1. i learned to paint while listening to music when i was a child by painting whatever came to my mind as i was hearing the music. if the music had a deep, fast tempo, i would create dark, thick textures. if the music had a slower tempo that was light and gentle, i painted more freely, but with a lighter touch. i also know how to knit and crochet.
2. no, my sense of touch is no different than a sighted-hearing person's. the only difference is that i'm able to identify tactual cues much easier than a sighted-hearing person because i've learned how to identify tactual information and apply it to my daily living activities. if they work hard enough at it, a sighted-hearing person can learn how to use and identify tactile sensations just as well as a blind person, if not better.
3. yes. i don't have a single favorite smell, but a number of them. they include chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven, freshly made bread baking in the oven, wood burning in a fire, (i know this sounds weird but...) yeast when it has fully risen (when i was a child being bussed to pre-school we used to pass the local brewery and you could smell yeast in the air), roses, bakery, the smell of food after it is cooked and oranges.
my least favorite smell is cigarette smoke. i'm highly allergic to it and it gives me a migraine.
4. some of my favorite fruits are bananas, pineapples, oranges, apples, strawberries and kiwi.
5. yes, tigger sleeps in my bed with me although she's good about staying on her end of the bed without hogging it like my previous guide dog did!
