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Subject: Cat's Corner

Posted by: Catreona
Date: Nov 11 20

A virtual blog to post updates on my mother's illness and other thoughts

629 replies. On page 15 of 32 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

Catreona

Still not feeling very well and still struggling with the walking. However, in a brighter vain, today I earned Tear 7 in Virtuoso, the rainbow badgelet for Music with forty Music quizzes. It is doubtful I'll make Tear 7 in any other category. At the same time, several more Music quizzes are in my computer waiting to be finished.

Reply #281. Sep 02 21, 9:02 PM

Dagny1

Congratulations on the new Tier 7 - those are such a joy to accomplish!

Hope you begin to feel better soon. I'm sure the walking will come, it just takes time and I know you'll persevere.

Reply #282. Sep 03 21, 6:37 AM

Catreona

Thanks Danny♥

Reply #283. Sep 03 21, 5:57 PM

Catreona

Hi guys,Sorry to have been incommunicado for so long. My mobility has been growing ever worse and I have not been able to go upstairs to my computer in a couple of weeks that feels like a couple of eons. No telling when I will get back up there again We have ordered me a new notebook computer but it will not arrive till after Christmas. It is very frustrating using FT on the iPad because it does not scroll properly with the screen reader on. I am going to try it on my phone on which Voice Over seems to work better but I am not optimistic.

Writing this on my phone has been tiring but I wanted all of you to have some idea of what is going on.

Reply #284. Nov 11 21, 2:58 PM

Dagny1

Thanks for the update - even if it wasn't good - had hoped you'd be much improved by now. Best wishes and hang in there, you'll lick it yet!

Reply #285. Nov 12 21, 6:54 AM

postcards2go

Being away from a computer... eeeeeek!! An ipad is a poor substitute. Although I know many people use them exclusively, they're not for me. I am beholden to using a mouse. Touchpads of any sort don't work well for me.

I hope your computer arrives soon, and you're feeling more like yourself once it's set up (another thing that's annoyingly time-consuming).

Reply #286. Nov 12 21, 6:11 PM

Catreona

Thanks guys. It’s good to be connected to my friends,even if the phone is more awkward than the computer. Curiously,in some ways the phone is easier to use than the iPad. It’s better for FT,so at least I can play quizzes and in-timed games as well as posting on the chat boards. So,things are’s as bad as they could be.

Reply #287. Nov 12 21, 7:41 PM

Dagny1

That's the spirit, Cat!

Reply #288. Nov 13 21, 7:21 AM

Catreona

Hi friends,

I didn’t actually fall off the edge of the earth, though it has been exactly one year since I last posted here. A whole year! Yikes,,where does the time go?

Can’t remember much of the past year (real wild things, obviously :P) except that much of the summer was taken up with medical appointments leading up to a total hip replacement on August 31. The surgery and initial recovery went well, but shortly after I came home the high levels of asperin the surgeon had me on made me terribly sick, so it was back to the hospital for me - in an ambulance! Thank goodness, no siren. After a few days in the hospital and with a couple meds tweaks, I was back home feeling much better and my recovery back on track. Though it’s going slowly and there’s still a lot of work to do to rebuild my strength and stamina, the important thing is that I’m literally back on my feet with blessedly no pain in the right hip. My other aches and pains are still there, but so minor by comparison that it still seems like a miracle.

Reply #289. Nov 12 22, 3:39 PM

postcards2go

Hi, Cat :-)

You've been missed, and I admit to having been worried. It's good to have you back. Not happy that you've been through so much, but it sounds as though there has been a positive outcome with your movement.

Reply #290. Nov 12 22, 6:23 PM

Dagny1

So glad to hear you are finally back on the mend, Cat.

Reply #291. Nov 12 22, 7:17 PM

Catreona

♥P3Posty and Dagny!

Also, Dagny, I must apologize for calling you Danny all these years. I’d like to blame my unreliable screen reader and magnificationperhaps my unreliable hearing, but the culprit is really my complacent reliance on them anyhow. Taking the time to use and look always beats listening:(

Reply #292. Nov 12 22, 8:17 PM

Dagny1

No worries about the 'Danny', Cat. Believe me, you are not the only one - I'm almost used to it, lol.

Reply #293. Nov 12 22, 9:54 PM

Catreona

Over the past several weeks I’ve been practically inhaling audiobooks: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Suspense,Westerns… Yes, yours truly has discovered a hitherto unsuspected enjoyment of horse operas. Currently working my way through BARD’s* extensive collection of Max Brand novels. Did you know the movie “Destry Rides Again” was based on a book? I didn’t. A fine read too.

Going to go try my hand at today’s Brain Twist, though my brain feels like it has turned to mush. /wry grin/

Reply #294. Nov 14 22, 1:02 PM

Dagny1

I listen to quite a few audio books myself. Originally it was mainly classics which are in the public domain and can be found free at LibriVox. Since all the readers are volunteers, occasionally there will be some that I find difficult to understand but most of them are quite good.

Then a few years ago my local librarian told me about Overdrive where one can borrow audio books through their local library - heavenly! Now I listen to mainly mysteries, especially series mysteries. EBooks can also be borrowed. I think each state has it's own system/site so you may need to check with your local librarian.

Reply #295. Nov 15 22, 6:07 AM

MiraJane

Hi Cat. You were missed. I never thought to check here for updates.

Reply #296. Nov 16 22, 8:03 AM

Catreona

I’ve heard of Overdrive. Funnily enough, I recently mentioned it to a dirtworld friend. Didn’t know they were read by volunteers. That’s like Recording for the Blind and Dyslectic (RFBD). In my experience, most volunteer readers are pretty good, some are marvelous and some are abysmal. It’s pretty much the luck of the draw. These services are very valuable for all that - essential in the case of RFBD, which provides textbooks and other materials for school and college students.

Reply #297. Nov 19 22, 9:19 AM

Dagny1

I'm afraid I confused you, Cat. It is LibriVox which is free and is all read by volunteers. It's available to everyone, no library card or anything involved. It is like Project Gutenberg only it's all audio books. You can listen online or download them to keep forever.

Overdrive is the one which is through libraries and items can be borrowed for three weeks just like libraries. They are read by professionals and are published like paper books and eBooks. Actually, with the advent of Covid I believe they actually opened it so you can sign up even without a library card.

Anyway, they are separate entities.

Reply #298. Nov 19 22, 10:29 AM

Catreona

Very exciting! I came across one of my own questions in today's Pot of Gold game.

Reply #299. Nov 29 22, 2:29 PM

Catreona

In the past few years BARD has started adapting commercial audiobooks. I notice some say "Courtesy of Overdrive Inc." This is a good thing, since it cuts down on duplication as wwell as making more books available through NLS more quickly.

Reply #300. Nov 29 22, 2:35 PM

629 replies. On page 15 of 32 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

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