For me, the story of Cliff in Barton and Hamilton's Local Literacies was especially interesting.I was intrigued by his love of letter writing and how it was such an important thing in his life. He not only used it to keep in touch with his daughters following his divorce, but he also used it as a means of entertainment, as well as a link to the wider world since he was unable to travel due to certain circumstances of his life.
The fact that he really didn't like reading, but did see the value in it to gain information that was applicable to various life situations was also interesting. In my experience, people enjoy reading over writing more often than not and he was just such an unusual character.
What endeared him to me the most, though, were his quotes. When discussing his recorded voice with the interviewer, he realized he said 'yeah' often and he wasn't bothered by it. He went on to discuss how people are often embarrassed by what they say and how they speak, but that he was fine with himself. "I suppose accents or dialects are like music and some are nice on your ears and some are not..." (p. 130). I just liked that.
When discussing his lengthy letters, he said, "I write as I think, not as I think it should be written...and there's a difference." Yes, Cliff, there is. I just love how he has such a realistic view of who he is and the part that literacy plays in his life.
The fact that he sometimes appears to be depressed and worried led me to wonder if writing as therapy could help him with some of those feelings. Presently, he uses writing to correspond to others, but writing about his life and feelings in a more directed way might help him, too.
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