My Writing and Photos Are Featured This Week

I am really pleased to share with you the news that two websites have featured my blog this week!

The first site is Quilt Shop Navigator which highlights quilt shops across the United States and Canada through video interviews with shop owners and photos from inside the stores.

So how does that connect with me? In June 2012 I had the joy of touring the Amish Country Quilt Gardens along the Heritage Trail in northern Indiana which I posted on this blog here, here, and on flickr. When the Quilt Shop Navigator was in the area this year, the flowers were not yet at the height of their beauty. So, for this week's post on a quilt shop in Middlebury, Indiana, three of my photos were used to illustrate the article.

I was contacted online first by the author who requested permission which I was happy to grant her. As a bonus, I enjoyed getting to know her a bit through our emails back and forth and hope she will continue to stay in touch. I may even take up quilting someday. It looks like so much fun.

Here's the post with my photos and a nice shout-out for my blog.

A second site to feature my blog is Healthy Hearing as part of a series they are publishing on bloggers. Speak Up Librarian is included in an article on professionals with hearing loss. I was very touched by the kind words used to describe my writing. I hope you will take a look for yourself. As a bonus, you can find out about other blogs on hearing loss.

Here's the post which features my blog writing.

I'm very grateful for this recognition and for all who read my blog and share the journey with me.

Blog Award and an Announcement

I've been awarded the Leibster Blog Award by Liz of Cats and Chocolates. Thanks so much, Liz. This was quite a surprise to me. I had not realized she was a long time reader and I had not been to her blog before. To my delight, we have common interests like reading, animals, and chocolate. She is deaf and interested in sign language, BSL in her case. Please stop by her blog and give it a look soon.

Now I have the responsibility to pass the award on to 5 other blogs worthy of your attention.
[Dramatic drumroll] And the winners are:

• Liz's Deaf Blog
• Xpressive Handz
• Hearing Sparks
• Eh What Huh
• Definitely Deaf

Now for the announcement. Since November I've been taking an online web design course. The class has gotten the wheels in my head turning on how I might improve my own website, Speak Up Librarian blog.
I'm thinking about making changes during the break after Christmas and before New Years.

If you have any opinions on what you like to read here and what you DON'T like to see here, drop me a comment. Thanks!

I'm an Oticon Focus on People Awards Finalist!

I'm very excited to announce that I have been chosen as an Oticon Focus on People Awards finalist in their Advocacy category. Oticon has selected three people in each of four categories -Student, Adult, Advocacy, and Practitioner - to be their finalists. The ultimate winner in each category will be chosen by online vote. Here's the official press release I received today:


Sarah Wegley Selected as Top Finalist in the 2011 Oticon Focus on People Awards

Vote Online for Sarah Now Through August 29!

Sarah Wegley has been named a finalist in the Advocacy category of the 2011 Oticon Focus on People Awards. People are encouraged to log onto oticonusa.com to cast their vote for Sarah and other top finalists in each of four categories – Student, Adult, Advocacy and Practitioner. Tabulations on the total number of votes received by each finalist will determine who will be the first, second and third place winners in each category. The 12 finalists represent the "best of the best" nominees for this year’s competition.

“Cast your vote for who inspires you! Our goal is to reach as many people as possible with the inspirational stories of our Focus on People Award finalists,” says Nancy Palmere, Sr. Marketing Manager at Oticon, Inc. “Log onto oticonusa.com and read about the accomplishments of some remarkable people with hearing loss and dedicated practitioners who are helping to show that hearing loss does not limit a person’s ability to achieve, contribute and inspire.”

First place winners in each category win $1,000 and a $1,000 donation from Oticon to the charity of their choice. First place winners in the Student, Adult and Advocacy also win a pair of Oticon advanced technology hearing instruments.

Voting is open now through August 29 at oticonusa.com. Winners will be announced in September.

About the Focus on People Awards

Oticon Focus on People Awards, a national awards program now in its 14th year, honors hearing impaired students, adults and advocacy volunteers who have demonstrated through their accomplishments that hearing loss does not limit a person’s ability to make a difference in their families, communities and the world. By spotlighting people with hearing loss and their contributions, Oticon aims to change outdated stereotypes that discourage people from seeking professional help for their hearing loss.

What Oticon Wrote About Me, My Blog, and My Advocacy

Sarah Wegley is a librarian who doesn't believe it is necessary – or a good idea – to keep your voice down, especially when it comes to addressing something as important as hearing loss.
In her award-winning blog, "Speak Up Librarian," Sarah chronicles her own experiences with late-onset hearing loss and invites others with hearing loss to speak out about their own challenges, adventures and achievements.
Sarah, who has a moderate hearing loss, has worn hearing devices since 2006. At that time, she knew no one in a similar situation and frankly admits that it was lonely. Writing her blog at first was an outlet, a way for her to talk about how hearing loss had affected her emotionally. She was shocked to find a group of individuals from all walks of life who were happy and grateful to read and share along with her.
At first, Sarah’s blogs invited followers to come with along on journey to "come to terms with my hearing loss and adjust to life with hearing aids." Over time, her blog became more than just her own story. Today, it is a source of information for not only people with hearing loss but also for people who are interested in learning more about hearing loss.
Not all of Sarah's contributions are virtual. Her advocacy interests include open captioned films, accessible online education and hearing aid insurance coverage and she was recently elected the Social Chair of the Association of Late Deafened Adults Chicago.
In her new role, Sarah has been instrumental in opening group members to new experiences and changing the perceptions of the people in everyday life that they meet along the way. She recounted an experience in a local restaurant where the wait staff had to make special accommodations for the group, such as being careful to face the people at the table as they spoke. In Sarah’s estimation it was a win-win for all including the wait staff.
"I try to raise awareness wherever I can," Sarah says. "Life does go on with hearing loss!" There is no doubt that it will go a bit more smoothly for people with hearing loss, thanks to Sarah's candid and honest commentary online and off.

Thank you, Oticon!

My Prize Package All the Way from the UK

I enjoy photography and sharing my photos as part of my blog. When I found out my dear friend Liz was starting up a photography blog, I couldn't help but be excited about it. Then she announced a contest to name her new blog. Lucky me came up with the winning name "Through Liz's Eyes". My prize was this amazing package of handmade greeting cards.

Here is the link for Through Liz's Eyes and here's a link to some terrific travel photos she's posted there.

London: Meeting Deafinitely Girly

I hope all of you are regular readers of Deafinitely Girly. I find her blog fun to read because of her wonderful sense of humor. She has an extremely active social life and everyone in her life has a descriptive nickname in her blog posts.

I was thrilled when she agreed to meet us at our hotel for dinner one evening. There was one small problem. I didn’t have any idea what she looked like. Deafinitely Girly is very careful about her privacy and doesn’t post any photos of herself on her blog. Fortunately, when we stepped off the elevator and walked towards the hotel lobby, she was waiting for us and cried out a welcoming, “Sarah!!!!!”

We had a wonderful time at dinner. We were able to communicate exceptionally well. DG doesn’t wear hearing aids. She relies on lipreading. Naturally, I always faced her when speaking and enunciated clearly. My son did not. I found myself interpreting for her what he said - when I could understand him myself, that is. He really enjoyed DG’s company and talked a mile a minute earning himself the moniker “The Chatterbox” on her blog post about our meeting.

I enjoyed learning more about DG’s work life and her experiences in the local deaf community. She’s a great conversationalist and I could have listened to her for hours. It was difficult to say goodbye after dinner. We sat in the lobby and talked more and even posed for some photos - which you won’t see here because I gave her my word on that. When it was time to part, she said, “I wished you lived in the same country as me!” and gave me a great big hug.
I knew I had made a friend for life.

New Additions to My Blog Reading List I Highly Recommend

Eh? What? Huh? written by Elizabeth AKA (e. Her blog is devoted to hearing loss issues. She has written recently about ASL interpreted videos, common misconceptions about hearing aids, and rear window captioning. I've enjoyed seeing photos of her hearing aids decorated with various kinds of stickers.

Hard of Hearing Canadian is a blog about coping with late deafened hearing loss. Just started in January of this year, the posts are right on target and very practical in nature. You will also find cartoons and book reviews on this blog. I know I'm looking forward to reading the title A Quiet World: Living with Hearing Loss that was highlighted in one of the reviews.

Stuck in Two Worlds is another recent entry in the blogosphere. She writes about what it's like being "a hearing impaired person trying to live life in the normal hearing community". Stuck in two worlds: those of the deaf and the hearing, an emotional place where many hard of hearing people find themselves. Not deaf enough, yet not hearing enough either. Torn.

Life with a Hearing Dog written by Cathy and Bosley who describe themselves as a middle aged broad and a young yellow lab. With all my affection for Rusty, how could I not fall in love with this blog? It is funny with lots of real life stories and photos of Bosley.

Hearing Sparks written by Megan, a married 23 year old woman from Arizona. She has bilateral progressive sensorineural hearing loss and is "using this blog to share details about my life with hearing loss, as well as interesting news about accessibility, advancements in audiology and other sciences and a little bit of geeky stuff, too." Whenever I read Megan's blog, I feel hip, fresh, and up-to-date.

Cacophony to Symphony written by the even younger PinkLAM is a look at a teenaged girl's life with cochlear implants. I have been awed by her drive to get the best education she can despite the obstacles placed in her way. Her self advocacy for accomodation is a model for us all.

Watermark your photos for Free with Picmarkr

I received an email this week asking how I watermark the photos I post on my blog. Here's the secret: a wonderful website called Picmarkr. This site allows you to resize photos, add the text you want, and then instantly download the marked photos. There are a variety of text options and text placement positions available to get the look you want. You can process up to 5 photos at a time. Best of all, this website offers this service FREE of charge.

If you want to watermark an unlimited number of photos at one time or create a custom watermark template, then the PicMarkr Pro option would be the choice for you. There's a free trial available if you want to test drive it before purchasing.

For bloggers, I can't recommend Picmarkr high enough.

[Disclaimer: I have no association with this website other than the use mentioned in the first paragraph.]

Beautiful Blogger Award

Thank you Jelly for choosing me for this award. Now it's my turn to nominate 7 other bloggers for the award. The envelope please.... [sound of envelope being opened.] Leaning into the microphone [picture the stage of the Academy Awards] "My nominees for Beautiful Blogger Award are..."

Liz A blogger buddy who I consider a friend even though we live an ocean apart. She's creative and pursuing her dream of writing a children's book. She's also the new owner of an adorable hamster named Bubbles.

Glenice Author of beautiful poetry. She has a cochlear implant and revels in the sounds she is now able to hear.

Deafinitely Girly Most definitely! She is a prolific and honest blogger with an amusing way of referring to her friends in her writing by pet names.

AmyKay I hope this award might motivate you to blog more frequently. I've missed your voice in the blogosphere.

Danielle Someone I've only connected with online recently. I'm interested to know more of your story.

DebAnn and Kim - who were both previously nominated by Jelly but who have been such a part of my blogging journey that I couldn't overlook them.

My final duty is to tell you 7 "interesting" things about me. Frankly, I can't think of anything, so I'm just going to write the first 7 experiences I love that come into my head:

1) going to the beach (a warm sunny day sounds so good on this cold night)

2) discovering a new "favorite" author - particularly one who writes series so I can gorge on book after book

3) falling asleep on the couch while my family watches tv (can you tell I'm feeling sleepy about now?)

4) sharing a friend's good news (it's so nice to be happy for someone else and be a part of their joy)

5) taking a photo I can be proud of (I'm still experimenting and learning so my standards may be lower than yours)

6) sleeping in on Saturday mornings (did I mention I'm a bit tired?)

7) falling into the oblivion of sleep (my eyes just won't stay open any longer)

....zzzz.... Good night, everyone!

Honest Scrap Award

My faithful blog commenter Jelly from Cuteness of Curiosity has awarded me this prestigious award. Now I have to come up with 10 honest things to tell you about myself. And try to make them interesting and worthy of your time. And hope you don't hate me after learning the TRUTH!

1. I've always looked younger than my age. It was first commented upon when I was around 10 years old. Unfortunately instead of seeing this as a blessing, I've always been uncomfortable with it because I think people don't give me credit for being the mature person I am. (Don't laugh!) When I was assistant manager at a library branch in my late 20s, I remember eyebrows being raised when the circulation staff would bring me over when someone asked to see the supervisor. I looked like a teenager then. I've tried wearing my hair shorter and dressing in suits, but nothing helps. I'm destined to look youthful. Eventually, this is going to be wonderful. I would have thought it would be by now but no, not just yet.


2. I can't stop biting my nails. Yes, I've tried. Over and over. I've had friends offer to take me to a salon for a manicure if I would only stop biting long enough to grow my nails out. Hasn't happened yet. Any suggestions?


3. When I was in a country music phase, I was crazy for George Strait.


4. In my college days I once attended a Whitesnake concert.


5. I hate opera and ballet. They are too high culture for me. Refer to #3 and #4 if that seems hard to believe.


6. I've secretly been obsessed with Jon and Kate Gosselin this summer. And the tabloids aren't writing all those articles just for me!


7. I once had a boyfriend who enjoyed going to tractor pulls. Those super noisy events are the ultimate in boredom (after opera and ballet, of course. Just kidding). Surprisingly, that relationship didn't last. Oh, the noise my ears would have had to endure if we'd only made it work.


8. I'm afraid of guns but I did learn how to shoot one several years ago. Target shooting was kind of fun, but overall I still don't like them!!!


9. I haven't read all the classic literature you would expect a librarian to have.


10. If you're still reading this, I'm amazed because who would be interested in all these confessions? But if you've persevered with me, here's my big secret: Wearing hearing aids has taught me that the world is just too noisy and loud. I prefer my private, quiet world better. I long for a hearing aid that will amplify the voices and sounds I want to hear and keep most everything else muted. Until then, I will continue to wear my hearing aids selectively.

Now I'm going to pass this esteemed award on to the following bloggers:

• Liz's HOH Blog
• Deafinitely Girly
• Danielle of Growing Up Hard of Hearing
• Wendy of Sudden Silence

Tag, you're it! Here's the rules: 1. Link back to the person who gave you the award. 2. Forward the award on to other bloggers. 3. List 10 honest things about yourself. Have fun, ladies!

Flowers for Friday

My husband recently surprised me with this bouquet. I've enjoyed looking at it every day but now it's starting to wilt. I thought I'd post a photo here because to paraphrase (or should I say parody) Isaiah 40:8 "Petals drop, memories fade, but a photo on your blog lasts as a reminder of love."

I'm looking forward to seeing flowers in the yard soon. It won't be much longer before daffodils and tulips make an appearance. Have a happy Friday, everyone!

A Blog Celebration

Come and celebrate with me! I'm tickled pink. The Web Goddess has now dubbed me Blog Diva. Why? Recently my blog's visitor site counter passed 10,000. [imaginary confetti thrown in the air] Okay, some of that number is me working on my blog and replying to comments... but no way have I been to my own blog 10,000 times. On top of that Chad wrote me today that my blog was added to his organization's website. You can see the link here. Whoo hoo! [sound of a party horn]

Party Chatter: Did you know? Jakob Nielsen says ninety percent of all online community participants are lurkers - people who never leave a comment even if they like what they read. "Blogs have even worse participation inequality than is evident in the 90-9-1 rule... With blogs, the rule is more like 95-5-0.1." Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to leave a comment. You are appreciated! [air kisses] To all lurkers, thanks for reading. You are always welcome here. [more confetti is airborne]

Party Favor: Have you ever wondered how to create a link in a Blogger comment? Here's the HTML code you need. Ironically, I tried to write the code out in this blog post but Blogger kept turning my directions into a link. LOL. But here's a tip from me: I find it easy to remember which arrow to use by thinking that the arrow symbols point in towards the word(s) I want to hyperlink.

Delicious Virtual Party Refreshments provided by Kym. Enjoy!

Web 2.0 and Why D/deaf Blogging Matters

Because I work at a university library, part of my job involves teaching workshops. Last winter I began teaching online for the first time. My coworker Diane and I created a course designed to train our library's staff on web 2.0 tools like blogs, wikis, social networking sites, and more. A local public library director also took the course. He liked it so much he wanted to make it available to his staff. Diane and I were happy to do that as we had learned so much as novice online instructors. We were eager to create a new and improved version of the course and we offered it this past July-August.

In the summer course one of our students posted the video below to our online discussion on YouTube. In a very thought provoking way this video titled "The Machine is Us/ing Us" explains what web 2.0 is about in less than 5 minutes. For my deaf readers I want to reassure you that it's not captioned because it doesn't need to be. The soundtrack is only instrumental music. All the information you need is visual. Check it out and then read below for my further thoughts on the video's message.



I was really struck by the video's assertion that we are teaching "the machine" [ourselves] every time we participate in social networking online. I immediately wanted to read the entire article that the video highlights briefly. I found it in Wired magazine's August 2005 issue. Wired 13.08: We Are the Web

The premise of the article is that in 1995 we couldn't have imagined what the Internet was to become in 10 years time. Here's a section of the article I found fascinating (keep in mind the article is now 3 years old):

"The scope of the Web today is hard to fathom. The total number of Web pages, including those that are dynamically created upon request and document files available through links, exceeds 600 billion. That's 100 pages per person alive.

How could we create so much, so fast, so well? In fewer than 4,000 days, we have encoded half a trillion versions of our collective story and put them in front of 1 billion people, or one-sixth of the world's population. That remarkable achievement was not in anyone's 10-year plan...

No Web phenomenon is more confounding than blogging. Everything media experts knew about audiences - and they knew a lot - confirmed the focus group belief that audiences would never get off their butts and start making their own entertainment. Everyone knew writing and reading were dead; music was too much trouble to make when you could sit back and listen; video production was simply out of reach of amateurs. Blogs and other participant media would never happen, or if they happened they would not draw an audience, or if they drew an audience they would not matter. What a shock, then, to witness the near-instantaneous rise of 50 million blogs, with a new one appearing every two seconds. There - another new blog! One more person doing what AOL and ABC - and almost everyone else - expected only AOL and ABC to be doing. These user-created channels make no sense economically. Where are the time, energy, and resources coming from? The audience."


In my job I see people interact with computers every day at my library. (The photo at left shows half of my library's computer area.) With a little imagination, I can see all these blank screens as windows into the human experience. If as the author of the article and the producer of the video believe, we are truly teaching the "machine" [each other] by blogging about our unique experience as a human on this particular planet in this specific era, then our blogging is important. The "machine" needs to know what it's like to be D/deaf or hard of hearing. Who can teach it? We can by blogging our stories, our opinions, our disappointments, and our dreams. Don't be afraid to add your voice to the online chorus. The "machine's" [our] education will be incomplete without you.

Dear Readers

When I put myself out on cyberspace via a personal blog, I wondered who in the world would be reading my posts. At first it seemed that no one was reading them or even aware that my blog existed. I had to twist the arms of friends and family members to take a look and plead for them to leave a comment. With their encouragement and the support of another blogger, I added my blog to DeafRead, a blog aggregator. That really boosted my readership.

Becoming part of DeafRead also made me aware of how many terrific blog writers there are on the subject of hearing loss. I actually started my blog because I wanted to create a site with the kind of information I was desperate for when I first learned I had a hearing loss. I wanted to know if what I was experiencing was "normal" LOL. There was no one I knew personally that I could ask and I hated to keep pestering my audiologist when I came in for my appointments. I also wanted to share the funny stories my adjustment to life with hearing loss and hearing aids seemed to generate.

When comments started to appear on my blog, I was thrilled. There were people out there who understood, who could laugh with me, and even better, educate and inspire me.

Once I made an email address available, I received some personal notes from readers. So far I have heard from a library school student, another hard of hearing librarian, a late deafened adult who has had a positive experience with life after hearing loss, a fellow headache sufferer and hearing aid wearer, and a doctoral student in audiology. I've enjoyed corresponding with them all.

Several weeks ago I hit a personal low and deleted my blog. I was really surprised how disappointed some people were. At least the ones who could tell me that to my face! Thankfully, I got my act together and decided to see if I could salvage some of my favorite posts and rebuild what I could and start fresh.

Dear readers, this blog would not be worth the screen time without you. Thank you for sharing this journey with me.