Coincidentally, I also am a big collector of do-it-yourself books, especially the ones with lots of pictures. I’m a visual type. Although I am very comfortable writing and reading text, a demonstration of some sort, whether live or photographs and diagrams in a book, almost always is necessary. Maybe I am too comfortable with text. When I encounter written instructions only, the copy editor inside me often kicks in, and ambiguities and omissions begin to crop up everywhere. Questions arise faster than they can be answered. Illustrations almost always help. Come to think of it, maybe this isn’t strange at all. I do make my living putting together words and pictures.
84 responses to “Shelf Awareness”
Me, too. Our printer gives us a video. that’s even better.
I also do much better with text and pictures. I cannot comprehend nearly as well by listening. Back in the day, I took copious notes of lectures. That was the only way I could retain.
BTW, have been thinking about you during all the weather’s conniption fits. Hope all is well.
YouTube has many instructional videos. Many of those are amateur-produced. And some of those are unintentionally hilarious.
Does anyone know what day Cinco de Mayo falls on this year? Well, I hope everyone has a happy one, whenever it is. And a Happy Tequila Day to you, Lily. 🙂
Husband’s how-to books are on computer stuff. Mine are all cookbooks, and vastly outnumber his. 😉
Ghost-Happy Revenge of the Fifth Day!
Computer books are obsolete before the ink dries. Cookbooks last for ever.
Now, let’s all knock back a Dos Equis.
Good morning and happy Cinco de Mayo. Favorite story: We have a daft anesthesiologist of Mexican descent who writes things on her scheduler. Once it was “Mexican Independence Day! No surgery scheduled.” I was supposed to schedule a case with her, so I wrote under it, “I thought that was Cinco de Mayo”
I looked again later and she wrote under my note “We have been oppressed many times by many people, gringa.”
My boat building husband has a collection of boating and building books that is the envy of all our boating fanatics. I once had a similar collection of cookbooks. When we ran out of space in smaller house (we once owned “libraries” dedicated to books) I sold mine at Half Price Books which really doesn’t give you much $$. I just felt they’d go to someone else who’d enjoy them. Now I look on net when I want a recipe! You’ve all posted them there!
Love, Jackie Monies
I reread JJ’s last sentences about putting together words and pictures and my mind jumped back a few decades. Jeff Millar who wrote “Tank McNamara” with Bill Hinds (who did the drawing) was then my favorite cartoonist and writer. He admitted to not being able to throw away nor burn/discard anything with the printed word that was bound and had a cover. They consequently still owned all their textbooks, Boy Scout guides, any book bought or given to them in their entire lives.
At the time I could relate. Now, I can part with things more easily. I did however keep most of my gardening books although I cannot tell you where the boxes are!
Bless him, Jeff left us last winter but “Tank” lives on.
Love, Jackie Monies
GR6: It’s today.
Lily: ‘Nasssty people. [emoticon].’ No, normal hetero males. If males were not so focused, none of us would be here. Besides, it’s fun.
Have you all noticed, BTW, the profusion of ‘glamour’ and ‘erotic’ posters on sale on the righthand side of many sites. One that first showed in the last few days is about as explicit as they get, and not particularly pretty.
I like cookbooks and own several good ones. (I’m also about to accept my mom’s fairly large collection of cookbooks…as many years as she’s been cooking, she really doesn’t need to look up a recipe for anything she wants to prepare.) But I maintain a personal collection of favorite recipes in the word processor of my computer (as well as in the Cloud), filed by category. They are then printed, placed in plastic sheet protectors and filed in a ring binder I keep on a shelf in the kitchen. It’s also handy when I buy ingredients for a dish…I email the recipe to my smart phone and use that as a shopping list in the food market.
When I have time, I’m going to rig up a way to safely use my 13″ ultrabook in the kitchen and go paperless.
Thanks, emb; I forgot to wind my calendar. 🙂
I haven’t seen those posters. (Since I ended my relationship with Internet Explorer, I don’t actually see that many ads.) Another reason to use (or not use, depending on your viewpoint) an ad blocker, I suppose.
I use AdBlock so I don’t see many ads, either. The only posters I own are of “Angel” David Boreanz with the legend “Edward Who?” (“Twilight” reference, ha ha) and Kiefer Sutherland (from “Lost Boys”) saying “Vampires 1. Do not attend High School 2. Are not emotional sissy-boys 3. Do…not…SPARKLE”
Did I forget to mention I am a Lab Technologist and draw blood in my office? 😀
I think I had figured that one out Lily. Do you dress in black so the blood doesn’t show?
That is what current day EMS people tell me, usually while I am lying on a table in emergency.
For two years I was a lab tech in college (thought I wanted to go to med school until I couldn’t pass chemistry and physics) We wore all white dresses/uniforms, white hose and white shoes/flats. No tennis shoes of course! The blood really showed up! My stories are more like MASH episodes than Gray’s Anatomy.
Love you, Jackie Monies
Lily, when I saw the description of your first poster, I wondered if you liked you some sparkly vampires. Then I saw the description of the second poster and decided maybe not so much as the ones that don’t sparkle.
After reading one of your previous posts, I meant to ask if you were a lab rat. That’s what my late sister did for many years. She loved it.
Jackie: I would but we are not allowed to wear black scrubs. Navy is the darkest allowed and I prefer royal blue.
Ghost, I started out working at the hospital and worked my way up to night supervisor. Then I had my trouble and went to work for my current boss, where lab is just a part of my job. It’s fun, but not as much fun as helping with surgery
About vampires, I confess to vampire lust for only Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt and Antonio Banderas from the original Interview With A Vampire. Despite Anne Rice’s roots in New Orleans I have not read her books. My step-granddaughter was a vampire fan and dressed Goth more or less, so I am out of touch with the young vampires.
Love, Jackie Monies
Jackie, I tried to read “Interview With the Vampire” but it had way too much sex in it. Bleah
For a better class of vampire, find the Fred Saberhagen titles relating to Dracula, such as An Old Friend of the Family. Very well done and nice way of bringing him into the 1970’s while keeping the character consistent.
GR6, how about just putting an electronic photo frame in the kitchen. You could just put the recipes on it and freeze the frame where you wanted it. Cheaper to replace than a Mac, too!
Ah yes, the old “tab A into slot B” conundrum. Why isn’t it ever tab A into slot A? And why don’t the pictures ever match what you’re supposed to do?
Dave, totally agree about the A and B can’t figure out. I bought a kit closet from Lowe’s to put in bedroom I moved into. Somehow I thought it would come in a box, assembled. It is dozens of pieces and hardware only identified on illustrations by letters and numbers. It is leaning on wall of bedroom in pieces waiting for me to wallpaper the room.
Definitely thought of it with Janis’ problem today!
JJ you are the BEST with plays on words and puns! Better than my crazy English friends who LOVE word play.
Love, Jackie Monies
Hey, I missed a chance to titillate Ghost here! In the early 60’s we didn’t have white pantyhose stockings, so we wore the white stockings with garter belts. That’s where all those old jokes with “playing nurse” originated, with voluptuous nurses and skimpy uniforms. See old reruns of “Are You Being Served?” on PBS for examples.
Love, Jackie Monies
Posted without comment. emb
http://www.livescience.com/45322-fracking-wastewater-farther-earthquakes.html
GR6, here you go! http://www.belkin.com/us/F5L100-Belkin/p/P-F5L100/
Jackie Monies, I think we can blame the assembly problem on two things. One is the guys who put together model kits as kids. You learned that they never went exactly according to the instructions, so you had to make adjustments as you went. So designs by these folks don’t try to overcome that issue. Second, the kits are designed by English-speaking folks who then contract out the manufacture of the kits and assembly instructions to non-English speakers. So if something goes wrong, they don’t realize it.
Over the years, I have assembled so many pre-fab tables, dressers, armoires, bookshelves and entertainment centers for myself and friends that I barely have to refer to the instructions any longer.
Jackie, a number of years ago at our local medical center, there was an older doc (a general surgeon) who often told the OR crew, when he left for lunch at home, that his wife would be meeting him at the door, wearing lingerie and stockings with a garter belt, all in white. She was a former RN, so that would jive with your story. Oh, and thanks for thinking of me. 😉
Lily, is your boss lady a general surgeon?