Gina--That was the first thing I thought of, too! I'm going to email her links to a couple online "concentration" games. I'm not sure how much it will help, but it sure can't hurt. Talley Sue--Your description of looking at a scene is almost exactly what my friend has to do. It is a combination of observing and memorizing. The only pattern is that the six or so objects are chosen from the same group of about a dozen. But they are in a different place each time and arranged in a different way. And there's not enough to put them into groups or clusters. I never knew that about typing--how interesting! No wonder I can't type more than about 50 wpm; I'm still doing it letter by letter. Seeking--I learned about spatial organization in college (I'm a writer/editor) as one way of organizing a description. That's exactly what my friend has to do--remember how the objects are placed within the space. But unlike writing, in which you have time to organize your thoughts, she needs to do it in a matter of about ten minutes. I know from working with her on documents that it takes her a long time to organize her thoughts, so having to do it in a few minutes is causing her some trouble. Flyleft--Here's an analogy: You are the boss of a cook. You walk into the kitchen (for about 10 minutes) and have to remember where each piece of equipment is, what it is used for, and where it's positioned in the room. Then you have to instruct the cook what to do on each piece of equipment and the sequence in which to use each piece. The speed and ability to use each piece of equipment are timed, and points are deducted if the cook does something wrong (the cook does exactly what you tell him to do, in the order you tell him). So not only do you need to know where the equipment is and what it's for, you have to tell someone else to use it properly. (A similar analogy would be a doctor doing triage in a room full of accident victims.) Chiefneil--Are you saying you can teach an old dog new tricks? ;-) I didn't know that visualizing an activity will cause the same brain function as actually doing the activity. I think that's the key. I suggested that she "practice" by making a 3D model that she can work with at home. I tried to come up with a "story" situation like you describe, but she didn't seem to understand what I was getting at, and I think it confused her further. But I hadn't thought about involving other senses. I'll have to give that some more thought. Thanks everyone for your responses and suggestions. I have a feeling that the best method will be practice, practice, practice.

and then there are those, that do "exercise type stuff", such as bicycling, just cause they enjoy it. Namely, me. I love riding my bike. People always say to me, you must be fit, you exercise all the time. Excuse me, I just ride my bike. Not my fault, that is an exercise for other people. LOL Honest, I know lots of people that ride a certain mileage weekly/daily, to stay fit. If they don't get that mileage in, they feel like they let themselves down. Me, I exercise, yes. Mine is a weight workout. I do it for my bone strength. I also walk this time of the year, mostly cause it is really to cold for me to ride. I do call the walking exercise. Mostly, cause I walk the same course, multiple times a week. Boring, just like my weight workout. But I do it, to keep in shape, and the walking, well bad substitute for my cycling cravings, but better than just sitting and letting the pounds accumulate. I know someone that exercises for 2 1/2 to 3 hours daily, but doesn't do any physical activity otherwise. To each it's own. My physical activity in the rest of the year (cept this really cold season) is yard work. Lots of it, including chasing my lawnmower through the yard, LOL, aka lawn mowing. I really get bored, if I have nothing to do. That is part of why this cold weather and icy roads bother me so much. Moni

Unfortunately, I am very lax on exercising... I used to go to the pool and exercise when I lived in former town, but it got to the place the chemicals made me itch and break out so badly that my skin bled... I walked 3-4 miles a day...then came 3 joint replacements and arthritis in every joint in my body and I have constant pain. The surgeon who relpaced one of my hips, cut the nerves and I walk with a terrible wabble and it feels like it is caving in with each step, and no fixing it...the nerves are dead....so makes my back hurt and have terrible balance when I do try to walk. I have gained a lot of weight and it know it makes all of my health problems worse..plus I am blessed with tremors in my hands..so I think I have just given up on extending my years. I am able to keep up with my house and take care of my personal needs, but life has lost its "fun" for me any more.

I've been walking as much as possible and doing stretches and exercises to strengthen the knee I sprained/broke back in August. I'm getting pretty good at walking up the stairs, but going down is still tricky. One of my exercises is to step up and down on a block of wood. I think it's more a matter of lack of confidence than it is my knee not being up to it. Now that I can get down on the floor (and back up again), I'm going to attempt a beginning yoga program starting today. I think my entire body, including my knee, will thank me. Going to start slow, do what I feel comfy doing and build from there.