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I really think the notes sheet is gonna lead to something..its just her thought process was kinda all over the place. i would never be able to keep a note page like that! I would have to write it in the lines and make columns haha...gives some insight into her personality. (respectfully snipped)
I agree that there is something important on that note page. I am sure there were others like it, if not in the lock box, at least in the house. Based on my own personal experience I think she had a minor learning disability (I hate using the word disability, it is really more like a glitch in the way some people write and spell.) I have always had poor hand writing and am horrible at spelling. I know how to spell words, but when I am writing or typing fast I almost always misspell things. It wasn't until my son was in 1st grade, and I was in my early 30's, that I realized there was something "wrong" with my spelling and writing problems. My son's 1st grade teacher suggested that I have him tested because he was having a really hard time when learning to write. He knew his letters and numbers, could read and actually loved to write stories, but he had trouble actually physically writing his letters on the lined paper. The "diagnosis" was that he had some kind of minor learning disability that was causing the problems. I did not want to have him "classified" in the school system so I never reported those findings to the school administration. I honestly don't remember what term they used to define this disability (something to do with visual motor integration and spatial integration.)
I feel I need to point out that I have been a fairly high level business professional for the past 30 years and my son is now working on a masters degree at a well known university. So it is not really all that much of a "disability."
The characteristics of this disability are poor spelling, sloppy hand writing and not being able to write within the lines on a paper. When writing fast, especially in a situation like taking notes, my spelling is atrocious. I know how to spell, the words just don't come out right when I write them down. Another characteristic is often that we leave off the letters at the end of the word. When trying to write "they" it comes out "the" or writing "than" when it should be "then". When I go back and reread what I have written I usually see my mistakes. (If you look at my posts, you will notice that I usually go back and edit after posting, because I see those mistakes).
I am also a tactile or kinesthetic learner. So I learn best by experience. I don't remember things just by reading or hearing them. I need to write them or type them to remember. Once I write them down, I generally don't ever need to go back to that paper, because the act of writing them committed them to my memory. I have note pages all over the house that look a lot like LEK's note page.
I generally use unlined paper and I write things in groups. (I have a small farm, so I will use farm references.) I have one sheet of paper now in front of me. It has groups of poorly written and spelled words in various sections around the page. Top right are some notes about my chickens and eggs, and when the babies hatched. Towards the middle of the page are some notes on the goats I have for sale. A little higher over to the left is the address and business hours of the local farmer's markets. Near the bottom of the page is a short grocery shopping list. These words are grouped around the page. In some cases the page was turned to the left, sometimes more to the right, so the words are written at different angles. A few words are upside down on the page, if I was sitting at the other side of the table when I wrote them. Scattered around the page are some phone messages for my husband. (One example of a message for my husband is written as "Jo Trakter", meaning that Joe called and asked to borrow the tractor.)
When I look at Lori's page, I can't help but thinking that she takes notes just like I do. Sometimes I go back and correct the spelling mistakes after the fact, cross things off and rewrite them or add a letter that was dropped when I first wrote it down. I also count things by tapping my pen to the paper in groups of five, like on a dice.
Sorry for the long post, I hope it helps add some insights.