Sight, I found that many of you use an iPhone with ease and can do so much more with it than I was able to do with my old Nokia phone. I cannot thank our very own Pinky enough for bearing with my endless queries and helping me burn a 800 dollar hole in my pocket. Purchasing an iPhone was one of my best investments. Use of various Apps like Cam Find and Google maps has given me more independence. Also, watching you people managing your websites gave me the confidence that I could launch and manage my own site.

Ever since I started losing my eye sight, one thing I missed was gaming. Out-Of-Sight opened a whole new world of gaming for me. Zilch, Family feud, chain reaction, password, ghost, and many more. Not to forget introduction to RS games and Playroom.

It was here that I got to become the President of America three times in a row. All thanks to Brenda, who introduced me to the game of Mississippi. Well, as they say, politics is addictive. now, I am up till 3 AM every Saturday night trying to sell my cattle at the right price.

Thanks to Out-Of-Sight,I received my first Christmas gift from Santa this year, small bump dots. These small bump dots have enabled me to use my microwave oven and work faster on my laptop.

Most importantly what Out-Of-Sight gave me was all of you. Within a few months, I had so many good friends. People who could understand what I was going through with my vision loss. People who helped me manage my day to day challenges. The support that you guys have provided has been overwhelming. Right from endless hours of technical support from Pinky, to Wee1 specially finding vegetarian recipes for me, to Pam suffering the torture of my Yoga lessons every week, to all of you putting up with my nonsense chatter.

On this first year anniversary of my joining Out-Of-Sight, I would like to thank each one of you. Each one of you have helped me evolve as an individual. I have thoroughly enjoyed chatting with you all, and I look forward to a long association with all of you. I hereby announce the year 2013 as the year of Out Of Sight in my life.

Volunteer Of The Year - Our Very Own Buddy C.


by: Karen Santiago

Our very own Duncan Callum of Miami was recently honored. You may ask yourself, as I did, who is Duncan Callam from Miami. Well most of us know him as Buddy C., and that is Miami Canada. He has lived in Miami all his life, and it has a population of about 400. So, needless to say, pretty much everyone knows everyone. When I asked him while his visual impairment was not mentioned, he stated that he too thought it was odd. But after further discussion, we both thought that it was due to him living in a small town, and people there just overlooked it. Buddy was both very surprised and humbled about receiving this award. Buddy is on the local curling team. On Hockey Day later this month, Buddy will be the announcing voice during the games.

Congratulations Buddy!

Below is the article that was written in Buddy’s local newspaper about his award.
by: Emily Distefano, The Carman Valley Leader

Duncan Callum has been named the Rural Municipality of Thompson’s Volunteer of the Year.
The Miami resident serves as president of the Miami Lion’s Club. Callum also coached the Miami Stampeders (softball) for 35 years and has been involved with the Curling Rink and Community Centre boards for years as well.
He was presented with a commemorative plaque on Dec. 5 at the RM of Thompson’s Appreciation Supper.
Quote It’s quite an honour, end quote he said. Quote It’s something that I didn’t really expect to win. End quote
Callum said he didn’t win the award himself, but the community let him win by allowing him to volunteer in many things.
Quote It really belongs to the community,” he said.

Many deserving candidates
Thompson Reeve Jason Vanstone said choosing the award’s recipient is difficult every year.
Quote It was Duncan’s turn, and very well deserved, end quote he said.
Vanstone added that volunteerism is the glue that holds a community together, and that Miami is well known for its community spirit. For Callum, giving back is a natural thing to do.
Quote That’s part of being and living in a community - you’ve got to help out, end quote he said. Quote Stuff like the hall and the rinks, those things don’t run unless people help out. End quote

First Prime Minister Of Canada


by: Ed Holder
Member of Parliament for London West in London Ontario.
Submitted by: Roger Khouri

As we look forward to 2014 with its promise of new beginnings, updated resolutions or just doing the best you can, I reflect on what it may have seemed like 199 years ago on January 11 to a working class family in Glasgow, Scotland, when their little child was born. Like all of us at some point in our history, that family came to Canada in search of a better life. So at 5 years old, John Alexander Macdonald arrived in Upper Canada (Ontario). Who might have imagined that singular decision to emigrate would produce a person of his time with the singular ability to forge a nation - Sir John A. Macdonald - Canadas first Prime Minister.

It was a formidable task, impossible for anyone who did not have his vision and drive. In the 1860s, the United States had ended their bloody Civil War and many were looking north to the disparate British colonies for acquisition. North of the 49th parallel there were limited ties to bind east and west; there were divisions between the English and French as those loyal to the Crown or to France may not all have wanted union, but wanted union with the emboldened United States even less.

It is said that times make the person. I believe the opposite is true. It is the visionary who has the ability to recognize those times and uses that to accomplish something special. Such was the case with John A.. He excelled in the art of politics with gifts of compromise and cajoling, to compel the English and French of Upper and Lower Canada to form this new union. To this, both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick were brought into the deal; others would follow. He promised a railroad uniting east and west; an extraordinary promise and incredible achievement considering the massive and brutal geography involved. He navigated the political parties of the day, each with their self-interests, to find common ground to come together. The British North America Act, which created Canada, was written with John A. as the author of most of the terms of the union. Along with his Canadian delegation, he convinced England in a bloodless, creative way, to transition Canada into its own nation, ultimately from sea to sea to sea.

In my view we need to do better to recognize our heroes; we do not celebrate them enough. From my perspective, my Canadian heroes (apart from my Cape Breton mother), are Sir John A. and Terry Fox. While that may seem like an incongruent pairing, it is clear they shared grand visions which were far greater than their personal interests. They inspired a nation; they had a fierce will to succeed and they took actions in the name of a greater good. They overcame personal tragedies, persevered and succeeded.

John A. lost his first-born son from a terrible accident. His little girl suffered from a form of encephalitis and was confined to a wheel chair all her life. His wife died at a young age from a long-suffering illness. His law partners sued John A. for spending too much time away from the business while he was busy creating a country. He coped with brutally aggressive media led by George Brown and political unrest within and outside his Party. He dealt with the major cultural differences between the English and French; plus the threats and real attacks from the United States. My view is, that on reflection, the reputed habits for which John A. is frequently lionized seem less consequential in light of the challenges with which he dealt, with dignity and determination.

Terry Fox is a story most of us know well. Struck by cancer as a teenager, his leg was amputated above the knee. Yet despite this tragedy he inspired a nation and the world with the greatest athletic feat in the history of mankind - 143 consecutive marathons a day...on one leg. All the while raising, and years after his death, continuing to raise hundreds of millions of dollars to find the cure for cancer. More about Terry in another issue.

So on January 11th, on Sir John A. Macdonalds 199th birthday, raise a glass (of water as you wish) and toast this Canadian hero. He took the impossible and made it our reality. May we always be grateful!

Geography Lesson For Today



There are approximately 196 countries in the world as of this writing. While you may consider yourself to be a knowledgeable global citizen, and we are sure you are, given the dynamic and complex nature of our planet, there are certain to be at least a couple of facts on this list you will find surprising.

Here are 25 things you would not believe about these countries.

25. Covers The Most Time Zones - France
If you count everything, including overseas territories, then France claims the title by covering 12 time zones. The United States would be the runner-up with 11, and then Russia with 9.

24. Most Likely To Disappear Beneath The Waves - Maldives
With all the talks of global warming and rising sea levels, it is the residents of the Maldives who have the greatest reason to fear. With an average height of around 1.8 meters above sea level, their nation is the lowest on Earth.

23. Most Overweight Population - Nauru
With over 95% of its population being overweight, the small island nation of Nauru is by far the fattest country on Earth. Its obesity epidemic is primarily Attributed to the importation of western fast food coinciding with an increased Standard of living in the 20th century due to the global popularity of its phosphate exports. It is almost non sequitur.

22. Roads Made Of Coral - Guam
Because Guam does not have any natural sand, but rather coral, the island nation makes its asphalt using a mix of ground coral and oil rather than importing sand from abroad.

21. Has 350 Sheep For Every Person - Falkand Islands (UK)
With only about 3,000 people, the Falkland Islands are home to approximately half-a million-sheep. Not surprisingly that wool is a major export.

20. Oldest Sovereign State - Egypt
This largely depends upon your definition of a sovereign state, but if you are going by first acquisition of sovereignty, then Egypt would be the first country in the world to achieve sovereignty based upon the formation of the first dynasty in 3100 BC.

19. Most Lakes In The World - Canada
With over three million lakes, 9% of Canadian territory is actually fresh water and over 60% of all the lakes in the world are found within its borders.

18. Least Likely Place To Meet Your Neighbor - Mongolia
At 4 people per square mile, Mongolia is the least densely populated country on Earth. Compare this to the Mong Kok district of HongKong with the highest population density in the world with 340,000 people per square mile.

17. Largest Number Of Tanks - Russia
It is a strange title to hold, but Russia has by far the most tanks of any army in the world (21,000). Unfortunately for the motherland, most of these outdated machines are tributes to its past, and although outnumbered (16,000), the United States has a much more advanced tank inventory.

16. The Land Of No Rivers - Saudi Arabia
Sounds a bit strange, doesnt it? For a country as big as Saudi Arabia, there has to be at least some sort of flowing water. Well, there is not. Most of their fresh water comes from desalinization plants or underground reservoirs.

15. Youngest Population Of Any Country - Niger
Generally the youngest country in the world is determined by calculating the portion of the population younger than 15. Presently, it is Niger holding this distinction with roughly half of its population having barely reached puberty (49%).

14. Most Diverse Country In The World - India
In almost every category - culturally, economically, climatically, racially, linguistically, ethnically, and religiously, India is either the most diverse country in the world, or the runner-up.

13. Fastest Disappearing Nation - Ukraine
With a natural decrease in population of 0.8% annually, between now and 2050, Ukraine is expected to lose around 30% of its people.

12. Most Of Its Citizens Live Abroad - Malta
After some rough economic times coupled with an increased birth rate, Malta experienced significant immigration. It was so significant that there are now more Maltese living abroad than within the country itself.

11. Smaller Than Central Park In New York City - Monaco
Although Vatican City is smaller (0.17 square miles) than Monaco (0.7 square miles), unlike Monaco it does not have any permanent residents which leaves Monaco as the smallest permanently habited nation in the world, smaller than Central Park.

10. Almost Entirely Covered In Jungle - Suriname
With 91% of its land covered in jungle, half-a-million residents of Suriname live primarily along the coast near the capital. Only 5% of the population (mainly indigenous people) live inland.

9. Almost Entirely Treeless - Haiti
On the opposite end of the spectrum is Haiti, a country so badly deforested you can tell where it borders the Dominican Republic by looking at its satellite image.

8. Largest Country With No Farms - Singapore
Although there are a number of small nations in the world showing no hint of having an agriculture based economy, (take Vatican City for example), Singapore is the largest of these urban city-states.

7. Most Languages Spoken - Papua New Guinea
Although English is its official language, only 1-2% of the population actually speak it. As the most linguistically diverse country in the world, over 820 languages are spoken in Papua New Guinea, or 12% of the total in the world.

6. Most Educated People - Canada
With 50% of its population having been educated at the Post Secondary level, Canada easily has the most educated populace in the world. It is followed by Israel at 45%, and Japan at 44%.

5. The Country Desert - Libya
With 99% of the country covered in desert, Libya is one of the most arid places in the world, and in some regions, decades may go by without a single drop of rain.

4. Least Peaceful Nation In The World - Somalia
Although for the last three years IRAQ has been ranked as the least peaceful country in the world, according to the Global Peace Index, Somalia overtook it this year for the top spot.

3. Produces Most Of The Oxygen In The World - Russia
Siberia is home to approximately 25% of the forest in the world, spanning an area larger than the continental United States, making Russia the largest converter of CO2 into breatheable compounds.

2. Largest Opium Producer In The World - Afghanistan
poppies in Afghanistan producing a whopping 95 PERCENT of the opium in the world, not even 10 years of occupation by American forces have slowed down the industry.

1. Most People Behind Bars - United States
When it comes to incarcerating its population, the United States is the uncontested leader in the world. With 2.2 million people BEHIND BARS, it has 5% of the population in the world, but 25% of the incarcerated population in the world. China comes in second place at 1.5 million and Russia comes third at 870,000.

The Book Shelf -



Do you love to curl up with a good book? Been meaning to read that best seller? Here are three of our book club selections. They are to be read for our next book club meeting, which will be held, Friday, February 21, 2014 at 8:00 PM eastern, in the Library. See you there!

Book Number One


Sons Of Fortune (DB 55650) Written by: Jeffrey Archer. Read by: Michael Russotto.
Genre: Family, Political Fiction, Bestsellers
Description:
Twins are separated at birth--Nathaniel Cartwright goes home with his middle-class biological parents while Fletcher Davenport grows up as a millionaires son. Decades later they meet in a race for the governorship of Connecticut, but a crime threatens to reveal their past and send one to prison. 2003.

Book Number Two


Fortune Is A Woman (DB 35404) Written by: Elizabeth Adler. Read by: Catherine Byers.
Genre: General
Description:
Francie Harrisons father wants a son, so she is rejected at birth, and at eighteen she sets out on her own. Annie Aysgarth has become mother to her young brother and servant to her father. In San Francisco shortly after the 1906 earthquake, Francies and Annies paths cross with that of Lai Tsin, a Chinese mandarin. Together they build a friendship and a strong, successful business alliance. Some strong language and some descriptions of sex.

Book Number Three


Robert Ludlums The Hades Factor (DB 50768)
Written by: Robert Ludlum. Read by: Bob Askey.
Genre: Suspense Fiction, Bestsellers, Medical Fiction
Description:
Dr. Jon Smith and his fiance´e, Dr. Sophia Russell, at the armys institute for infectious diseases investigate a virus that is creating a deadly epidemic. Jon is soon warned off by the FBI, while Sophia contacts a colleague in Peru where a similar disease wiped out a tribe. Some violence. 2000. Some violence.

Audio Books For All


by: Karen Santiago

I have found a great site for those of you who are not able to use BARD/ NLS. It is
www.librivox.org
and it needs no registration or fee. Here is its objective right from the site:

To make all books in the public domain available, for free, in audio format on the internet. Librivox began in August 2005 by Hugh McGuire, a Montreal-based writer and web developer, who has gone on to start other publishing related enterprises including Press Books, a simple book production tool, and Iambik Audiobooks a commercial audiobook company inspired by LibriVox, which partners with publishers and narrators to produce in-copyright audiobooks. This is a noncommercial, nonprofit, and add free site.

Volunteers record chapters of books in the public domain, and then librivox releases the audio files back onto the internet for free. Volunteers range from actors, professionals, and regular people. You can tell that some of these recordings are done from someone’s office or living room. However, this is another option to download from, or for others the only current free option available. Some of the genres to choose from are children’s books, action and adventure, classics, crime and mystery, cultural, drama, poetry, religion, romance, and others. I encourage you to at least browse through this site!

Editors Note:
You can also download it free from the AppStore for your iDevices. The name of the app is called LibriVox.

Gene Therapy Tested as a Way to Stop Blindness


By delivering gene therapies to patients before they go blind, doctors may be able to prevent the loss of many important light-detecting cells.
By Susan Young on January 16, 2014
Submitted by Roger Khouri

Why It Matters
There are no treatment options for many inherited retinal diseases, which rob people of sight at an early age.

Light preserver: Robert MacLaren performs retinal surgery on a patient participating in a gene therapy experiment at the Oxford University Eye Hospital. A new kind of gene therapy has reversed some vision loss in people born with a degenerative eye disease for which there is no existing treatment. In a first for the field, the treatment can be given to some participants who still had 20 - 20 vision, albeit in a limited field of vision. By delivering gene therapy at an earlier stage, researchers hope to save more light-sensing cells in the retina.

Quote. We need to push gene therapy forward, to apply it before vision is gone, End Quote, says Robert MacLaren, an ophthalmologist at the University of Oxford who led the study. Quote. When retinal damage gets to a certain point, it is beyond repair. End Quote.
MacLaren says earlier treatment could also be particularly important for conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration. The surgical procedure employed put the precious remaining vision of patients in the trial at risk because it involved detaching delicate retina tissue in one of each participants eyes, but so far no problems have occurred since that surgery, the researchers report. Some participants report that they are now able to detect more light, read more letters and numbers, and even see the stars at night. One patient, who before his treatment could not read any lines on an eye chart with his most affected eye, was able to read three lines with that eye following his treatment. The condition addressed in the work is choroideremia, an eye disease that affects an estimated one in every 50,000 people. Because the gene that causes this disease is on the X chromosome, it primarily affects males. Starting in late childhood usually, the condition causes progressive narrowing or tunneling of vision and often ends in blindness. The condition gradually wipes out the light-detecting rods and cones in the retina.

The experimental treatment adds a working copy of the culpable gene to the retinal cells of patients born with a defective copy. The trial also involved an experimental way of delivering gene therapy to the eye. Each patients retina was first lifted, and the gene therapy was injected into the space created under the retina. MacLaren and colleagues report on the condition of six patients in a study published on Wednesday in the Lancet.

Other groups are also developing gene therapies for retinal diseases. This includes a group at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, which recently funded a new company to continue human trials of a treatment for Lebers Congenital Amaurosis, another inherited form of retinal degeneration.

Researchers Hendrik Scholl from John Hopkins University and José Sahel from the Institut de la Vision in Paris write in a commentary accompanying the research paper that since the surgery was performed only six months ago, it is too soon to determine if the therapy has achieved an important goal: to stop the loss of retina tissue.
Quote. It is going to take a couple of years to be sure, End Quote, says MacLaren.

Printed Eye Cells Could Help Treat Blindness


The ability to print retinal cells could lead to new therapies for retinal disorders such as macular degeneration.
By Mike Orcutt on January 13, 2014
Submitted by Roger Khouri

Why It Matters
Retinal degeneration is a leading cause of blindness.

Ink-jet printing technology could be a way to build new tissue meant to restore vision to people suffering from common forms of blindness due to retinal degeneration. Researchers at the University of Cambridge used a standard ink-jet printer to form layers of two types of cells taken from the retinas of rats, and showed that the process did not compromise the cells health or ability to survive and grow in culture. Ink-jet printing has been used to deposit cells before, but this is the first time cells from an adult animals central nervous system have been printed.

The group hopes to develop the technology into a tool for generating new tissues that can be grown outside the eye and implanted in patients with retinal damage. Alternatively, the technique could potentially be used to insert cells directly into damaged retinas during ocular surgery, says Keith Martin, a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Cambridge, who led the research.

Scientists can grow single layers of cells in cultures, but printing may be a more effective way to engineer new tissues and organs, which are made of multiple different cell types positioned in intricate three-dimensional orientations. The retina, for example, is a highly organized, multilayered structure composed of various types of neurons and non-neuronal cells. The new ink-jet technique makes it possible to place retinal cells in Quote. very precise and special arrangements, End Quote, says Martin.

Martin and his colleagues made printable suspensions, each containing one of two cell types isolated from adult rat retinas: neurons called retinal ganglion cells and non-neuronal cells called glia, which provide vital support for neurons. Certain other types of embryonic neuronal cells have been successfully deposited with ink-jet printing before, but these are the first printed mature neurons. Before the study, some researchers doubted whether such cells could withstand the stresses of ink-jet printing. Compared with embryonic cells, Quote. adult neuronal cells are really quite fragile, End Quote, says Martin. Quote. We were actually quite surprised at how well these adult neuronal cells survived the printing process. End Quote.

Martin says the group must now perform further tests to make sure that the cells are behaving the way they should. After that, the researchers plan to try printing additional layers and cell types, including light-sensitive neurons called photoreceptors and another type of non-neuronal cell called retinal pigment epithelial cells. Both are essential to normal retinal function.

Rebuilding the retina is an extremely difficult challenge, because Quote. you have to reconstruct what is basically a small computer, Quote, whose function arises from a very complicated architecture in which multiple cell layers are connected in a number of different ways, End Quote, says Joel Schuman, chairman of the department of ophthalmology at the University of Pittsburgh. If this architecture could be re-created using a printer, Quote, you would be so many steps ahead of trying to grow the layers individually and then put them together, End Quote, he says.

Whether such printed structures will actually work in the eye, though, remains an unanswered question, cautions Schuman. Not only must they survive, but they must integrate with the rest of the retina and ultimately connect to the brain via the optic nerve.

Did You Know? 10 Super Foods For Better Health


by: Katie Chandler

Here are 10 Super Foods For Better Health, at least one will surprise you!

1. Sweet Potatoes
A nutritional All-Star! One of the best vegetables you can eat. They are loaded with carotenoids, Vitamin C, potassium, and fiber. Bake and then mix in some unsweetened applesauce or crushed pineapple for extra moisture and sweetness.

2. Grape Tomatoes
They are sweeter and firmer than other tomatoes, and their bite size shape makes them perfect for snacking, dipping, or salads. They are packed with Vitamin C and Vitamin A. You also get some fiber, some phytochemicals, and finally great flavor.

3. Fat Free or 1 percent Milk
Skim but not 2 percent milk. An excellent source of calcium, Vitamins, and protein. With little or no artery clogging fat and cholesterol Likewise for low fat yogurt. Soy milk can be just as nutritious if the company fortifies it.

4. Broccoli
It has lots of Vitamin C, carotenoids, and folic acid. Steam it briefly and add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes and a sprinkle of lemon juice.

5. Wild Salmon
The Omega 3 fats in fatty fish like salmon can help reduce the risk of sudden-death heart attacks. And wild-caught salmon has less PCB contaminants than farmed salmon.

6. Crispbreads
Whole grain, rye crackers, like Ry Krisp and Ryvita usually called crispbreads are loaded with fiber and often fat free.

7. Microwaveable Quick Cooking Brown Rice rice
Quick cooking (10 minutes) or microwaveable (90 second) brown rice are easy to prepare and more nutritious than enriched white rice. When the grain is refined, you lose the fiber, magnesium, Vitamins E and B6, copper zinc, and phytochemicals that are in the whole grain.

8. Citrus Fruit
Great tasting and rich in Vitamin C, folic acid, and fiber. Perfect for a snack or dessert. Try different varieties: juicy Minneola oranges, snacksize Clementines, or tart pink grapefruit.

9. Diced Butternut Squash
Butternut squash at the supermarket that is ready to go into the oven, a stir fry, or a soup. It is an easy way to get payloads of Vitamins A and C, and fiber.

10. Spinach and Kale

Ready Pac Greens. These standout leafy greens are jampacked with Vitamins A, C, and K, folate, potassium, magnesium, iron, lutein, and phytochemicals.

Flick, Swipe, and Tap - 32 Apps to Help You Get Started with a New iOS Device


by: Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team
Submitted by: Kate Dolosa

Did you get a new iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad this holiday season? Or, perhaps you have a new device but really don’t have any apps installed yet - but are looking to change that? Either way, if you are looking for apps for a new iOS device, or just to add some more apps to a device you have had for a while, we have got you covered.

The AppleVis Editorial Team has put together a list of great and accessible apps for those new to iOS devices. We have tried to stick with apps that are available worldwide and those that are free wherever possible; in all cases, we limited our selections to those apps under U.S. $10. Occasionally, apps do go on sale, so it is possible that an app we have listed as quote. paid end quote. may be discounted or free for a limited time.

We have specifically chosen apps which will help you to learn your way around iOS and VoiceOver. As you become more familiar with your new iOS device, you will realize that the apps listed in this article provide only a taste of what is available.

Apps to Help You Stay Connected

1. Facebook (Free)
Keeping up with friends is faster than ever.
•See what friends are up to
•Share updates, photos and videos
•Get notified when friends like and comment on your posts
•Text, chat and have group conversations
•Play games and use your favorite apps

2. Find My Friends (Free)
Find My Friends allows you to easily locate friends and family using your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Just install this free app and sign in with the Apple ID you use with iCloud. Adding a friend is easy — just choose from your contacts or provide an email address to send an invitation. When your friend accepts your invitation using the Find My Friends app on their device, you can start following their location. Your friends can request to follow your location the same way.

If you prefer, you can use temporary sharing to share locations with a group of friends for a specific period of time, such as an evening or a long weekend. If at any time you do not want to be followed, you can hide your location with a single switch.

Find My Friends also lets you set up location-based alerts that can notify you automatically when a friend arrives at the airport, a child leaves school, or a family member arrives home safely. You can notify friends about your current location or changes to your location at any time.

3. Skype for iPhone (Free)
Say hello to friends and family with an instant message, voice or video call on Skype for free. There is so much you can do, right from the palm of your hand.

4. Twitter (Free)
Twitter is the best way to connect, express yourself and discover what’s happening.

5. WhatsApp Messenger (Free for first year)
WhatsApp Messenger is a smartphone messenger available for iPhone and other smartphones. WhatsApp uses your 3G or WiFi (when available) to message with friends and family. Switch from SMS to WhatsApp to send and receive messages, pictures, audio notes, and video messages. First year FREE! ($0.99 USD/year after)

Apps to Help You Stay Informed

6. Hourly News (paid)
Hourly News is a simple app that plays the most recent news updates from multiple sources automatically when opened.

7. Newsify: Your News, Blog & RSS Feed Reader - Free iPhone & iPad App for reading News, Sports, Tech, Business, Magazines, Newspapers & More (Free)
Read and share your favorite websites and blogs with an amazing newspaper-like layout.

8. Overcast, Simple Weather (Free)
Overcast is designed to give a very quick overview of the current weather conditions and forecasts for the day and for the week. Overcast gives you access to the information you require by removing access to the information you do not even care about.
Overcast is also designed to be accessible. Voiceover is fully supported and the typography is designed to be easy on the eyes.

9. Reuters (Free)
Reuters iOS app brings you the latest reporting and market data from the worlds most trusted news organization.

10. Team Stream (Free)
Get all your team's news and scores from across the web in one easy place with personalized streams that sends alerts as soon as stories break. Be the first to know all your team's news!

Apps to Help You Be Productive

11. Drafts (Paid)
Drafts, where text starts on iOS. Quickly capture text and send it almost anywhere! The most flexible note taking app on iOS is ready for iOS 7!

12. Dropbox (Free)
Dropbox lets you bring all your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Access any file you save to your Dropbox from all your computers, iPhone, iPad and even the Dropbox website!

13. Fleksy - Happy Typing (Free)
Fleksy is a state-of-the-art text input system so powerful that you can type without even looking at the screen.

14. Pages (Free for all new iOS 7 devices purchased after September 1, 2013; $9.99 otherwise)
Pages is the most beautiful word processor you have ever seen on a mobile device. This powerful word processor helps you create gorgeous reports, resumes, and documents in minutes.

15. Rev Voice Recorder: Audio Transcription and Dictation (Free)
Rev Voice Recorder is a simple yet powerful audio recording and transcription app. It is free, with no annoying ads. For transcription, get the first 10 minutes free and pay $1/minute after that.

Apps to Keep You Entertained
16. Dice World - Farkle, Yatzy, Balut, Pig - With Friends and Family (Free)
Dice World! Bringing the world together with dice games! Not just one dice game, but Four different games! Farkle, Yatzy, Balut … and now PIG! Challenge your friends or random opponents to any or all games!

17. Downcast (Paid)
Download and listen to your favorite podcasts directly from your iOS device without the need to sync with iTunes.

18. iBlink Radio (Free)
The iBlink Radio application from Serotek Corporation is the worlds first application for the visually impaired for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad! Radio stations, podcasts and reading services of special interest to blind and visually impaired persons; as well as their friends, family, caregivers and those wanting to know what life is like without eyesight.

19. Kindle – Read Books, eBooks, Magazines, Newspapers & Textbooks (Free)
The Kindle app is optimized for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch, giving users the ability to read Kindle books, newspapers, magazines, textbooks and PDFs on a beautiful, easy-to-use interface. You will have access to over 1,000,000* books in the Kindle Store plus hundreds* of newspapers and magazines. Amazon Whispersync automatically syncs your last page read, bookmarks, notes, and highlights across devices (including Kindle), so you can pick up your book where you left off on another device.

20. ooTunes Radio - Recording and Alarm Clock! (Paid)
Experience the pure enjoyment of the music and voices of the world at your fingertips! Clean, crisp sound from over 32,000 Internet audio streams. Enjoy FM/AM live-broadcast from over 150 countries.

21. Pandora Radio (Free)
Great music discovery is effortless and free with Pandora. Just start with the name of one of your favorite artists, songs, genres or composers and we will do the rest. It is easy to create personalized stations that play only music you will love.

22. Voice Dream Reader - Text to Speech (Paid; free demo available)
With high quality text-to-speech and a configurable user interface, Voice Dream Reader makes written text accessible to everyone.
23. YouTube
YouTube your way. Get the official YouTube app for iPhone and iPad. Instantly become the DJ, learn Kung Fu and easily share with friends. Catch up on your favorite videos and playlists from around the world on the couch, in the kitchen or on the go.
Apps Developed Specifically for People who are Blind or who have Low Vision
24. Ariadne GPS (Paid)
Ariadne GPS is more than a simple GPS app. Besides offering you the possibility to know your position and to get information about the street, the number, etc. it also lets you explore the map of what's around you.

25. ColoredEye (Paid)
ColoredEye will identify the colors from your camera in real-time! Or you have option to identify colors within a saved photo.

26. Digit-Eyes (Paid)
Digit-Eyes reads barcode labels. Scan UPC / EAN codes and hear the names of over 34 million products! Make your own QR code labels on the Digit-Eyes website and print them on inexpensive address labels. These barcoded labels may contain text that VoiceOver reads aloud or they can be used to record audio on your iPhone or iPad that is played back whenever the bar code is scanned.

27. Light Detector (Paid)
Light Detector transforms any natural or artificial light source it encounters into sound.

28. LookTel Money Reader (Paid)
LookTel Money Reader instantly recognizes currency and speaks the denomination, enabling people experiencing visual impairments or blindness to quickly and easily identify and count bills. Point the camera of your iOS device at a bill and the application will tell you the denomination in real-time. Twenty one currencies are supported: the US Dollar, Australian Dollar, Bahraini Dinar, Brazilian Real, Belarusian Ruble, British Pound, Canadian Dollar, Euro, Hungarian Forint, Israeli Shekel, Indian Rupee, Japanese Yen, Kuwaiti Dinar, Mexican Peso, New Zealand Dollar, Polish Zloty, Russian Ruble, Saudi Arabian Riyal, Singapore Dollar, and United Arab Emirates Dirham.

29. LookTel VoiceOver Tutorial (Free)
This app provides a basic introduction to VoiceOver and the gestures used throughout iOS.

30. MBraille (Free)
MBraille brings you a mobile braille keyboard. With the free features you can type, edit and send tweets and text messages using contracted or uncontracted English braille. With the pro version you can also use braille to
•call contacts or telephone numbers
•send email
•do facebook status updates
•add calendar entries
•fire away internet search engine queries
•the text typed is automatically put to clipboard when you switch apps.
•interact with other 3rd party applications”

31. TextDetective (Paid)
Text Detective is a fully accessible app that reads text from the camera in your iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad within seconds. Point the camera and sort through mail, read menus, cards, product packages, medication labels, and all kinds of other print around you.

32. Tap Tap See Blind & Visually Impaired Camera (Paid)
TapTapSee is designed to help the blind and visually impaired identify objects they encounter in their daily lives. Simply double tap the screen to take a photo of anything, at any angle, and hear the app speak the identification back to you (Note: Spoken identification requires VoiceOver to be turned on).

Editors Note:
The last app on the list is replaced by a better app. You can also read in more detail about these apps at
www.applevis.com

Top 10 Tips For A Fit 2014


By Lawrence MacLellan

EVERY year we dive head-first into January with the best of intentions, but all too often we do not see the lasting changes we promise ourselves and deserve.
Here are my top 10 tips for making 2014 a game-changer for your health and wellness.

1. Get clear on what you want
You need clear goals that have a deadline and a definite end result. If you keep changing your fitness goals you will never achieve any of them. Decide what you want, figure out how you can get there, and get to work!

2. Back To Basic Nutrition
The diet industry is one that is very competitive and makes a lot of money. For that reason, it makes sense for supplement companies and weight loss experts to overcomplicate the area of nutrition and supplementation. In reality, most of us will see massive improvements to the way we look, feel, and move when we get back to basics with our nutrition.

One Hundred years ago, in Ireland, obesity was not an epidemic. People were not obsessed with calorie counting, weighing, and measuring foods, they just ate real food! When we focus on cutting out processed foods, and instead rely on meats, seafood, fish, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and other single ingredient foods, we optimise our hormones for health and optimal body composition.

The quality of the foods you consume is much more important than the quantities. Diet and low calorie foods are actually detrimental in that they are heavily processed. A low fat food will generally be higher in sugar which is the real culprit for our modern day health and wellness problems.

3. Stay Hydrated
When you are dehydrated, it is impossible to function at your best, and it is also impossible to drop unwanted body fat. Look to take in one litre of water per 25kg bodyweight. This may seem a lot at first, but in conjunction with a clean diet of real food, it will help flush toxins out of the body and in turn stubborn body fat will disappear.

4. Daily flexibility and mobility
Most of us spend our days in a seated position, which leads to shortened muscles, lower back problems and rounded shoulders. One of the things we all need to work on daily is mobility and flexibility. Most will have a vague goal and working on some basic stretches and ‘foam rolling’ will loosen out the body which in turn will help improve performance and prevent injury.

5. Improved ‘general fitness
When we see athletes or models on the television working out, we often love to be able to mimic their intense workout routines, but we first need to look at our base levels of fitness. If you’ve been sedentary for a long time, you need to build up to doing these advanced routines. Progressive overload is key. This means you start at a comfortable pace, and build upon this each day. Small improvements over time lead to lasting change. Far too often, and particularly in January, you see ‘eager beavers’ throwing themselves in at the deep end and either becoming burnt-out or injured, from doing too much too soon. A 20-minute brisk walk might be your starting point for improving your general fitness. Add a few minutes a week and before long you will work up to a jog, then a run. Consistency is key.

6. Strength Training
I’m a massive advocate of strength training. This helps to maintain muscle mass, which begins to disappear as we age. The more muscle we can hold on to, the more calories we will burn in everyday living. Strength training also results in a great hormonal effect on the body. Our anabolic hormones that leave us looking, feeling and moving better, become optimised, and the catabolic hormones that leave us feeling burnt-out are diminished. Ladies — take note, weight training will not make you bulky. Women just don’t have the hormones to pack on a lot of muscle. It will, however, give you the athletic feminine look you’ve been chasing.

7. Get Your Sleep Cycle in Order
Take at least 20 minutes a day to relax and unwind. Read a book, meditate, go for a walk, have a massage, whatever it is that makes you happy and lets you ‘switch off’ and relax. Coming up to bedtime is a great time to do this. Try to switch off the television and laptop an hour before bed. Remember being exposed to these artificial lights late will make it harder to unwind. Dim the lights if you can, have a cup of tulsi tea, unwind and just relax.

8. Get an Accountability Partner
This could be a coach or a training partner, someone who is going to keep you accountable to your goal. Let them know exactly what you are trying to do and have them promise you they will do everything they can to help you on your way toward your goal. If completing your first triathlon is a goal, then find someone who’s done it before you. This will take out the guesswork and instil you with confidence. Success leaves clues. No point reinventing the wheel, work with someone who’s already done what you are looking to do.

9. Be Smart With Supplements
If all the fat loss pills and potions out there did what they promised, we’d all be walking around looking like models. Nutrition, sleep and training are key to optimal body composition. Supplements add an extra few percent to the overall picture if you are doing everything else right, but most supplements are garbage or ‘expensive urine’.! I would recommend supplementing with a ‘green’ drink like wheatgrass, which helps alkalise the body and provide key nutrients.

10. Have Fun
If you join the gym every January and hate it, then don’t join the gym this year. Far too many people get stressed out by having to go to the gym and are under enough stress in everyday life without having to add to it. Find something you enjoy. As long as you are getting out and getting active, you will see improvements to the way you look, move and feel. I would encourage people to find a form of training with a social element. When making changes it’s important that we are around like-minded individuals who will help move us forward.

Remember to ease into any changes you make, One healthy choice at a time.

And, Survey Says...


By Roger Khouri

Each month I try to gage the pulse on what you, the members of our chat community say about a provocative and interesting question. I will post a selection of responses to the question to give you a feel on what folks said is their replies. Of course, there is no requirement that you justify your answer, but, if you feel like sharing your thoughts, I would love to hear them and share them with the rest of our chat community. Also, it goes without saying, that if you would like to submit a question for consideration, to have as our monthly Survey Question, please do not hesitate to send them to me at
newsletter@out-of-sight.net

OK, before I give you the survey question for February, let me give you last months question and a selection of responses. I have kept the comments anonymous, but, I assure you that they are real replies that were sent by Out of Sight members.

Survey Question:
Will you have any New Years resolutions?

And, here are some of the responses:
1. Nope, I do not have a New Year's resolution, never had, and I don't think I ever will. I however, have a new day's resolution everyday!

2. yes and if I get the help I need to carry it out, it will be used for a long time.

3. I was just reading the January news and views, and wanted to weigh in on the New Years resolutions. I traditionally do not believe in new years resolutions because they usually do not come true, or usually I cannot follow through on them for the whole year. For that reason I do not say I am going to eat healthier or lose weight, or something crazy like that. However, this year I am challenging myself to give more. I am a Christian and attend a church regularly and believe in the bible, which says that we are supposed to give a portion of our income toward the church. I have been giving over the past few years about 5% of my income, which is half of what the bible says we should give. I am challenging myself this year to give 7.5% of my income. I am hoping that this comes true and that I can keep it up over the whole year!

4. Yes. I have resolved that this year, I will not let anything fester.

Thank you very much for all who wrote in! OK, without further adue, here is Februarys survey question:

Have you ever had an unwanted house guest stay over way too long?

Please share with us any tips on how to deal with them and, most importantly, how do you get them to leave sooner then later.
Please e-mail your replies to:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net

Look for what others say about this question in the next newsletter. Again, if you have an interesting question that you would like me to consider for our monthly surveys, please e-mail it right away! Thanks, smiles.

The Recipe Box -


By Suzy Barnes

Ranch Pork Chops

Ingredients:
(1 oz.) packet Hidden Valley Original Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
1/4 teaspoon Black pepper
6 Pork chops
Dash of paprika

Prep Time: 15 min. or less
Bake Time: 25 min.

Directions:
Combine seasoning & salad dressing mix with pepper. Rub mixture on both sides of pork chops. Arrange pork chops in a single layer on a foil lined baking pan. Sprinkle with paprika, optional. Bake at 450°F. for 20 to 25 minutes, or until cooked through.

Note: If using frozen chops, rinse under water to remove the frozen glaze, and proceed as above.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Dear Betty Blunt



Please note:
This submission is not to be taken seriously. It is just for fun!

Dear Betty Blunt,
I find all these cold snowy days causing a strain on my relationship with my husband. He spends a lot of time shoveling the driveway and then there is really nothing to do inside the house. He is quite tired and just wants to lounge around. The day just drags on. The roads are way too bad to get out to the mall or to go somewhere. Do you have any advice?

Sincerely,
Donna Constopolis
Barry, Ontario

Dear bored out of her mind,
Well for starters, if you are worried about getting some new swag, and you cannot make it out to the mall, there is always the shopping channel. You can even order stuff off that channel in your PJs and no one will be the wiser. In terms of the rest of the day, have some compassion on your husband who is busting his back for you. If you want stuff to do, why not put on some warm clothes, grab a shovel and help him out a bit. Or, even better, why not go out and buy a snow blower to make it easier on him, and then, you can bring it over to my place and do my drive way. That should fill up a good chunk of your day. I live at 707 Easy Street. So, hop right on to it and thanks in advance for doing my drive way.

Insincerely,
Betty Blunt

Dear Betty Blunt,
I work for the phone company and I got a call from someone most recently the other day complaining about her bill. Surprisingly, she was not rude, nor did she yell or swear at me. Most angry customers do that sort of thing. She was quite calm and collected. I graciously credited her account to make up for the error on our part. She has called back several times in the past few months and I have credited her account again, yet, she really did not deserve the credits. I simply did it because she was so nice to me. If she calls back again, I do not have the heart to say no, but, my boss is going to get suspicious if I keep giving her credits. How can I handle it to avoid any trouble?

Sincerely,
Douglas Workman
Sun Lakes, Arizona

Dear Mr. Telephone Man,
No problem, I have an easy solution to your problem. I simply will stop calling and asking to deal with you about my bill. All I had to do is call you sweety and you immediately credited my account. Boy, you were so easy to win over. These past few months made up for all those rip off charges that you guys forced upon me. So, thanks a bunch, and your job is safe, I will simply sweet talk a different agent the next time I want to give you guys some pay back for the rip off charges you hoist on me.

Insincerely,
Betty, beat the phone company, Blunt

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.

Think Tank


Submitted 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!
Congratulations go out to Charles Rivard, Jeffrey Turner, Morey Worthington, and Thom Spittle for answering both brain teasers correctly!
Also, a round of applause to Debbie Granger, Kade Murdock, and Suzy Barnes for answering one of the brain teasers correctly!

Here are the answers to the January brainteasers:
1. How many apples can you fit into an empty box?

Answer: One, because then the box is not empty anymore.

2. What starts with a T, ends with a T, and has "T" in it?

Answer: Teapot

Now, for our super duper brain teasers for February! Can you solve these? Lets see who thinks they are smarter than a fifth grader!
1. Say my name and I disappear. What am I?

2. What five letter word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?

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 next issue of the newsletter. Have fun trying to solve these puzzles!

Words to Live By


Quote Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around. You tell them things that you’ve never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more. You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement. They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful. There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are. The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever. Memories of your childhood come back and are so clear and vivid it’s like being young again. Colours seem brighter and more brilliant. Laughter seems part of daily life where before it was infrequent or didn’t exist at all. A phone call or two during the day helps to get you through a long day’s work and always brings a smile to your face. In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby. Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you. You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon. You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible. You find that being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you. You find strength in knowing you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end. Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life. End quote - Bob Marley

A Round of Applause



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

Joanies Corner Radio show
Lots of different music like Big Bands, Top 40, Odies, and Classic Rock are just some examples.
Every Tuesday at 4pm Eastern
Please visit: www.radiooutofthepast.org

What is happening on Out-Of-Sight?



If you would like to receive our daily announcements and schedule of events, please write a blank email to:
Out-of-sight-announcement-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

That is all there is to it! You should receive a daily announcement from us within 24 hours. These announcements not only highlight the schedule of the day, they provide important information about any cancellations, new events, or special messages from our hosts or board members. Stay informed with our daily announcement!

Also stay tuned for our monthly newsletter, which will be distributed on the first of every month. We look forward to your input and suggestions for future newsletters. Please submit your questions, comments, or article submissions by the 20th of each month to:
newsletter@out-of-sight.net

Catch the vision--it is Out of Sight!