APRIL/MAY 2024 NEWSY NOTES
TSB meets every Tuesday – 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Christ Presbyterian Church, 6565 E. Broadway
Come when you can and leave when you must. Bring a sack lunch.
or more information call Barbara at 520-298-2427 or Annie at 520-275-1675
It is the Mission of the Tucson Society of the Blind to enhance the quality of lives of the visually impaired through social, educational, and recreational programs.
www.tucsonsocietyoftheblind.org
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Calendar
APRIL
2nd: Barbara will present “Medical Advocacy”, setting up an emergency bag, and discuss financial literacy.
9th: Tucson Police Department Eastside Division Captain Melinda Morales will talk about tips to stay safe at home, being a woman, advancing in a male-dominated world, and crime statistics on Tucson’s eastside.
12th: Board Meeting 10:15 AM Biscuit Country Café, 7026 E Broadway
16th: Barbara will present “Tips for getting a good night sleep” and Nancy will lead a trivia game
16th: Manny’s iPhone Class on Zoom 6:30-8:30 PM
19th: Field Trip to Tucson Botanical Gardens, 2150 N. Alvernon, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Cost is $10 and you must pay ahead of the field trip date. We will have a docent lead us through the gardens. They will also describe the sculptures made from ocean trash. Near the tour’s end, we will go through the Butterfly Pavilion. After the tour we will go to lunch at Chili’s restaurant located at 5150 E. Broadway. Please let Barb know by April 9th if you are interested in going on this trip. trip.
23rd: Today we will hear about the newest technology for the visually impaired from two representatives from Phoenix. Jessica will demonstrate the Orr Cam (which uses artificial intelligence) and Elizabeth of Independent Low Vision will demonstrate both the Envision 360 eyeglasses and the Iris Vision goggles. We will have pizza afterwards. Plan on a 12:45 PM out.
30th: Arizona Banjo Blasters will perform many toe stepping tunes.
MAY
7th: We will listen to personal safety by Hadley and talk about self-defense strategies.
10th: Board Meeting 10:15 AM Biscuit Country Café, 7026 E Broadway
14th: Potluck and social today. There will be no guest speaker
17: Pizza party at John McCann’s house, 8761 E. Placita Bolivar, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. John has a wonderful patio under shade. You can also wear your swim suit and go into the pool and hot tub. We have a lot of fun socializing. Let Barb know if you are coming so she can order enough pizzas.
21st: Jonathan Pringle of the Helen Keller Center will talk about resources for deaf blind individuals and share tips for communicating with the hearing impaired.
21st: Manny’s iPhone class on Zoom 6:30 to 8:30 PM
28th: We will listen to the documentary Life of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg and learn how women got their rights. We will listen for 45 minutes, take a break and eat pizza and then listen to the last 45 minutes. You will be amazed at how much RBG accomplished in her life.
JUNE
4th: TBA
President’s Message by Barbara Macpherson
Welcome to Spring! TSB members are selling Jim Click Raffle tickets again. The tickets are $25 each or 5 for $100. This is our major fundraiser and thanks in advance for your support. See the related article on the prizes. All the funds raised goes into the TSB treasury to support TSB programs.
Here is my challenge to you. Learn something new to help you adjust to vision loss. Here are some ideas.
Learn how to use your iPhone better. Manny has many classes on his YouTube channel.
Hadley has many workshops on using the iPhone and Android.
Learn how to use Newsline on your cellphone. This is a free service where you can listen to many newspapers and magazines on the telephone. Sign up with your reader advisor on the AZ Talking Book Library.
Learn how to listen to Alexa, the Echo Dot. You can listen to podcasts such as Eye on Success or listen on audio-described movies on Sun Sounds of Arizona.
To get a free Echo Dot, call Sun Sounds of Arizona. You must have internet connectivity.
Join a book club.
The Arizona talking Book Library has a book club meeting on the second Thursday of the month on the phone. Hadley also has a book club and so does the Hull Foundation. Both are on the second and fourth Tuesday afternoons. Call each for their notices.
Learn Braille to mark items in the house. Hadley has wonderful workshops on learning Braille.
Computers For the Blind, www.computersfortheblind.org.
You can purchase a refurnished computer with includes talking software Jaws for a year at low prices. Computers for the Blind has tech support and six weeks of classes to learn JAWS.
In closing, always challenge yourself to learn something new. It is very empowering to master a new skill.
Manny Celis 520-331-4682
Sun Sounds of Arizona 520-296-2400
The Arizona Talking Book Library 602-255-5578
Hull Foundation 503-668-6195 (to sign up for notices)
Hadley 800-323-4238
Computers For the Blind, 214-340-6328
Jim Click Raffle Tickets
This year’s Grand Prize is a $72,000 2024 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 4xe. The Second-Place prize is for two First-Class, roundtrip airline tickets to anywhere in the world. The Third-Place Prize is $5,000 in cash.
Raffle tickets are $25 each or you can buy 5 for $100.
The TSB Board encourages members to sell tickets to family and friends as well as doctors and dentists. Contact Barbara for tickets at 520-298-2427 or email her at bjmacpherso@aol.com.
Gardening
by Timette Middelkoop
Hello friends! In the last edition of Newsy Notes, we talked about the new Music section of Talking Books. The musicians among us have been excited to find out that they can begin or continue playing music, thanks to the sheet music being described. This article focuses on gardening, which we can enjoy with other senses.
The most important thing to start with is to discover what YOU like about gardening. Do you still have some vision left that allows you to see colors? I have a friend who can only see orange so he has as many orange things as possible (clothing, backpacks, dog leashes, etc.) Do you know what smells you enjoy? There are such a variety of smells in the plant world and smelling something pleasant to you is a fun sensory experience.
Some people might prefer a vegetable or fruit garden which allows them the fun of tasting what they grow. Others might prefer a kitchen herb garden. Some home-grown oregano, dill or parsley can really enhance what you are cooking, and add a special zest to your food.
If you are not sure what you would like, you can go to one of the many garden centers in Tucson and explore! The gardeners I’ve met are very enthusiastic about their work and they love helping others to learn about the type of gardening that best suits them.
Another thing to discover is what you would like in your house or yard. Container gardening is quite popular; having a plant in a container makes it easy to grow and maintain it. You can place containers anywhere in your house or yard. If you are speaking with a gardener, they can tell you about the water, sunlight and food that your plants will need. There are also many helpful YouTube videos that can tell you exactly what you need.
When you have decided what you would like, you can begin establishing your plants. Containers and garden soil can be bought at the garden center or in many stores around Tucson (Walmart, Home Depot, etc.). You can start from seed or buy plants that have started to grow. Depending on the type of plants you get, you will know how often to water and feed them. With a container, you will get familiar with the shape of that plant; then anything that feels different can be weeded out.
The goal of gardening is to make it fun for yourself! Finding plants that YOU enjoy, creating an environment that adds pleasurable sensations of smell and touch to our lives. Our recent speaker at TSB, Marja Byers, said that 10 minutes of sunshine a day is very therapeutic to mood and sleep. Being outside with our plant can enrich our live. Plants can add those health benefits to our lives.
Another resource on gardening is Hadley. They have workshops on container gardening and a Podcast called Hadley Growers. We can listen to our talking books or movies and enjoy the scents from our plants. Growing something that we can eat, or herbs that enhance our recipes, makes our mealtime so much more fun! So, as we are moving into spring, think about taking up (or renewing) the hobby of gardening. You may find a whole new world opening up to you!
Informative Books on losing vision on Bard
The series by Barbara Hinske is a super series to read because Barbara Hinske did her research. She portrays visually-impaired individuals in a positive light but explores the emotional adjustment to blindness in a real-world manner. The first book is Guiding Emily, where Emily Mann loses her sight on her honeymoon and eventually gets training and gets a guide dog named Garth. Garth, the guide dog, talks in the book and at times is very funny.
The other books in the series are: The Unexpected Path, Over every Hurdle, and Down the Aisle.
Some recent and older books on BARD include:
• What Every Blind Person Needs You to Know by Leanne E Hunt,
• The Country of the Blind: A memoir At the End of Sight by Andrew Leland DB115575.
• A Descent into Darkness: Blindness in hindsight. by Simon Mahoney DB115808.
• When you Can’t Believe your eyes by Hannah Farbainn. This book contains practical advice.
• First Year: Age Related Macular Degeneration, An Essential Guide by Daniel Robert. He details his personal struggle.
• Recipes from my Home Kitchen, Asian and American Comfort Foods, by Christine Ha. Christine Ha is blind and won the Master Chef competition. There is a story with each recipe and the cookbook includes low vision tips.
• Any National Federation of the Blind, NFB, Kernel Books by Mark Maurer or Kenneth Jernigan
• Thunder Dog by Michael Hingson. This book is about how Michael and his guide dog gets out of the World Trade Center on September 11.
Many of us learn to accept blindness after some time in and out of denial. Books can show us there are many ways of living the life we want. Books about blindness can inspire us and help us through the difficult journey of adjusting to vision loss. All of these books can be downloaded from BARD on your iPhone. Others can ask their reader advisor to put these books on one cartridge to be read on the NLs Talking Book Player.
Some Funny Advice
Advice from a Saguaro
• Stand tall.
• Reach for the sky.
• Be patient through the dry spells.
• Conserve your resources.
• Think long term.
• Wait for your time to bloom. Stay sharp!
Advice from a Javelina
• Eat well.
• Keep a low profile.
• Go for a run.
• Hightail it out of hairy situations.
• It’s OK to be a little wild.
• Enjoy the nightlife.
• Root for your friends!
Advice from a Road Runner
• Be quick.
• Full speed ahead.
• Defy expectations.
• Hit the ground running.
• Spring into action.
• Get off the beaten track.
• Kick up some dust!
Advice from a hummingbird
• Sip the sweet moments.
• Let your true colors glow.
• Don’t get your feathers get ruffled over small stuff.
• Be a nectar collector.
• Keep your visits short and sweet!
Advice from a mountain lion
• Stand your ground.
• Put your best foot forward.
• Climb to new heights.