Hi my friends. Since it is the third post, I am going to do something a little different in that I will talk about how I compose each post and where the ideas come from. I had been asked about how a blind person like me, can compose blog posts, let alone Facebook posts and reply to others. I’m going to go into detail about how I do what I do, because I think you should know why each post looks the way it does. In other words, you will learn what goes on in the kitchen (so to speak).
Simply, posts may come from either anniversaries, thinking about things in general, conversing on Facebook with Queen fans, listening to podcasts, searching on Google and watching YouTube. Some posts may come from ideas in the shower and for the life of me, I wish I could give you an example of one which I have come up with in other blogs I maintain. I can assure you that this is true. The same is also true about dreams inspiring posts, such as one from a few years ago in a Simpsons related blog, I did on what happens while I sleep and dream.
As for how I write each post, I do it on my iPhone using the notes app and on rare occasions, directly through the WordPress – Website Builder app, which used to be called WordPress when I first downloaded it in 2013. I give it a title, paste the note into the post field, add categories which I feel make sense to the post, then either post right away, or schedule it to be released on a certain date and at a specific time.
I should mentioned to those who do not know, that I am blind from birth and I do quite well! You may be asking because I’m blind, how do I use an iPhone to compose each post using only a touchscreen? Well, the answer is something called VoiceOver, or VO for short. It’s on all iPhones and iPads, along with all other Apple products including the HomePod and HomePod mini. It’s not the same as Siri, which allows you to do some form of writing, but it’s only short texts. Also, it doesn’t always decode everything you say properly, dew to either background noise or you are speaking too fast. That’s my experience and others may have a differing opinion on this!
With VoiceOver, I have many options to do what I wish to do at the time. I can write using the iPhone’s keyboard on the screen, using braille, using the default layout (for letters and numbers as well as symbols), using a Bluetooth keyboard and dictation. With VoiceOver, dictation has much the same problem as with Siri sometimes. However, there is more control over what goes out, as I can correct any mistakes before what has come out of my mouth, goes out either an email, text message, blog post, Twitter post, FB post, etc. I use a combination of all of the above, depending on the situation as my composition process is very fluid and depending on my thoughts at the time, I may run into a word which I have difficulty in spelling. That’s where dictation is a big help to me, as I could probably use a word like “chrysanthemum” and I seem like I am a great speller. I’m not and I freely admit that is my downfall as a writer. However, I try and if I can’t find the word I’m looking for (using what I have available to me) that’s where dictation comes in. Altho, I wish that when I am saying the word “imminent” it would decode it properly. For some reason “imminent” always comes out as “eminent”!
As for looking up words I haven’t read in books before, I have an app called WordBook, which I don’t use as much. I sometimes use it to make sure that I am using a word correctly, recognizing the power of language like George Carlin did throughout his life and career. That’s why I don’t use big words all that much, because I’m careful with what I write and I prefer to use as much plain language as possible, rather than using fancy-schmancy words all the time. I have always had an interest in words, but I never had a dictionary of my own, until my iPhone and thankfully, I have the freedom to use words that can translate my thoughts (as I think them) and not just using A simplified writing style of a child in school.
Something else you may ask, is how do I get information on Queen and make sure that it is accurate? Well, I use Wikipedia and of course, I’ll check through my own memory banks to make sure that what I am putting here is correct. I have a pretty good memory and that is because I don’t drink, or do drugs. I also don’t listen to Queen very loud, as I am blind and need my hearing to get through life. If I lose any of my ability to hear, I will get disorientated and I could have unnecessary mishaps. So, listening to Queen loud all the time is not an option for me, despite a Queen podcast with a hashtag PQL. I will listen to Queen loud sometimes, but not to the level of what it may sound like at a gig, or in a studio. I listen to music on my phone and on EarPods (not AirPods) and I value not being deaf. Besides, I only know 3 words in Canadian sign language: yes, no and angry.
Back to the kitchen metaphor for a moment, I actually compose posts in my kitchen, with my Bluetooth keyboard on top of my microwave oven. There for when I compose I hear a thump thump, everytime I type. No, I don’t usually do it while cooking a meal and I remove the keyboard from the machine, before using it to heat up my food, before I eat it. Before the pandemic, I could do bits anywhere I wish, but with masking regulations in affect, I had to restrict any writing for when I’m home. Thanks to my flexibility, I can compose inside or outside of my kitchen and even on the bus, using the keyboard.
Okay, so I have given away The secret of how I do what I do and I use every free minute of time I have, to devote myself to this blog, as well as others I maintain. I also make time to watch Youtube, listen to podcasts and other things, but Sunday morning is always a last minute dash, to finish off each post for my Simpsons blog. As for this blog, I had composed it after having my breakfast and in my bedroom, sitting on my bed and listening to the radio. As I write this, Intergalactic by Beastie Boys is playing on the rock station I listen to regularly, when I have the radio on. If I listening to its parent app, I listen to something else most of the time. In case you are wondering, I use the iHeartRadio app, Radioplayer to listen to any radio stations in Canada on my phone. I could use the Music app, but why? The sound quality is sometimes lacking and I am fussy, about what I hear. I will let some things go, if they don’t interfere with the overall sound I am hearing in my EarPods, but sound quality is vital, as Brian has said about Queen albums.
This will be the last post for a short while, because I do maintain 3 other blogs and two of them are currently ative, with weekly posts. My personal blog is probably the least active and I intend to keep this blog as active as possible, without concentrating on one particular blog, more than another. Be back possibly as soon as the 18th, when we will discuss The Miracle.
All Gord's People 