The help

I have a PA. My lip reading skills seem to be getting worse; could be my brain is packing up out of sheer exhaustion or maybe it’s not even my fault.

Truth is I have never been very good. I remember attending a lip reading class and the teacher was reading out silently from an article. At the end of it I felt very pleased with myself as I was sure I understood everything bar a word or two. However when she started asking the students about the piece I quickly realized I hadn’t understood anything!

Clearly what had happened was I had got the first key word wrong and had adjusted the whole story accordingly; I thought she had been reading about fishing, but in fact she was reading about growing flowers!

Anyway my family either fall about laughing or pull their hair out with frustration at my lack in this particular skill, so when I read I could have my own PA for free, I jumped at the chance.

I have only had her for a day, but clearly she doesn’t hear very well ‘I will need some water’ becomes ‘I will eat some bored.’ And ‘How long will you be?’ she hears as ‘Hi how are you today?’

She does get some things right, like when my son asked if I wanted Christmas tea. I am wondering if she is just willful or it’s selected deafness?

The PA is an App called Vlingo, maybe I should get a Dragon instead….