First ever picture!

Ha! I figured out how to put a picture on my blog! I am so proud of me... So, there's not really any story behind this little bird (it's a baby magpie...I love magpies) I just wanted to see if I could get a picture to post, and I figured he was worthy of being the first. If I did have a title for him though, it would be Disgruntled Magpie. *laugh* I think it fits, and he's adorable.

Small dots, Huge potential...

I have wanted to learn Braille for a very long time, as far back as six or seventh grade. At first I figured it would be good to know because of my eye degeneration, and the possibility of actually needing it, but then it faded to just a ‘that would be really cool’ kind of thought. Last week I discovered the Braille section in the downtown library, and checked out a book, but even though it was simple, it was still too complicated for me. So this Tuesday, on my library/adventure day, I found another book, this one called ABC Bunny. I think it will be good for a couple of reasons- number one, it’s very simple writing, and two, it has the alphabet, and repetition of the letters. I’ve been practicing in bed (it’s dark, so I don’t need my eyes) but I realized that I might be going about it wrong. I was running my finger over the letters, and saying them out loud, but thinking back, that isn’t how you learn to read. Yes, you learn “A”, but when you first start to read it, you learn the letters phonetically. Instead of thinking C A T spells cat, you sound it out…cuh, aah, tuh…cat. So now I’m practicing linking the physical touch to the phonetic sounds. And tonight was my babysitting night, so while at my cousins’ house Princess Jeru and I made Braille flash cards. *grin* I am really excited about this. It took a little figuring, but I got it down to a system that makes sense. We cut index cards in half, then folded them and glued them shut for stability. Then we glued a seed bead in the top right hand corner to mark which way up was. In Braille books the page numbers are usually marked at the top right hand corner of odd pages, so this way we’ll get used to feeling for a marker in that place. And it will also help for practicing in the dark, because that way we’ll know which way to hold the card, so we’re not reading upside down or sideways. Each of the cards had the six-dot Braille cell marked with a marker for the visual memorization, and then on top of that we also glued seed beads in the proper cell places for touch memorization. All the cards have the letter written on the back as well, so if we’re practicing with someone else they can tell if we’re right or not. Princess Jeru and I are going to first memorize the alphabet by touch, and then move on from there; the goal is to be reading children’s books in six months. I totally think that’s doable, and I’m looking forward to this. How cool will it be to be able to read in the dark? Visually Braille also can double as a written code, which could be handy, and it’s a fun and challenging thing to learn anyways. I will keep an update going on this; we’ll see how it turns out. =)
~Ro

Tattoo thoughts and nachos

So the tattoo-countdown is at five days… (for those of you who don’t know, and can’t guess from the previous sentence, I am getting a tattoo.) *grin* I am really excited, and, I must admit, a little nervous as well. I’ve asked multiple people what it feels like, because I think part of the nervousness is just not knowing, but the answers I get back are disappointing. Personally I don’t think that people are descriptive enough. The usual is ‘it feels like being scratched with a needle, over and over’. Well duh. But to me that doesn’t seem to fully describe it still… Is it a sharp shooting pain? A dull throbbing? The way your knee burns if you scrape off the top layer of skin? The way acid burns, biting? Stinging, aching, nauseating, scraping…? There’s tons of words that could be used, but aren’t. The best one that I’ve heard so far is that it feels like a cat scratch. See, to me that brings it to a level that I understand. Not only the initial scratching feeling, but that stinging, puffy feeling as well. I had been talking to my friend Sparrow, who recently got a tattoo, and that was her description. Anyways… So, five days. I am going with my roomies, and Isabelle is going to be my note-taker during the process. I will sit there and be marked, and she will dutifully write down my dictation, which I will post here later. There is a deeper meaning behind it than just a seal, but only a few people know the whole story; I might add that too, or I might not. We’ll see…
That seems to be all I’ve got for now, and I have a good book and some nachos waiting for me, so toodles. Until my next post! (which, hopefully, will be sooner, rather than later… I’m trying to be more consistent…)
~Ro

Ice

I actually wrote this a while ago, but I wanted to post something else, and the entry that I am working on still isn't finished. So, here it is... I am not sure if it's finished, and I don't know what it's called yet... (and this isn't exactly how it looks either, but since I copy and pasted it, the font doesn't carry over, and outside of re-typing it, I can't figure out how to get it back to it's original font... So, the font doesn't match the words quite; just look past that...)

~

I dream of ice; and of cold waters that reflect the blue skies.
Of a land where ice floes dominate the seascape
and the sky is open and the sun warm and the wind cold.
Of deep, deep water, that is mirror bright on top
but dark, green-blue curtains underneath, clouded with glacial runoff

I dream of spots, and strong sharp teeth; of hunting through the ice ranges
splicing through the water, and of penguins.
Of a thick warm layer of blubber, and strong flippers,
and dark blue depths beneath me

Shadows dream there too,
moving with spots of white, and sharper teeth as well
and dark songs pinging off the ice bubbles,
but I dream it anyways, for the swift and cunning live long.

I dream of a rocking cradle of ice to nap on
and body warmth melting small pools beneath; of lapping waves.
Of pale sun, faded sky, and pitch black with stars and color dance above

The ice is calling, and I want to answer.
I dream of ice…

I dream of ice…

I dream of…