Let me tell you 'bout the birds and the bees and the flowers and thetrees...

Let me tell you 'bout the birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees..., a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

... and the Moon up above and the thing called "Love". (Dean Martin)

This is another spring photo I made the other day in the garden :-)

EVERYONE, BE CAREFUL! THE SITE "howishow.eu" IS STEALINGCOPYRIGHT-PROTECTED MATERIAL!

EVERYONE, BE CAREFUL! THE SITE "howishow.eu" IS STEALING COPYRIGHT-PROTECTED MATERIAL!, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

Yes, I do know it can happen to everyone and yes, I do know that this is one of the risks of posting things on the Internet, but still: I GET FURIOUS WHEN I SEE THAT MY PHOTOS HAVE BEEN STOLEN!!! A few days ago I discovered this photo of my friendship bracelets on the site howishow.eu. They have stolen it and posted it on their site without my permission!!! To top things off, they claim to "have things on disposal for everyone to use (or download) for their own nonprofit use"!!! So, not only do they steal copyright-protected materials, they incourage the theft to continue!!! I was absolutely furious!!! I tried contacting the page through their contact form, which says: "If you want copyright-protected material removed from our site, please contact us here." Surprise, surprise: the contact form DID NOT WORK. OF COURSE IT WOULD NOT WORK IF THEY STEAL THINGS!!! I'M THEREFORE POSTING THIS WARNING FOR EVERYONE: THIS SITE IS STEALING PHOTOS FROM PEOPLE AN ENCOURAGES THE THEFTS TO CONTINUE!!! BE CAREFUL!!!

How can people be so inconsiderate and steal other people's work?! The evil nature and the lack of conscience of such thieves surprises me every time... It's just sad to see such unimaginative thieves trying to thrive on other people's achievements...

Bead art: Aboriginal Flag and a decorative pin

Bead art: Aboriginal Flag and a decorative pin, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I love everyting Australian, so yesterday, I decided to make an Aboriginal Flag with beada. I used a Zulu (African) beading technique and made the first Aboriginal Flag pin. Today, I made another Aboriginal Flag pin. The third pin is just a decorative pendant.

Daffodils in our garden

Daffodils in our garden, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

A few days ago I took my camera out and spent some time in the garden, taking pictures of spring. Here's my first one :-)

Making friendship bracelets blind

Making friendship bracelets blind, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

As you know, I recently re-learnt beading, knitting and macrame as blind, using just my sense of touch. Macrame was particularly interesting, since I use it to make friendship bracelets, too. However, friendship bracelets can be quite hard to make, even if you can see. But since I've been making these bracelets for years, I decided to try making them blind, too. After having figured out how to organize all the strings, I started practicing. I can now make them just by touch, as well, with as many as eight strings and in simple patterns. I made this one yesterday.

Our new nest box

Our new nest box, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I got this little nest box at our local supermarket. It's so cute that I immediately decided I had to have it :-) As you can see, it has a hole in the front and there's a little stick just under the hole so that the birds can land safely. At the back of the house there's a little door so that the nesting box can be cleaned properly at the end of the season. We'll hang this in our garden and see what birds it will attract. I'm already thinking of getting a nest-box camera, too, and build it in so that I'll be able to observe the life in of the young birds :-)

It's dinner time!

It's dinner time!, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

This little blue tit is a regular visitor on my window sill. I put oat flakes mixed with butter into the bowl and this little guy and other birds love it!

This photo was taken through a curtain in front of a closed window and because it's cloudy the light was horrible, but I think this little bird is just so cute :-)

White lines and colours

White lines and colours, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

Just playing around with a set of coloured pencils I bought the other day :-) I can't wait to try them out!

My latest passion: Spool knitting

My latest passion: Spool knitting, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I loved spool knitting when I was a kid. A few days ago I got a set of spools: the knitting bench, the big orange spool and a small spool for four stiches. I rediscovered the joys of spool knitting! I made the green "snake" (folded under the big orange spool) the first day and now I'm working with the knitting bench. I'm having loads of fun! :-)

Hand

Hand, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

For the past month or so I've been exploring the world of blindness. I've tried to accomplish everything from daily tasks to my hobbies using only my sense of touch. I must say that it's been a very interesting experience and one that has enriched me a lot. Before, I took a lot of things for granted, but now I've started to appreciate everything I can see. The experience has also changed my perspective on photography. I've proven to myself that photography is possible even without sight.

Anyway, my experiment has now come to an end. I'm still continuing to learn Braille, but otherwise I'm back to seeing the world with my eyes - but from a different perspective alltogether.

Macrame by touch

Macrame by touch, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I've decided to make some macrame bracelets. It was my first attempt to knot macrame blind. To my big surprise, it wasn't that difficult at all. I used a different type of knot for each bracelet. The knots themselves are easy enough to make. The challenge was to keep them in the right order so that the bracelets would look nice. So, after I made each knot, I ran my fingers along the bracelet to feel if the knots were equally tight and to check the knot-sequence. I think these two bracelets turned out quite nicely in the end.

Learning Grade 2 Braille

Learning Grade 2 Braille, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I've started to learn Grade 2 Braille. Braille consists of two grades. Grade 1 is just the alphabet and the punctuation. I've already learnt that, but I'm still practicing it - mainly just building on the speed of reading and writing. I've started to learn Grade 2 now, which consists of abbreviations (it's a kind of a shorthand). Braille characters take up a lot more space than printed letters. Consequently, you can only get a limited number of words in one line before you have to move to the next line. So, Braille system consists of about 300 abbreviations that you can use in order to write more on a smaller space. I'm beginning to learn these abbreviations now.

My New Gear!

My New Gear!, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I got my new comuter today! It's a DELL laptop and it's absolutely fabulous!

Knitting without sight

Knitting without sight, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

Knitting is a fun activity. Many people learn to knit when they are still young. Although it looks like something you can only do with sight, that's not the case. Many blind people knit, too. In fact, a lot of people learn to knit only after they have lost their sight. I learnt to knit when I was 4 or 5 years old. Now, I'm re-learning it blind. It's not that difficult, but I do have to be careful so that I don't do any mistakes.

Eyes

Eyes, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

The other day I was with a friend and her kids, when my friend had to go out for a couple of minutes and just as she was leaving she said: "Could you keep an eye on things, please? I'll only be a minute." There was a pause. Then she started apologizing although there was absolutely no need for an apology, since I wasn't offended by what she had said.

In fact, blind people use such phrases, too. A while ago, when I was beginning to learn Braille, a friend, who is blind, helped me. He is an expert on Braille, since he's been using it all his life. When I embossed some words on the paper and I wasn't sure if the letters were written correctly, he said: "Let me have a look," and he took the paper and felt the letters with his fingers.

I think that just because you're talking to a blind person, you don't have to avoid all words that have anything to do with eyes or sight. Just act accordingly. If you want to show something to someone who can't see, feel free to say "Here, have a look," and then put the thing into their hands and let them explore the object by touch. If you say "Did you see that?" about something that you saw happen, simply explain the action that went on. That just points to the fact that you percieve the blind person as an equal, who can do things just as well as a sighted person, and that you can see beyond their disability. Isn't that what acceptance into society is all about?

Sight

Sight, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

My friends' two kids forgot some toys at my place the other day. I stumbled upon this little toy only today. When I picked it up, I had to establish what it was first. Feeling the toy with my fingers, I quickly learnt that the toy was made of wood. It had a body, four legs, a tale, a head and two ears that moved - I concluded that the toy was a small animal, maybe a dog.

If you're blind, you compensate for the lost sight by using your other senses. Sometimes, just feeling the object is enough. Sometimes, you also use your ears to hear the sound that the object makes. Smelling the object could also help, and if the object can be eaten, you can also taste it. People who can see perceive things with their eyes. They establish if they like something or not and if something is pretty or not just by looking at it. But if you're blind, liking things and finding them pretty gains a new dimension. I used to like colourful things, but now I like things that are smooth, soft, or furry, things that smell nice or make pleasant sounds. I also like things that have lots of small details that I can feel with my fingers (like Lego creations). Sight comes in many forms and has nothing to do with whether you can use your eyes or not.

Don't miss the toothbrush...

Don't miss the toothbrush..., a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

The other day I got a question from my friend's two kids, who were about to brush their teeth and were putting toothpaste on their brushes: "How do you know where the toothbrush is if you can't see it?" Before the two tried to put toothpaste on their brushes with their eyes closed and make a mess, I showed them a simple technique that I use. I always hold the brush (the bristles) with two fingers. This way, I can feel the brush and squeeze the paste straight onto the toothbrush. Such little adaptations are logical for me and I would never have thought about this if the two kids hadn't asked. If you can't see, you have to adapt even the smallest things to your sense of touch.

I can't see my origami, but I can feel every crease (Part 2): A SpanishBox

I can't see my origami, but I can feel every crease (Part 2): A Spanish Box, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

As I have explained yesterday, blind people can do origami, too. This is the first time I have tried to do origami blind. These are my finished pieces. I have decided to make some simple models first. Since I can't see my work, I have to do the folding just by touch. That's why it takes me a little longer to make origami.

This is a Spanish box. It was a particularly tricky origami to make. The box itself is quite easy, but the fans on the corners are quite difficult to make if you can't see. I made four of these before I finally made it right. The first one was all wrong and its shape just didn't feel right. The second and the third ones were shaped nicely, but the fans were all crooked and too big. Then I made this one. I was particularly careful when I was folding the fans. When I felt the finished product and ran my fingertips over the fans, I finally decided that it's made well.

Origami by touch

Origami by touch, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

Just because you lose your vision, you don't have to stop doing things you like. I've already posted photos of doing Lego and beading by touch. Now I've decided to try origami. Although it sounds difficult, it's actually not, but you do need to have a sharp sense of touch to feel the creases in the paper. I've had no problems folding a paper crane, so I'm deffinitely going to do some more origami in the future!

"But you're blind! You can't use a touch screen phone!"

"But you're blind! You can't use a touch screen phone!", a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

That was a comment I heard recently. Why do people always presume that you can't do things just because you can't see? Of course blind people can use touch-screen phones! There are special programs that enable you to control your mobile phone just with voice controls. This way, you can call people, write SMS (yes, blind people can write SMS, too) and do other things. Even the phone-camera can help you if you can't see, for example with identifying money: there are programs that can recognize the value of the money on the photo and then a voice tells you which money-bill you have in your hands. Phones can also be very useful with navigation in the city through GPS.

There's also another way to control your phone. Small, portable Braille refreshable screens can be connected to your phone and this way you can read and give commands to your phone in Braille. This is particularly good for noisy environments, where hearing the voice from your phone can be difficult and where dictating private stuff into your phone can be a bit tricky.

Never assume that a person can't do things just because he or she has a disability. Instead, ask them: "How do you do this?" This way, you won't offend anyone. On the one hand, I'm sure that anyone with a disability will be happy to explain how he or she does a particular task. On the other hand, you will learn something new and you won't behave like a complete idiot by uttering a stupid thing like the comment I used for my title.

Organized

Organized, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I decided I wanted to change my wallet, so I had to move everything from my old one to the new one. Pretty simple, you might think. People who can see just stick their cards into the card-pockets, the change into a special pocket and the money into the main pocket. Blind people, however, need to be more organized. The cards and the change are not a problem, since you can remember their location. However, that's not the story with money. How do you tell what's 5 €, what's 10 €, and what is 50 € if you can't see the bills? The simplest method is to fold the bills in different ways, for example fold the 5 € twice, 10 € only in half, 20 € lengthwise, etc. That way you always know what you're paying with. One more thing: keep the clutter out. Don't stuff the receipts into the money-pocket. They don't feel the same as money, since they are made of different paper, but they might get tangled up with the money. In the end you could end up throwing money out with the receipts and not even know it.

Sometimes the smallest things are the biggest obstacles

Sometimes the smallest things are the biggest obstacles, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

I was writing some notes in Braille today. As usual, I was using my BIC pen to emboss Braille letters. When I finished, I put the pen on the table, but then I accidentally knocked it off. I have a thick carpet on the floor, so I didn't hear where the pen fell. I had to systematically search for it until I finally found it. If you can see, you just look for the pen and pick it up. But if you're blind, such a simple task can be quite time-consuming. Sometimes the smallest things are the biggest obstacles...

Look what I found on my morning walk!

Look what I found on my morning walk!, a photo by Cobra_11 on Flickr.

Spring is springing :-) This morning I went for a walk and I found these little beauties. They're called Christmas flowers. Both the green and the white belong to the same order of flowers. The green one is Helleborus odorus and the white ones are Helleborus niger.