I read very little Braille these days, just the odd magazine and have
discontinued my membership of the RNIB Braille Library. I think that maybe
as I've got older I have lost some sensitivity in my fingers as I now
struggle with older Braille books which have become squashed and maybe I
have become lazy too, as it is so much easier and faster to read audio
books. Also, as I travel such a lot, it is much more convenient to carry an
MP3 player in my handbag, rather than a bulky Braille book.
Alison
with
-----Original Message-----
From: ebooktalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ebooktalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of Elaine Harris (Rivendell)
Sent: 26 April 2013 22:31
To: ebooktalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [ebooktalk] RNIB Braille library.
Alison,
No, I borrow Braille from the RNIB library and we have come to an agreement
that they send them (still free-post) Airmail, otherwise they take three to
four months to get here. We have to pay to return them airmail but still at
a heavily discounted rate.
I listen to some books and radio drama but only of the highest quality,
being a bit too fussy for my own good, perhaps. Also, I suffer (literally)
from migraines so being able to read in silence is a boon. I also read aloud
to my fully-sighted husband; at the moment we are working our way through an
unauthorised biography of Michael Douglas. Chris is a film buff so he knows
many if not all of the films discussed. It is a bit "magaziney" in style
and, being unauthorised, best to take parts of it with more than a few
pinches of salt but it makes us laugh, squirm and groan. (This one is from
the Vision Australia library. Details on request since they have an exchange
service with libraries across the globe, I understand.)
(Oh, and you have visited parts of Australia I have yet to see.)
Elaine
-----Original Message-----
From: ebooktalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ebooktalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of CJ & AA MAY
Sent: Saturday, 27 April 2013 2:55 AM
To: ebooktalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [ebooktalk] Re: Answering introduction feedback.
Elaine, when you say you belong to the RNIB Library, is that th Talking book
or Braille Library?
I have visited Perth (many times0, Melbourne, Sydney (where I spent 5 days
in St. Vincent's Hospital), Cairnes, Kangaroo Island, Adelade and Broom -
but still have lots of places we want to visit.
We think him crazy, but my brother-in-law is migrating back to the UK next
month after 15 years in Aus.
Alison
-----Original Message-----
From: ebooktalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ebooktalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of Elaine Harris (Rivendell)
Sent: 26 April 2013 12:50
To: ebooktalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [ebooktalk] Answering introduction feedback.
Hello again,
Thank you for all the wonderful responses and follow-up potted histories.
Clare, I remember you very well and have heard much of you and Voldi both
from Sue Sharp and Trish.
Alison: I think if I had known how much of "A stranger in a strange land" I
would feel, I may not have changed hemispheres. I still hear expressions
that are new to me and probably fail abysmally by continuing to use British
pronunciations and expressions, for which I make no apology though it has
got me into metaphorical hot water more than a few times.
We lived in Melbourne when first I came out here; I ran an RPH or Radio for
the Print-Handicapped station for a year but left before I went nuts;
everyone seemed to have an axe to grind, often on my head! The basic
principle with RPH stations is that newspapers, magazines and other
publications are read on air, or selections therefrom. Sadly, the quality of
reading varies widely and, this country being so huge, the stations are
generally only accessible in State capital cities.
After RPH, I freelanced for a while, including some television interviewing.
Waiting to go on set was tough as the studio floors are concrete and Kati,
my first Guide Dog, who emigrated with me, hated being cold and used to cry
until the floor-manager had the brilliant idea of providing a rug for her.
Then on to Canberra where I worked for a number of years. We are now in more
temperate north-west Tasmania, within sight, sound and smell of the ocean.
I borrow from the Vision Australia library, one in Auckland as well as the
RNIB. We know the postman quite well!
Re talk of garden and/or gardening books, last year I read:
The Morville Hours: Katherine Swift. History, geography, geology, gardens,
horticulture, archaeology, astronomy, linguistics, spirituality. Incredibly
inspiring; not an easy read but an educational, revealing, beautiful and
lyrical one. A Tour De Force. Based on the principle of the old "Book of
Hours" in all its forms, but instead of a monastic day, a garden year.
I love the Ellis Peters Cadfael books as much for herb and plant lore as for
the mysteries.
I have always wanted a walled garden like the one in "The Secret Garden",
but my garden here is my therapy, though I am better at weeding and pruning
than planting.
I first fell in love with descriptive writing with L. M. Montgomery's Anne
books, some of which I am re-reading for fun, inspiration and nostalgia.
My other vice, apart from being besotted by our dogs, (and enjoying doggy
books) is that I now keep a book diary, listing everything I read, reject,
or fail to finish. Like most people I used to plough through a book because
it seemed the right thing to do; now, if I find myself putting off returning
to a book, it is usually an indicator that we're not getting on very well.
Happy reading,
Elaine
