December 28 - Making A List

Arriving home in Canada with just over two weeks until Christmas has proved to be an exceptionally busy time. There were so many jobs to take care of before the holiday season – cards and letters to write, gifts to buy and of course, getting the house ready with groceries in the fridge and clean sheets on the beds. I tend to make lists of all these jobs – well, isn’t that what Christmas is all about –making a list and checking it twice? Still, when one doesn’t see the printed word on a page, this making of a list does present some challenges. Usually, I will record my lists on a file on my computer. I can then hear what I have written with my audible program – JAWS. This works well when I am sitting at my desk. It doesn’t work quite as well when I need to take my list elsewhere, for instance to the grocery store. I am fortunate in that I have Lyle to read a print out of what we need and to help me search for grocery items in the store. I know of other people who are blind and who take an audio list of the items they need. Yes, with today’s technology there are ways to get around list making and memory reminders. For that I am grateful, in spite of at times feeling frustrated at the tedium of the process. As this year draws to a close I am also aware that some of my computer programs are another year older. I know that I am working with outdated equipment, but to upgrade costs money.   Nevertheless, this will be one of my goals for 2015 so I will start saving my pennies – well maybe loonies and toonies would be a better bet. Do you have goals for the coming year? It is almost time to make those famous New Year’s resolutions. As I have just written, I am a list person, so no doubt I will write down a few. With 2015 only three days away, I want to take this opportunity to wish you all the very best for the New Year. May it be one of good health and happy times.

November 20 - Cockatoo Island

Cockatoos are large white birds found around this area of the Pacific. They are part of the parrot family and are excellent mimics. They have one of the largest brains of this species of bird.

Now you might think that on a trip to Cockatoo Island you would see a number of these distinctive birds. Well, I did see big white birds – seagulls! I imagine that in the distant past there might have been cockatoos around, but these days the seagulls have taken over. In fact, there are even signs set out warning tourists to take care because the gulls are quite aggressive. This was definitely the case when we were there. It was nesting season and the parent gulls were being very protective.

If you ever have the opportunity to come to Sydney, I recommend a trip from Circular Quay to Cockatoo Island. The place has quite a history, beginning as a convict prison and moving on to become a ship building and repair facility.  In 1913 it became Australia’s first naval dockyard for the Royal Australian Navy. At one point it was even the site of a girls’ industrial school.  It is only in recent years that the island has been open to the public.

You can walk around the island fairly easily in an hour or so. The walking is easy enough. The only tricky part for me was walking over the rocky part claimed by the zillion or so seagulls. Luckily this was only a distance of thirty or so steps. 

Following are two pictures. The first was taken of three white seagulls. Lyle tried to take a photo of the baby gulls but the parents hid their babies as we approached. I couldn’t see them myself, but Lyle said that they were quite speckled in colour unlike the white of the adults. 

Seagulls at Cockatoo Island

Lyle took the second picture as we paused for a lunch break on a handy picnic bench. I am sitting with Beverley, a friend from high school days, and her husband Roy. Beverley was the one to suggest our excursion to Cockatoo Island. 

Sue with Beverly and Roy

November 16 - A Mellow Morning

MacMasters is a small beach community about an hour and a half north of Sydney and that is where we drove for morning coffee on Wednesday. The beach is not easily reached by public transport because buses there run very infrequently. Perhaps that is one of the reasons the area is rarely crowded. 

We had a lovely morning. We arrived on a Wednesday on purpose because on that day each week a jazz band plays for a couple of hours outside the surf club coffee shop. The band members, all semi-retired or retired professional musicians, started playing here a few years ago when they were looking for a place to rehearse.  The outside patio was a great location and it wasn`t long before Mary’s Boys began their weekly jam sessions.  (Mary was one of the original members of the group.) The regular rehearsal time became known to the locals and small crowds began to gather each week.

This past Wednesday was perfect - warm sunshine with just the whiff of a cooler breeze. The band was in fine form.  The music was excellent - moving the audience from a finger snapping toe tapping beat to a gentle jazz rhythm in easy transition.  As I sipped my coffee and listened to the music I could hear the sound of the rolling surf in the background.  It was indeed a mellow morning. 

When the music ended I spoke with some of the band members. There was Jenny, the lead female vocalist, Brian, Vincent, Lorrie, and Jack.  Jack told me he was eighty-eight and three quarter years old and had been coming to play with the band for many years.  The band members aren`t paid for the morning concert. They come together because they love playing the music and want others to enjoy it too. I have included a picture here. I am sitting at the picnic table while Jenny and the seven band members play in the background. The drummer was missing this particular Wednesday.

Sue with band in the background

There are also two pictures of the beach area. After the performance, we turned to face the ocean and Lyle aimed the camera over the edge of the railing behind us. The first picture is of the waves breaking over a small rock pool. It was high tide so the waves were pretty high too. The last picture shows a couple of surfers who had come to spend their lunch hour at the beach. 

Waves breaking over rock pool at MacMasters beach

Surfers at MacMasters beach

November 13 - In Australia

Lyle and I are in Australia for our regular family visit here. The weather has been moderate with some clouds, some sunshine, and slightly cooler temperatures. At least, that is the way it has been for the past couple of days. The forecast predicts that if we wait a couple more days we will get into scorching hot weather.  It is spring here so anything is possible. 

Yesterday, I decided to visit an office of Vision Australia to purchase a new white cane. Actually I was hoping to simply buy a new tip for my old cane. With constant use, the round tip of my cane has worn to two thirds of its normal size. Unfortunately, the tips to the canes here attach in a different way than the ones in Canada so I ended up buying a totally new cane. 

The Gosford office of Vision Australia is a smaller version of the main office in Sydney, which is quite large in area and comprehensive in services.  I asked especially about support groups offered from the Gosford office but was told that these were mainly conducted by phone and that there were only a few opportunities for face to face support. 

My contact with the office was positive. I found Lyn, the receptionist on duty, to be extremely helpful and very pleasant. Vision Australia is a large organisation formed when smaller agencies offering services for the blind and low vision community amalgamated. The organization faces similar challenges, both financial and geographic, as does CNIB in Canada. 

The picture here shows me standing in front of the Vision Australia logo. The wording reads: Vision Australia, blindness and low vision services.