Yesterday I was offered a regular shift at the Audio Journal. A two-hour shift, shared with another reader, one Sunday evening a month, reading the Sunday Worcester Telegram.

A friend wrote to me and asked for more information about the Audio Journal. For starters, their web site is here. In brief, the Audio Journal is a reading service for the blind. Volunteers read local news from a studio in Worcester. The journal broadcasts on a special radio channel requiring a special receiver. The service provides the receivers to any blind person and others who have difficulty reading, such as those with difficulty holding a newspaper. The service is also broadcast on some cable systems and streamed over the Internet. (You can listen here.) The Worcester station provides eight hours of local news a day. Local news includes the Worcester Telegram, daily and weekly regional newspapers, and general interest programming. For the other 16 hours, the Talking Information Center (TIC) provides state-wide and national news sources.

Most programs are one hour, but the daily Telegram program is two hours long. The readers arrive a half hour or so before the program and select stories, including obituaries, editorials, and letters to the editors. One volunteer manages the controls and both will take turns reading, typically in 15 minute segments. Many of the readers are retired school teachers. Some have been reading for 10 or more years.

Reading like this takes practice. I get into trouble when I start reading too quickly. I'll trip over a word or two and then have to backtrack. It's better to read slowly and carefully. Names can be tough, so it's important to review the articles and ask for help on pronunciation; the other reader may be familiar with the names.

So, after a few training sessions, it looks as though I'm going to be a regular. I will then need training on the control board, but that will come in time.

On the job front, I had three interesting phone conversations yesterday, one with a former manager and two with former co-workers. I have an informational interview scheduled for Monday morning. By the middle to end of next week, I may hear more about opportunities as a consultant.

Today we'll go to the camp. I plan to turn on the water and complete the spring opening chores. We'll stay over tonight and return home tomorrow afternoon. Krista will have her first communion on Sunday morning, followed by family festivities. Tess's birthday is on Tuesday.

Today is my mother's birthday. She loved her birthdays. Her birthday is close to Mother's Day, so sometimes the birthday didn't get the full attention that it deserved. On her last birthday, we went out to dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant. The food wasn't to her liking. The vegetarian dish was cooked in too much oil. Sometimes you don't get it right.