Fraggle Rock fic: Runt

[Slackbot]

Oh, I didn't mean that Boober neglected to say please and thank you. Rather, I think I kind of slighted Matt in the writing. I hardly showed his viewpoint at all, and mentions of him were mainly of the "He's trying, though it's bloody unlikely he'll do much good" kind. At that point every little bit counted, and he was willing to endure a lot of time in the cold without complaining to fetch whatever he could. I kinda feel that, as a narrator, I let him down. However, he's probably oblivious enough not to notice, and can provide his own narration, so no harm done, I suppose.

It sounds like you have about as much vision as my college roommate. She could see sharp contrasts - the border between the sidewalk and street, for example--and she could read print if it was blown up so huge that two letters filled the monitor screen.

Heh, one time a group of my friends went to an event at the student center. I put on a wig and used some makeup to make myself look completely different and sat near them. After a while my friends kept glancing back, and finally one asked "Do I know you?" My roommate said, "What? That's Kim!" She wasn't fooled by my looks; she knew me by voice.

 

[The Count]

Heh, yes, a bit more... Though perhaps that "much" could be questioned.
I know that if I hold my hand up close to my eyes, I can sort of tell which particular finger I'm wiggling... Though that could also be partially due to the fact that I'm the one wiggling them, so I'd know which one in particular is being wiggled.
The main prob for me is I can't see images on TV or computer screens, so that's why I'm constantly asking others for descript help with characters or graphics or stuff like that.

As for the Braille... Because of our Spanish bilinguallism, I was taught that first, the English second.
And just reviewing it in my head, you have the punctuation signs or "lower letters" like "Lower A" being Dot 2 which is the sign for the comma... But it's also the symbol for the combination "ea" only at the beginning of words if there isn't another letter to combine with the a.
An example would be:
each would be written as Dot 2 (ea) as one symbol and Dots 1 and 6 (ch) as a second symbol.
earth however would be Dots 1 and 5 (e), Dots 3, 4, and 5 (ar), and Dots 1, 4, 5, and 6 (th).

Another example would be the song sung by Tom Lehr that plays here on MCR about a lonely hound. Take all those words that rhyme with hound and they're reduced to the first one or two letters—if not combined into one symbol like "ar" as mentioned above—and then follow that with a single symbol represented by Dots 4 and 6 for ending suffix single letter representation and then Dots 1, 4, and 5 (d) for the "ound" combination.

So now you see how silly things can get at times.

BTW: Here's a caramel pecan muffin for all the muffining.

 

[Fragglemuppet]

Similar, except I ccan't read print of any kind. I was taught to sign my name, though I don't like to do so. I don't like signature guides, and usually ask someone to aline their finger, or maybe a pen or ruler, with the signature line.

 

[Slackbot]

Wow. I never learned that stuff. I just learned most of the basic alphabet. JoAnne told me that it got a lot more complicated, but she didn't go into the details. BTW, I "wrote" in Braille by stiffening paper with a piece of Scotch tape, then poking holes in the other side with a large needle.

As for the muffining, I suppose it's better than the usual "shrug and hit the back button" reaction. Non-response can be very disheartenbing.

 

[The Count]

Heh... The manner you mentioned of writing Braille... That's the stylus and cell-block stencil. You clamp the stencil over the paper and then punch through with the stylus on one side to create the bumps representing the symbols on the other of the stiff paper. I had to use that during my first month of lessons... But it's much better when you finally get to use the typewriter. Sure, you have to know which dots make up what symbol you're typing, but it's far better. Looking at it now, the Braille typewriter would be perfect for Muppets/Fraggles because of its three-fingered double-handed form.

 

[Slackbot]

Interesting. Looking at those typewriters, it seems that even Gonzo could use one, although his thumbs would have to double for both the keys and the space bar. Or he might use the same typing technique I do, which is "hit the keys with whatever finger happens to be handy."

Out of curiosity, how do you read these forums? I'm guessing it's with voice software.

 

[The Count]

Yep, a screenreader program called Jaws For Windows developed by the people at Freedom Scientific. I'm on Version 7.1, haven't upgraded for a few years, I'm comfortable with this one so I've kept it since.

Heh, I remember those days of typing with just one finger or hand. Long stretches are needed at times, haven't done that kind of stretching since the last bout of mad reenumerating for the Muppet Listings, which I admit have been neglected for another gathering project. *CoughNumbervaniahaunterscough*

 

[Fragglemuppet]

Is it even possible to hit the space key on the Perkins with your thumb? I never did; too much pressure is needed so I used my index and middle fingers. Actually, much as I don't like the slate and stylus it does sound easier than what you were doing, Kim. At least the slate gives you a kind of guide, walls to write within if you will, though mistakes can still happen.

And hope you don't mind the muffining too much... Old MC traddition, don't ya know.

 

[Slackbot]

I suppose it's OK, since the story is over and it's not drowning out on-topic conversation. I'm learning some interesting things here.