Cecilia Warren and Gardenia
Class of March 2006
Entry One - Thursday, March 2
I have been experiencing great technical difficulties, so please excuse me for such a delayed start to my journal. It is fairly late now, we just had our last park and pee for the night, which occurs at 10 PM. I arrived here at Guiding Eyes for the Blind on Tuesday afternoon, Feb 28th. I had intended to start a training journal much sooner, but Murphy's Law prevails... With a lot of assistance from Jeff, a graduate here from GEB, he has my computer up and running!
So, I will start from a few days ago. On Tuesday. I left Maryland from BWI Airport on US Air. I was greeted at LaGuardia by two kind ladies from GEB . I met W. and S, who are repeat students from GEB. I will only use first initials because I wish to respect their privacy. S and I have a lot in common. W has a great sense of humor, and issues jokes at random moments.
We traveled by van to the main campus here in Yorktown Heights. I received an orientation to my room and the lower level of the building right away. The other students trickled in for the remainder of the afternoon. One student arrived quite late after flying for nearly 12 hours from the state of Washington.
On Tuesday night, we received training in collars for the dog, and practiced what we learned. We also reviewed the anatomy of the guide harness. After our lesson, I called home. I was already getting quite homesick. I was having regrets and thinking that I made a dreadful mistake in leaving my children for such a long time.
In the morning, we awake to the voice of our instructors on a microphone. We are advised of the weather, the time, etc. On Wednesday, March 1, we were awaken at 0600 hours, so that we could start our obedience walks by 0630. After dressing, we report to the lounge to perform a series of obedience instruction with the leash and harness. The idea is to finish the obedience training walks before breakfast, so that we can move quickly after breakfast.
After breakfast, we met with Marie, the dietitian, to review the many special needs and requests of the students. She has a special place in Heaven! She also helps in the housekeeping duties. Wednesday was a Holy Day, and she accommodated any student who wished to have a special diet for Lent.
We then boarded two van to head to White Plains. A building has been renovated in the downtown area that GEB uses to train students. Very cool place that is across the street from the courthouse. I feel like I am in Baltimore when I am there. We received a variety of orientations to the building, the computer room, etc.
Every student participated in two Juno walks that were observed by other instructors. I am a rookie in this class. Only L and I have never had a guide dog before. A juno walk is a training exercise that the student uses in learning commands, demonstrating pace, etc. An "imaginary dog" is used. A real guide harness and leash are used with an experienced instructor holding one end. The student holds the handle of the harness and follows the instructions given. We were in an urban area with a lot of distractions and noise. This exercise was very helpful in that it was well simulated to real life and working experiences.
While in White Plains, we received a didactic lesson on the rules and regs of the students. Then, we returned to Yorktown Heights, and prepared for dinner. After dinner, we received a brief lecture regarding the transitions that our guide dogs have made and what to expect on Thursday. Many students are querying the instructors on their designated guides. The instructors seem to expect such cross examinations, and have prepared answers that clearly indicate " I am not going to tell you what dog you are getting!"
It appears to be a collaborative decision among the instructors. They carefully question each student individually on our daily life needs, schedules. transportation, and family. On Wednesday evening, a staff member, Sandra, offers to take students to Mass for Ash Wednesday. I am delighted because I will not be able to attend Mass for a few weeks. C and I travel with Sandra to St Patricks in Yorktown Heights. We received ashes and had a full Mass. Afterwards, Sandra generously takes us by Dunkin Donuts and we pick up two dozen donuts and a pound of coffee for everyone. A large snowstorm is predicted for Thursday
and a little hospitality will warm everyone up.
Thursday is "Dog Day". If you have every birthed a baby, well, it is that type of energy and excitement. The students discuss and wonder what type of guide dog, color, puppy raiser, disposition, size, and the most asked question-"What is their name!"
After breakfast, we do obedience walks with practice dogs. My practice dog was Peggy. She was sweet. quiet, compliant, and so overtly obedient that I looked like a star. Peggy could make anyone look like a champ!
After lunch, we receive a few brief lectures, and are advised of our guide dog's name, color, breed, and sex. We go to our rooms to await the big moment. I can only describe it as feeling life I was voluntarily entering an arranged marriage. Would I be liked? Would I be accepted? Would I be loved?
I spoke with S for awhile and then she returned to her room. Shortly after, I heard the momentous knock at the door. I sat on my bunk and Julie (instructor) entered my room and announced the arrival of Gardenia. Wow! What an interesting name! Gardenia immediately came to me, placed her head in my lap, and started licking my hands. She is so unbelievably calm that I cannot guess her age. Gardenia then sat up to give me both paws in a calm and loving way. Julia shut the door after leaving, and Gardenia led me to the door and sat for a long time, waiting for Julia to return. Gardenia is clearly attached to Julia. However, Gardenia happily follows me back to our room. We sit on the dog bed and she is so profusely affectionate and loving that my worries about success are alleviated. Ga
Entry Two - Friday, March 3
I am starting this entry at 10:36 PM, as we are busy with training during the day and evening. I will be brief because I know that I will have more time this weekend to make journal entries.
Last night, I slept better than I had in the previous two nights. All of the students seem to be feeling that they are more relaxed now that they have their new guides and are moving along in training. Gardenia is a funny sleeper. She emits a low level grrrrrr during her sleep. and it continues through the night. Quite remarkably, Gilroy has the very same behavior, and he belongs to JC. I suspect that Gardenia and Gilroy are from the same litter, however, there are such vast differences in size that is seems implausible!
This morning, we awoke at 0600 to park, pee, water and feed our guides. All of these activities are monitored by instructors. We then report to breakfast and are met by an instructor at the stairwell. After breakfast, we receive a lesson on how to place the harness on our guides. One by one, an instructor comes to each of us to bring a new harness and observe our work. Gardenia is quite petite and the harness feels too large for her. The instructor and I agree that we will try the harness, but may switch to a smaller version in the near future.
We are all anxious to get to work! We board the vans for White Plains with our guide dogs. It is quite moving and exciting to do the first harness walk. On my first walk, it is cold and windy. Gardenia is such an exceptional guide that I have not made any corrections. She leads me to the curb with grace. I struggle with the correct placement of my feet and posture through doors and stairs.
Yesterday, a lot of snow fell and created a slippery surface. The Instructor Assistants help us to wipe the paws clean of salt and debris after of work.
In the afternoon, we do a reverse walk of our previous journey. JC and I spend our down time listening to the news on the computers in the lab in White Plains. I have discovered that he is a news junkie like me! I was overjoyed to find Jeff doing the final updates on this laptop when I returned to Yorktown Heights. We can thank Jeff for helping me to get the journal transmitted!
At dinner, I sat with W. I meet with him around 8PM in the computer lab to help him with his email. He is so thankful!. We have fallen into a nice routine, and I appreciate the fact that he needs some help to communicate with his wife. She is also deaf, so phone communication is not always successful. Email is easy, and we try to meet at the same time every night to work on sending his messages.
The instructors are helping various students privately. After dinner, the lecture is given. We are advised of tomorrow's work. We will be doing traffic crossings! Each student has had a wealth of traffic disasters. I am privately thinking of the intersections that make me nervous due to their high volume and extensive lanes. With a cane, we move like turtles. Very slow, fairly fearful of tripping and injuries.
Today was exhilarating. I have not walked to briskly in years! Gardenia is quick and methodical. My classmates and I discussed how exciting it is to get the first real harness work done. Gardenia follows her commands so peacefully and quietly.
As a class, we are starting to fall into a rhythm and become a cohesive group. It is a bonding experience. I am still homesick. I know that this is an important mission, and am looking forward to the weekend.
Our final pee and park for the day is at 10PM. All of the students on my side of the building exit our rooms and wait for our guides to get busy. The dogs loiter and we are freezing here in New York. After 10 minutes we laugh and give up!
I should mention that I made a nearly felonious error with Gardenia today. After we returned from White Plains, during our 4PM park and pee and feed and water, I took her outside to relieve herself. I was waiting and encouraging her to get busy and she refused to leave the sidewalk. I repeated myself several times and she would not budge. I then realized that her working harness was still on her! Relieving her bladder in the working harness is a cardinal sin ( we are to remove the harness first). I felt terrible that I could have overlooked such a simple concept. As soon as her harness was removed, she got busy.
Tomorrow's schedule is somewhat lighter than a regular weekday. On various days, volunteers come in and do some shopping for basic items for us. I will check on getting more donuts and having some hospitality for Saturday night. I will not be attending Mass this weekend, because I do not want to leave Gardenia. Gardenia and I seem to be bonding well. It is important that I do not break our bonding experience. If I leave the campus, she would have to remain on a tie down in our room. I will not consider doing that, so we will be here throughout the weekend.
I will enter another journal log later tomorrow.
Entry Three - Saturday, March 4
I was mistaken when I thought that Saturday was a light training day! Saturday is like any other training day, which makes wise use of time and resources! The weather today gave us a brisk wind, but it was sunny and not as cold as the previous days. The temperatures seemed to hold around 35-40 at midday.
Usual morning routine with park, pee, feed and water and park and pee again at 0600. Then on to obedience training and breakfast. Lecture after breakfast today described the types of intersections we would be working on in today's lessons with our guide dogs. We loaded into the vans and headed to White Plains. I was assigned with W to go out first with our two instructors. We were driven to the starting point of our routes. W exited the van first and left to train with Julie. I exited to train with Jesse. We are working in an area comprised of government buildings, courthouses, social services, and other public service agencies. Because it is Saturday morning, traffic is light. At each intersection, the instructor reviews the type of intersection it is, and all of the pertinent info ( traffic lights, pedestrian crossings, identifying curbs, etc). Then, I wait and listen for the traffic directions and cars. These skills are necessary whether I use a cane or guide dog. I listen for what seems like a long time to be certain that it is safe to cross. Jesse is with me and confirms that I have chosen a good time to cross. "Gardenia, forward", she moves through the street and leads me to the up-curb. We repeat this training at other intersections.
My lack of smooth coordination is obvious at the right and left turns with Gardenia. When I focus on proper foot placement, I usually have my hands too high or move too slow. The movement of the hands, feet, and voice command should be fluid.
After lunch, Jesse switches Gardenia to a smaller harness. We do the same route in the afternoon that we did in the morning. On the afternoon route, traffic is considerably heavier.
We arrive back in Yorktown Heights at 4 PM. Time to feed, water, park and pee our dogs.
By the time this is done, it is time for our dinner. After dinner, another lecture period and a review of tomorrow's activities. I quickly run down to the computer room to help W email his wife and check his messages. W has bilateral hearing aids and is blind due to Usher's Syndrome. His guide dog, Lyle, and Gardenia sit at our feet when we work in the computer room. I turn the speaker up on the computer so that W can hear his messages. Lyle and Gardenia snooze and emit funny snoring noises.
Then, half of our class received a lesson on grooming ( for the dogs, not us!). We received new brushes and combs, and do a grooming session under direct supervision. Most of our guide dogs fall asleep and become lobby lizards ( the lesson was in the lobby). We are now obstructing foot traffic and we wake our dogs and report outside at our designated spots for the 7:30 PM park and pee.
A volunteer arrives to take requests for small purchases that student's have. I order 2 dozen Dunkin donuts. She returns about 2 hours later with everyone's purchases and change.
The donuts are placed strategically in the coffee room where the dogs cannot investigate them!
I wash two loads of laundry. The dog food is kept in the laundry room. I learn how to quickly toss the laundry from the washer to the dryer before Gardenia discovers the large barrel of dog food.
The washer and dryer are brailed, which make it easy to use. The coffee machine is also brailed, and very easy to operate.
Dogs and students are tired. We wait for the last scheduled park and pee, and then everyone will go to bed.
Entry Four - Sunday, March 5th
The morning started with, the usual roll call outside at 0600- park, pee, feed, water, park, pee. The routine works well and gets everyone hopping early in the morning to take care of their guide dogs. One rule that is particularly effective here is that no student can start jangling the food bowls until all of the dogs have been observed outside by an instructor. The idea is that once the dog hears the bowls and food distribution, he/she will be distracted from "getting busy" outside. After all of the dogs have gotten busy, the students proceed to the feed room with their dog bowls.
As with most Labs, her meal is consumed in a matter of seconds. Gardenia drinks a small amount of water after her meals. She drinks most of her water at the 11AM water break.
One of the nicest features here at GEB are the meals. The dietician, Marie, always makes certain to tailor each student's meals to their special needs. Our class has a lot of special requests- no salt, low salt, antidiabetic diets, etc. For each day, we are given several choices for our meals. We all agree that it is nice to not be restricted to one menu only. I like the chef salad, and have been getting it for lunch everyday.
Before breakfast, we each do our obedience exercises with an instructor individually. After breakfast, we receive a lecture regarding the morning exercise for our guide dogs for today. I am scheduled first. Julie (instructor) brings a box to my room containing a long canvas leash ( 20 ft or so), and some sturdy approved toys for the guide dogs. Gardenia was quite animated and lively while on the long leash play. Julie supervised to be sure that there was no leaping or jumping that could injure Gardenia. This is the first time that I have experienced this part of Gardenia's personality. She is a very loving but serious minded guide.
After lunch, we have another supervised grooming of our guide dogs. Gardenia seems to love the comb and brush.
I spend some time outside while the sun is up. It was only slightly cold and the snow from the major snowstorm on Thursday is melting. JC and I and W take some digital photos while there is still snow outside. The dogs seems to know it is Sunday. They rest on the sidewalk while we take turns trying to figure out what we are really photographing. It is so very funny between all of us- how can two or three blind people be using a digital camera. Several photos have to be deleted because they are completely unrecognizable to us. In one photo, I thought I was photographing JC and his dog; however, it is discovered that I actually photographed Gardenia's backside! We laugh at these mistakes.
After dinner, I have a one hour practice session with Jesse(instructor) on Juno work.
Tomorrow, we will start extending our working routes and add more intersections to the route we learned on Saturday.
Entry Five - Tuesday, March 7
It has been a few days since my last entry. On Monday, we started with the usual routine at 0600. If you have followed my other journal entries, you know that this is the first function of the day- park, pee, feed, water, park, pee. It does not take nearly as long as it sounds. The dorm wing has outside exit doors for every dorm room, which we all agree is very convenient for us to take the dog directly outside for their scheduled park and pees. After breakfast, we take our guide dogs back to our rooms and grab our coats and backpacks. We place the work harness on our guides, but we do not use the harness handle until we start instruction with a teacher.
If you have ever traveled with a few dogs in a car you know that it can be anything but relaxing. In the vans that we travel in to our routes, we have 4-5 dogs per van with their student. The only noise in the van is the students! The dogs find a spot under our feet and fall asleep. On the trip back to Yorktown Heights in the afternoon, us old students fall asleep as quick as the dogs do.
On Monday (yesterday) we added some new suggestions and concepts for our work with the guide dogs. We are clearly building on the basics of what we were taught last week. Not every guide dog uses or needs the extra suggestive commands.
On Monday's route, as my instructor Jesse was close behind me giving feedback during my work, a male pedestrian must have been following or passing us. I was intently concentrating on Gardenia and Jesse's voice as we were approaching a down curb. The pedestrian said to Jesse, "Are you talking to her or the dog?" His unexpected comment was funny but it broke my concentration. I am sure he did not realize that I was in training.
After dinner last night, a volunteer photographed each of us with our guide dog. She will be returning later this week to do a brief interview so that she can write a bio for the GEB website.
I also did a short session of long leash play with Gardenia in our room. She loves it!! This is the very best way to unwind for both of us. She becomes a labby puppy when the leather working leash comes off and the long canvas leash is attached to her collar. She really enjoys the Kong toy. I do this playtime around 7:10 PM because we have a park and pee scheduled at 7:30 PM. Once this is done, I groomed her in the grooming room. I catch up with W and help him send email and photos to his wife and sister.
On Tuesday, today, we had lecture in the morning after breakfast. We work again all day in White Plains. My afternoon route went very well. The afternoon has heavy traffic and a lot of noise and people on the streets and sidewalks. I like it because it simulates Baltimore and Washington so well. In one area that Gardenia was guiding me through, there were a lot of grates in the sidewalk and cars parked in the pedestrian pathway. She guided me around every obstacle and did not run me into any objects. She found the down curbs and up curbs. After the final route of the day, I believe we are improving everyday. Jesse made another harness adjustment today by removing the noisy rings that attach the handle to the harness. The small adjustment has really improved the communication between my hand and the harness. Gardenia is picking up a consistent speed and I am following her better.
Today, our class decided that we want W. to represent us and speak at our graduation. He demonstrates such a consistent and outstanding attitude despite his disabilities. Although he is totally blind and wears bilateral hearing aides, he is quite cheerful and funny. W never complains and he meshes so well with his chosen guide dog, Lyle.
In the mornings, we have started doing our obedience exercises in pairs. The dogs know the routine, and are very patient while we humans figure out what to say next!
Tonight is very cold here in New York, it is to drop to 20 degrees. Even our student from Canada thinks it is cold! Although Gardenia gets along well with all of the guide dogs in the class, she seems to enjoy stretching out with Gilroy. I am strong suspicious that they are siblings. JC is paired with Gilroy, and they seem like an easygoing, pleasant pair with a nice disposition for returning to JC’s life in Texas. Very funny episode tonight at dinner. All of the dogs were napping at our feet and under the tables while the students were finishing dinner. An unexpected loud entrance into the dining hall by a person caused Gilroy to leap to his large feet and emit one deep bark. All of the sleeping guide dogs leaped to attention to alert us to this breach of security!
All of the student's are wondering if their puppy raisers will come to graduation. We wonder what part of the country our guide dogs grew up in; on the water, in the mountains, etc. We should hear more about those details next week. For now, it seems like a lifetime away.
Entry Six - Friday, March 10
Up until today, we have trained in White Plains all day. Wednesday was an emotional day. Wednesday started out like any other training day with our guide dogs. One of my classmates, S, who traveled with W and I from the airport to Yorktown Heights, had to make a change in guide dogs. She was weeping with such sadness. What a nauseous and helpless feeling we felt when we sat in the lounge in White Plains listening to her. It could have happened to any one of us. We all realize how, through no fault of any person or dog, a team must separate for their own safety. One of the most important benefits to having intense instruction under direction supervision of experienced trainers is that they can recognize and intervene rapidly. We are a small class of students, and we all extended support to her in her transition to a new guide dog.
In the afternoon on Wednesday, I did my route "solo". Not as independent as it sounds! Luckily, my trainer trails closely but does not intervene unless I make bad decisions. I was always good with orientation, probably from years of reading ADC maps. I have some clear weaknesses in my work, but my strengths are orientation and crossing traffic intersections. On my first solo route, I smell the best restaurant in town, and I know that this is the corner in which I cross the street, then turn right and cross the street again. I also remember that this is a short cycled intersection, meaning that I do not have the right of way for a long time. If I hesitate or am not sure that it is my turn to cross, then I have to wait for the next traffic cycle. Gardenia and I don't mind waiting because it smells so good with the steak restaurant on the corner!
When we return to Yorktown Heights to our dorms later on Wednesday, S has already been paired with a new guide dog, a yellow lab female. That evening, we take our dogs upstairs to the formal living room in the entrance to Guiding Eyes for the Blind. There is a large TV in the room. S wants to watch American Idol, but I do not know how to turn the TV on! I do not usually listen to the TV. We find four remote controls and she works with each one to determine which one operates the TV. We settle in and do not watch any TV, but spend some quiet time with our guide dogs. I asked her if she remembered her cell phone, and she replied that she did. Then, she put the remote control to her ear and realized that it was not her cell phone! We laugh because she had gotten lost in our building earlier in the week.
On Thursday, I worked with a supervisor, Melinda, for my morning route. We take a totally different and longer route than I have previously done. I admit I was a little nervous at first. Whenever a manager or supervisor works with us or makes an appearance, the first thing that comes to mind is, "What's wrong?"
Melinda helped me make a few necessary purchases at the local Duane Reed, which is like a CVS. The training was a great experience and I feel confident in doing the longer routes. I also discover that Melinda has a similar sense of humor and that her serious demeanor is a reflection of her responsibility and not her personality. She did not have to take me on the route which covered the pharmacy store, but she did because she knows that I needed to pick up a few items.
After lunch, we do a doubles route of W and I with trainers Julie and Jesse. This was a new experience for me. Basically, we take turns in leading the route, and take turns in leading the crossing through a traffic intersection. Each of our trainers stops us when we need to be corrected. I like working this way. The sidewalks are very busy and have a lot of obstructions.
On Thursday, I had the funniest conversation with W. During our ride from the airport to GEB on the first day of school, I was in the van with S. and W. and the two GEB employees who picked us up. We all took turns introducing ourselves. I could not see that W wore hearing aides. S and W both tell me that they are repeat guide dog users. I leaned over to W. and said that ," I guess that I am the rookie of the class!" W. said," What! You are a wookie?" " No, I am a rookie! You know, a newcomer..." He said," A wookie, like from Star Wars!" "Never mind..." I said.
So, yesterday, while we were grooming our dogs like we do after they eat at 4PM, W. turns to me and said, "Cecilia, on my way here from the airport, I sat next to a wookie, and I haven't seen her since!" I burst into laughter and said, "W. I AM the wookie, I mean rookie!" The whole communication cycle is pretty comical sometimes.
We are not able to email W's family on Thursday because the tech lab is out of service due to some construction projects in the building. When the tech lab is back in service, we will all be using it to email our families and catch up on the news and weather.
Today, which is Friday, we had a lecture after breakfast about counter conditioning. We do a practice session together as a group. We also had a group obedience exercise today, rather than one dog at a time. Afterwards, we go to a local mall to train on elevators, stairs, walking indoors, and escalators. We are rewarded with lunch in the food court. We return to our dorms to clean up for our formal photos that will be used for our identification cards. We take individual photos, guide dog photos, special request photos, and group shots. The group reached a point of diminishing returns at just the time the photographer was finished! We retreat to the dorms to meet with the person who takes our photo orders. W and I go to groom the dogs. Gardenia and I do long leash play in our room.
After dinner, we have night evolutions tonight (aka night training) in a town we have not visited before. I am told that there is a Starbucks where we will stage when we are not working our dogs. I am already thinking about a caramelized apple cider!
Tomorrow, one of our ACTION students will depart to return home to Canada with her new guide dog. She will continue her training there.
Although I am busy, I am still very homesick. I will be in training here for two more weeks from tomorrow. Right now, that seems like a century away!
Entry Seven - Friday, March 10
We have just returned from Mount Kisco, where we did the night training. Prior to leaving the GEB campus, we are advised of the order in which we will work and with which instructors (for this route). We park near a library, disembark the van, and Jesse works with me. I pick up Gardenia's harness and give her the command, "Gardenia, forward" with my right hand moving in a forward motion. She immediately begins to walk and Jesse gives me instructions to go to the curb as the block ends. We cross through an intersection that is a wee bit complicated with pedestrian medians separating the different directions of the traffic. Several lanes from various directions travel through this intersection. Although it is controlled by a traffic light, I need a little help in determining a safe time to cross. In the pedestrian median, there is no up-curb to identify as it is completely flush with the streets.
We continue on down a few long blocks. Gardenia and I fall into a groove that allows me be a pedestrian just like sighted people! We pass storefronts, banks, bars, other pedestrians, etc. I start to wonder if Jesse is still with me. She has allowed me to take over my decision making for this section of our route. " Jesse, are you still there?" I said aloud. "Yes! I'm still here," she laughs with me. She then advised me that I was coming upon a flower shop that has several outdoor displays of fresh cut flowers on my left side. I anticipate that Gardenia will demonstrate some distraction or pull to the left. She sails past the flowers and does not even turn her head or drop to sniff! I give her generous verbal praise. Jesse tells me that whenever I give Gardenia verbal praise while we are working, that Gardenia's tail swings back and forth. Before I realize it, we have passed the Starbucks where we are to meet the other students. Jesse tells me that I have gone too far. " Wait", I said to Gardenia. She stops. I have to make a sharp left turn and instruct her, " To the door". Gardenia takes me to the entrance of Starbucks. I knock on the door handle and praise her for finding the door, and reward her with a tiny dog treat that is used here. We enter Starbucks and get a Caramelized Apple Cider. Already, several of my classmates are there and Starbucks is looking like the doggy happy hour! W. with dog Lyle is seated with JC and dog Gilroy. C. is seated with dog Oden. L and dog Portia sit with Gardenia and I.
This is a fun training exercise. Traveling on foot with a guide dog at night feels different than during the day. Yesterday, when we were training in pairs, a male pedestrian behind me saw that I was waiting at the intersection for a safe time to cross. In his opinion, it was a safe time. He asked why I was not crossing, and wanted to know how the dog would know when to cross. I wanted to smile and say, " Well, of course, the dog can read the walk and don't walk signs!" Jesse was very pleasant and explained to him that I was listening for the traffic pattern for a safe time and that the dog would guide after I gave the command to move forward. I guess he was satisfied with the answer, but tired of waiting for me to move out of his way! He simply walked around us crossed the street .
Today was unseasonably warm for this time of year. The weather for our night walk was mild, and could not have been better. Tomorrow, we will be doing country travel. We will be working our guide dogs on streets and paths that do not have sidewalks or designated pedestrian areas.
The kitchen staff surprised us tonight with a giant birthday cake for JC! We did not know it was his birthday today. We sing happy birthday, and the dogs sleep through the whole episode.
Entry Eight Saturday, March 11
After breakfast this morning, we have a few lectures and then do some group exercises. We receive a lesson on country walks, like in areas that do not have sidewalks or pedestrian friendly walkways. A lot of my classmates live and work in communities where pedestrians share the road with the cars. We are going to do two training/working walks today on streets without sidewalks near the Yorktown Heights campus. The following lecture was additional training in counter conditioning. We also got a lesson on the new skill for the day: poopy scooping ! Plastic bags are distributed and it is now our official duty to pick up after our guide dogs. Afterwards, we did a group obedience training session. We finished up with a long session of distractions and counter conditioning with a dog in training as the realistic distraction. "Lenny" a large male black lab was brought to the room and he wiggled and greeted and our job was to reward our guide dog for not responding to Lenny. Lenny was irresistible and most of our guides wiggled right back once or twice. For the most part, the dogs responded well to our direction to sit. The session finished around 10 AM and we headed to our dorm rooms to get ready for the first session of country walks.
My first country walk was on a street near our campus. The morning walk is fairly quiet. I learn how to check where the shore of the road is. We walk on the left side of the road against oncoming traffic so that drivers can see us. If we hear a vehicle , we say "wait", and give the "left" command. We turn left with our guide dog and the dog takes us to the side or shore line of the street. The dog stops and we do a foot check to ensure we are properly located, and give verbal praise. We wait for the vehicle to pass, and then give the "right" command and continue the walk. Sounds easy enough, right? In theory, yes. In practice, distractions and complications like other dogs, kids, cars parked halfway into the street, etc. make the trip realistic. Fortunately, the morning walk was a good primer. The afternoon walk on the same route was alot more active. We encountered several dogs, running vehicles loading and unloading in the road, laughing little children, etc.
Sometimes, we would start drifting to the right. I try to sense the change in direction, but it is so subtle. Jesse lets me make decisions about corrections, unless I am unaware of an oncoming vehicle. This afternoon was good training. I do not normally walk in areas without sidewalks for the very reason that I feel unsafe. Jesse does some training with me about land marking.
The weather today continues to be lovely. It is perfect weather for outdoor work. We have also begun working our dogs in the building. Working our dogs means using the harness, and the dog is guiding us. Up to this point, we have been "healing" our dogs in the building. This meant that we were using the leather working leash, but not the harness , and we were leading.
We are teaching the guide dogs where our dorm room doors are. Gardenia is very good about finding the doors on our training walks. "To the door" is the command to find the door. At the mall yesterday, she worked through two sets of double doors to exit the mall. She chose the best doors to use, as she had four sets of doors to choose from.
She is tired and ready to sleep for the night. I will have to wake her for the 7:30 park and pee.
I was helping W. today with his graduation speech. The tech lab is back in service(yay!). W. dictates what he wants to say, I type it into the computer using JAWS. JAWS reads it back to us so that it can be edited. I save it to the computer so that we can finish it tomorrow. The speech needs to be printed and turned in by Monday so that it can be reviewed.
My classmates and I often have discussions that we would not normally have with our sighted friends. Most of my classmates are "mature" in age (like me!) and lost their vision later in life. Some lost their vision due to Retinitis Pigmentosa, Macular Degeneration, Usher's, tumor's, and other progressive eye diseases. Among the memories we describe, we all remember vividly the day we turned in our driver's license. Another memorable and sad day in our lives in the day we sold our vehicles, knowing that it was the last tangible object of our former independence in the sighted life.
JC and L. both describe with perfect visual memory what their vehicles looked like, the color, the interior, make, model, and even how many miles were on it! In quiet moments in the van, while traveling to the training locations, we even talk about the day we were given the diagnosis of our impending blindness. Most of us agree that we were in denial for a long time. These discussions are bonding for us. The topics we talk about to each other would make our sighted friends uncomfortable. The topics would probably make us uncomfortable, too. Amongst ourselves, we can joke about losing our sight, bumping into furniture, getting lost in the building, etc.
A few days ago, a car pulled out in front of our moving van and the driver had to hit the brakes suddenly. We yelled to our driver, " Is he blind?!!! Can't you see us?!!!" We got a good laugh and relieved some tension. Yesterday, on the way to Mount Kisco, Gardenia lays under my feet in the van. When we arrive in Mount Kisco, I discover that Portia is also at my feet and that I have been petting her by mistake.
The upcoming week is reportedly a busy training week. Just hearing the schedule is making my head swim. We even go to Manhattan on Thursday. I will need the experience on the subway so that I can travel on the Metro back home.
A volunteer is coming tonight to shop for us, so I must run to put in an order for 2 dozen Dunkin donuts.
Entry Nine Sunday, March 12
After breakfast, we received a brief training lecture. The schedule for the upcoming week is also reviewed. Tomorrow, we have training routes in White Plains and vet check ups and a vet lecture. Tuesday we do platform work for train and subway travel. Thursday we go to New York City. These are just the highlights! We had a group obedience training exercise. The grand finale was the counter conditioning. We were expecting Julie to appear with Lenny to distract our dogs. However, Julie appeared with samples of food from the school kitchen. She approaches the dogs and we reward the dog for not responding to her. If we are fortunate enough to survive this exercise, we are excused and can proceed to our dorm rooms. The trick is that once we leave the cafeteria, two small plates of food are strategically placed on the floor in route to the stairway. We must successfully navigate the tempting distraction. Everyone survives! We breathe easily once we get into the dorm wing and away from the food temptations.
Gardenia is scheduled for long leash play early in the day. I retrieve the box containing the leash and toys. She is wiggly and shakes with joy when she sees me carrying the box. I recall that on the first day that we did the long leash session, my instructor, Julie, took the box from me and said," Let me carry that box. This is like carrying a bowl of food around the dogs." I had no idea what she meant. One week later, I know exactly what she meant. When a dog sees the box with the long leash and toys, it is playtime! The dog is so delighted, that they can barely contain their joy.
Once we are done playing, I return the box to the credenza in the lobby. This is sort of like the "command center" . All of the important stuff is at the credenza in the lobby. Poopy bags, schedules, long leash toys, loudspeaker, dog treats, etc. are at the command center. When waiting to depart in the morning, we stage in the lobby and wait for the vans. The center of activity is located in this shrunken meeting area.
W. and I take our guide dogs to the grooming area, aka the soda machine. A wide bench sits next to the soda machine. It is the designated grooming hallway. This morning, we are to tape the introductions of our guide dogs for the graduation video. We want our brush our dogs before we sit for our videotaping. Each student will tape a brief introduction that states their name, the dog's name, and their hometown.
Julie is setting the video camera up and working on lighting and seating in the living room area of the entrance to the school. W. does his intro first. He speaks very clearly and does not seem nervous. He introduces his guide dog, Lyle. I go next.
" Hello, my name is Cecilia Warren. This is my first guiding eyes dog, Geranium. We will return to Crofton, Maryland." I thought I sailed through it with ease. Julie, W. and JC are giggling at me. In her southern drawl, Julie said, " Cecilia, that was real good. Everything was fine, except that you called your dog by the wrong name! Her name is not Geranium..." We all burst into laughter. How did I do that? Why would I call her Geranium? We retape the segment and I get the name correct on the next try. I think that they should save the funny videos for he out-takes.
After we finish with the videotaping, I meet with W. in the computer room. We finish his speech for graduation. We listen to it on JAWS. We edit. We listen again. The process continues. The speech is actually quite brief, and to the point. I print off a few copies and turn them into Julie. She reads the speech into W's tape recorder so that he can listen to it and practice it. W. does not read Braille and he will need to memorize the speech.
We had a huge lunch of lasagna and garlic bread. Around 2:30, a volunteer named Chris, arrives to take S. and I to do some necessary shopping. We have to purchase gifts for our instructors. Because this week is a high intensity training week, I want to get these tasks completed and off of my to-do list. We keep it simple by purchasing gift cards for our teachers. We have to return to school by 4 PM for park and pee and water and feed. I was feeling some anxiety about leaving Gardenia on a tie-down in our room. I know she does not bark or get upset. But 1 hour seemed like 10 hours. Chris is very funny and easy to shop with. She does not get frazzled with S. and I. We had to take our white canes. We decide to go sighted guide in the Mall because it is crowded and the canes whack people and displays. Inside the mall, we proceed to the second floor to the customer service counter. After I make the purchases, we leave the mall through a Macy's store. We are looking for an escalator, and Chris is guiding us on each arm. She begins to pull us a little closer. It gets very quiet. I ask if we are in the breakables- "Are we in glassware?!" I ask loudly. Chris is getting a clear picture that S. and I are thinking the same thought: "Fine china, glassware, crystal. We have to get out of here before we break something!"
The three of us enjoy a lot of laughs about our appearance to others. Chris is quite a saint about the whole episode today. She promises that she will come back to take us shopping again. We wished we could have stayed longer to shop for clothes. Chris is a savvy and humorous lady, and she can easily pick out what we like and describe the fabrics and sizes to us.
The volunteers that we have encountered at GEB are kind and generous people. One particular gentleman comes to the White Plains lounge once a week to help us with lunch. He is a senior citizen with a lot of spunk and wisecracks. His name is Larry. I call him Larry Leisure of the Lounge. We only know him from the lounge. The name seems to fit him.
I have just finished taking Gardenia out for the last scheduled park and pee for the night. Time to get some rest.
Entry Ten Monday, March 13
I am starting this journal entry at 10:40 PM, so it will be brief. Tomorrow, we are scheduled for training called "traffic checks". The veterans of the class collectively voice, " ooohs" and "ahhhhs" whenever an instructor mentions the words "traffic checks". I'll let you know what they are when I find out. I am starting to associate the words "traffic checks" with the impending panic I feel when my kids mention "science fair projects". I don’t really understand what I have to do but I know that it will require some type of painful learning experience!
Today, after obedience exercises, we did another long session of counter conditioning. The distraction of the day was another large wiggly male Labrador. Everyone's guide dogs are getting so good at refusing distraction!
In White Plains, I did a long route with Jesse. We trained along some bustling streets and crossed a lot of intersections. Gardenia and I seemed to be making errors that we were not making on Friday. Jesse helped me rework mistakes. Re-working a command or a traffic crossing is critical to improvement. Although the re-working part can be time consuming, Jesse did not make me feel rushed or embarrassed. In one intersection, the pedestrian and vehicle traffic was quite dense. I can feel the subtle drifting to the right into traffic. Usually, my shoulders are not squared to the destination. Once I reach the destination of the up-curb, I gently place the harness handle down and Jesse does sighted guide for me and I heal Gardenia. Jesse takes me back to the original corner of the intersection and Gardenia and I repeat the whole operation correctly.
Back in the lounge at White Plains, my classmates casually discuss how we felt about our morning routes. I have noticed that we are interested in each other's progress. It is not driven by a competitive drive, though, it is a matter of extending some kind words on the days that don't go as well as we had hoped. It is refreshing to be with a group of students that as so supportive to each other. As a rookie, I don't know how the other classes mesh. In the van on the return trip to Yorktown Heights, the veteran guide dog users reveal that they like this class of "older" students. I guess we have the benefit of life experience to keep us humble!
For the students who had a working guide dog that passed away unexpectedly, these are emotional days. The instructors and staff here at GEB do not ignore this element of training for the repeat students. Sometimes, I just have to walk away from the group, because when one student starts grieving, my tears will start rolling. I just cant even maintain my composure when the talk turns to the beloved guide dogs that have passed away.
I am falling asleep upright in my chair...I will follow up tomorrow!
Entry Eleven Tuesday, March 14
This week is truly the "deal breaker". We are learning so many important techniques and putting them into practice during our training routes. Yesterday, after our training routes, we returned to Yorktown Heights a little early to participate in the scheduled vet physicals. Gardenia is towards the end of the group, and Julie does sighted guide for me while I heal Gardenia over to the vet building. Wow! What an incredibly busy place. The vet who examines Gardenia is Dr. Beth. Dr. Beth introduces herself and I feel nervous about the visit. Why? I don't know! My vet at home is a house call vet. He has a swank vet surgery center, but usually comes to my home. My vet at home grew up on Long Island, and when I hear Dr. Sandler speak, I hear the same inflections and dialect. Dr. Sandler is the other attending veterinarian here at GEB.
I ask Julie to stay with me through the physical. Gardenia does well and receives a Lyme vaccination. I feel like I am at the pediatrician's office! I am grateful that is over quickly. A funny note here. You may recall that when I recorded the video of Gardenia's introduction on Sunday that I called her Geranium. Everyone got a good laugh and we retape the segment with Gardenia's correct name. Well, when Julie put Gardenia up on the vet table, she said ," Dr B, this is Geranium". All of the techs giggled and everyone seemed to know of the blooper! I suspect that the video may reappear sometime in the future!
The whole class attends a lecture given by Dr. Sandler about veterinary issues and our guide dogs. He answers a lot of questions. More importantly, he dispels a lot of myths and urban legends about caring for our dogs! His explanations are clear and he does not drift into any deep scientific discussions that we won't understand. He covers all the basics: flea and tick prevention, heartworm prophylactics, GI disruptions, etc.
Marge the volunteer arrived around 6 PM on Monday evening to retake photos of the black labs. She is a retired school teacher who does a brief bio of each student for the GEB webpage. She reads the bio to us that she has prepared based on our interviews. When she is finished, she asked if we approve of the bio. How could we not approve?! Marge makes us sound like a million dollars! She has such an impressive way with the written language. I gave such a boring interview to her, and I regret not having anything snappy to say! When I am informed that I have to retake the photo of Gardenia and I, I rush to clean up and put some make-up on.
Afterwards, we have a presentation with another volunteer, Joan, who presents the students with the souvenirs available for purchase. I met Joan last week. Her memory is fabulous, and she brings two bags of unsalted pretzels for me! Joan is very patient with our group. She is an encouraging person. Like I mentioned yesterday, the volunteers here are splendid!
I know that everyone is waiting to hear about the traffic checks. What can I say? Traffic checks are training exercises intended to simulate the reality of street travel with a guide dog. A traffic check is controlled in that an instructor is driving the vehicle involved. The traffic check can be described as a "near hit" or "near miss" depending on how optimistic you are!
Jesse worked with Gardenia and I on this training exercise. I could not conceal my apprehension as we started on our route. I did not know what was to occur, but the class veterans provided so many traffic check horror stories that I felt like I would "throw-up" on command.
The first traffic check occurred as we were crossing a residential intersection. The neighborhood was a gentrified area with little activity. As we were crossing the street, the school van crossed in our path of travel and Gardenia immediately stopped walking. After the van passed, she moved quickly to the up-curb. I lavished her with praise. I asked if the van carried a defibrillator. I thought my heart had stopped! That was close call number one. The next traffic check must have been traumatic, because I cannot even remember it! The final traffic check was the most dramatic. Gardenia was working and we began to cross a driveway. Suddenly, she went into reverse so fast that I began tripping backwards. I backed into Jesse. I had no idea that the van was pulling out of the driveway. If I had been using a white cane, I would have been a hood ornament! This training exercise is quite a sobering experience. The most valuable lesson I learned is to trust the dog. I must note that this traffic check training exercise is done is a controlled manner using a senior instructor driving the van, and one on one instruction with the guide dog/blind person team. While it feels destabilizing, it is a fair reflection of the hazards that we must be aware of in daily living with a guide dog. I am very pleased with Gardenia's response to the traffic checks.
In the afternoon, I did a long training walk with Melinda. Gardenia seemed a wee bit concerned when crossing the first two intersections. I did not understand what was causing Gardenia's caution. Melinda explained that the traffic checks can be stressful for the dog and Gardenia is being cautious. Melinda tells me to give Gardenia some extra physical praise and loving. It works well, and Gardenia is sailing through people and intersections with no trouble
Entry Twelve Wednesday, March 15
Tomorrow is the big day! We go into New York City with our guide dogs to try the real deal of urban public transportation. Public transportation has varying degrees of success, but it is a vital component of independence for most blind people.
I must detail the highlights of today's training. After our usual routine of park, pee, water, feed, park, pee at 0600 hours today, we had breakfast and obedience training. The counter conditioning training, which follows immediately after obedience training, used food as the distraction. Once we completed the training on food counter conditioning, the instructors emerged with ball toys as a primary distraction. No fair!!! Everyone knows that Labradors love tennis balls! Every guide dog had a few quivering moments with the bouncing balls, but it was an overall success. Afterwards, we grab our coats and backpacks, and board the vans to White Plains. We have 5 teams plus two instructors on this van. It is a cozy fit. We arrive at a train station in White Plains for platform training. My classmates live and work in communities less dense than my home area. They do not expect to utilize trains and subways on a frequent basis. I use the Metro system subway in Washington DC quite often. I also use the light rail in Baltimore. After much discussion, it appears that I will use a rail system more frequently than my classmates.
Melinda and Jesse and Lori have a synchronized system to take each of us from the parking lot to the "staging area". I work Gardenia from the van to the staging area. Not only is the train station a busy place, but Gardenia and I get to put several skills together in a real-life environment. I pick up her harness, "Gardenia, forward" and she glides through automatic opening doors. The stairs and escalator are side by side in this station. She leads me to the base of the escalator. I have predetermined that I will not ride escalators with her, so I say "To the stairs". She moves to the right and stops at the base of the stairs. I work her to the top of the stairs, which is about two stories. Melinda takes me sighted guide to the chairs on deck.
An announcement is made stating that the trains are about 30 minutes late due to mechanical difficulties. The train platforms get crowded quickly. Melinda debriefs the group on the training exercises we will complete. She asks who wants to go first. Nobody responds in 10 seconds, so I raise my hand and volunteer to go first.
Melinda follows Gardenia and I on the platform. She issues instructions to me as needed. This is our first experience on the platforms and I know she will be close by. We go through a series of commands on the platform. This station has both single platforms and double edged platforms. The edge of the platforms have an 18 inch strip of raised tactile circles to help me identify that I am at the edge of the platform.
The moment of truth arrives. This is another deal breaking moment. The edge of the train platform drops to the train rails. I can only pray that this exercise goes exactly like my instructors have said it should. Although it is cold and windy, I can feel my skin is diaphoretic. Melinda instructs me to give the command. "Gardenia, forward." Gardenia does not budge, not even an inch. A few train station employees are now on deck observing this piece of my history. I get the impression that while they appreciate my need for training, they are concerned that I might land in the tracks! Again I say "Gardenia, forward". Gardenia turns a hard right to block my passage! She proceeds to guide me to the middle of the center platform. She is no nonsense and moves briskly.
"To the door". A train employee is making a lot of noise trying to tell me where the door is. Melinda kindly tells him to pipe down and let the dog do her work. Gardenia guides me to the next set of doors, which are not obstructed by anyone. As soon as we get indoors, I drop to my knees and give her the "lovin train" (lots of hugs and kisses and praise).
Back in White Plains for our training route after lunch, I get to work a doubles with W. and his guide dog, Lyle. Jesse is supervising us. Jesse has each of us take turns in making decisions on when to cross intersections. We are supposed to maintain verbal communication with each other. Between the heavy winds and W.'s hearing aides, I am practically shouting to him!
The route was quite successful. As we wait at our final traffic light, I am listening for the flow of traffic. It is my turn to lead across the road. W. is standing next to me. Suddenly, he says loudly, " I told you to knock that off!" I turned to him and said, " Don't talk to me that way!" Jesse laughs and informs me that W. was talking to Lyle, who was trying to be romantic with Gardenia. I had no idea!
Looking forward to training in the city!
Entry Thirteen Thursday, March 16
Today was our big field trip to Manhattan. Lori drove my group in the van. We staged at an Irish Pub (Kansales). The restaurant is bustling, but the manager saved plenty of room for us! The food was great. The dogs slept under the tables. I must summarize my first problem solving dilemma of the day. Prior to embarking on the training route, I took Gardenia with me to the Ladies restroom. I went into the stall and could not fit Gardenia in with me! I am not a large person, and Gardenia is the tiniest dog in my class. Gardenia tried to enter head first. Then she tried to back in. I tried to turn her sideways, to no avail. What a comical scene! The story gets even better. At the end of the day, we were in Grand Central Station. We were waiting to take a train to Croton-Hudson to return to Yorktown Heights. Jesse did sighted guide for me once we were inside the huge restrooms with rows and rows of stalls. Again, Gardenia could not stand and fit in the stall. I close the door. There is barely room for her to sit. She lays down and next thing I know, she had stretched out so that her head is protruding into the stall on my right and her tail and feet are extended into the stall on my left! Much giggling from behind the doors. She does not try to get friendly with anyone, but she needed some space!
From Kansales Pub, Jesse works with Gardenia and I. We work for about 15 blocks, and then board a city bus. We take the bus a short distance and begin walking again. I got a lot of practice with street crossings. The sidewalks are engorged with pedestrians. As a team, we made a few errors. We reworked the errors immediately. Gardenia had a traffic check with a taxi while guiding me across a busy intersection. She did remarkably well! I was glad that I did not know we had a traffic check until it was over! We had several pedestrian checks. Gardenia slowed into a steady pace when the pedestrians became too voluminous to maneuver around.
The busy streets present substantial distractions that she ignores: open air grocery markets, pigeons, dog walkers with several dogs, children in strollers, ground level flower displays, bagged garbage, etc.
We descend several levels into a subway station. At the base of the last set of stairs was a street musician playing what sounded like a violin or some sort of string instrument. Gardenia stops are looks at him. The notes are in a high pitch that make her curious.
We board the subway. No seats are available. Jesse teaches me how to guard Gardenia's tail and feet from being stepped on by commuters. I slide Gardenia, in the sitting position, between by feet. I tuck her tail sideways under her feet. With my right arm. I hold onto the vertical pole with a firm grip. With my left hand, I stroke Gardenia's head and face and tell her quietly what a great job she is doing.
A few stops later, we arrive at Grand Central Station. Jesse knows the landscape of the building. We meet the others from our group in the main hall. We board our train with only seconds to spare before departure. Gardenia and Lyle fall asleep under our feet. The gentle rocking of the train sends me into a light nap. The train trip was over quickly.
The class graduation is only two days away. I will have to continue training here until March 25th. The repeat guide dog users will fly home this coming Sunday. Tomorrow, my class will give our instructors their gifts. We could never properly recognize their efforts, but we have a small gift for each teacher.
Entry Fourteen Saturday, March 18
Today was our official graduation from Guiding Eyes for the Blind. It was an amazing day. First, I want to describe some of the training we did on Friday.
On Friday morning, we received the remainder of the lesson on "going home" with our new guide dogs. We also did group obedience training and the dreaded counter conditioning training. The distraction of the morning was a large German Shepherd puppy belonging to a guest instructor. Each day, the counter conditioning distraction increases in intensity!
We were offered two choices on what training we wished to work on for the morning; grocery stores or shopping mall. L. with dog Portia, JC with dog Gilroy, and I opted to go with Julie to the Jefferson Valley Mall. Julie works each of us individually. I wanted to practice boarding and deboarding the elevator. I also wanted to practice multi level stairs. After JC and I finish our individual work, Julie allows us to go together to practice.
Our first stop was a bookstore to purchase more gift cards. I always loved to read books and newspapers when I had my vision. I thought that gift cards to the bookstore would make sentimental and useful gifts for my instructors, the kitchen and housekeeping staff, and Gardenia's puppy raiser. If you can imagine the humor in seeing two blind people with two guide dogs in a bookstore! We took the comments in a humorous way.
We proceed down a long hallway to Sear's. JC wants to purchase suspenders. Once inside the Sears store, JC takes the lead. The path gets very narrow. We reach a dead end. We are surprised, but not delighted, to hear that we are in the lingerie section. JC mumbles that he will wait to purchase suspenders when he returns to Texas. I suggest we turn around and go to the Cookie Factory Kiosk where we are to meet Julie. It is almost time to return to our campus for lunch. We pick up 2 dozen cookies for everyone ( they said they were ready for a change from donuts).
On Friday afternoon, we receive all of the vet supplies we ordered. We also do a lesson on using the booties on the dog's paws. We each practice placing the booties on our dog, and then healing them down the halls. I can only describe it as trying to wrestle with an alligator! Gardenia eyed me suspiciously, with a "take no prisoners" posture. I was on my hands and knees. I gently tried to pick up one paw, slip the bootie on, secure the Velcro tab on the bootie, and gently place her paw down. By the time I got to the fourth bootie, the first two had been discarded a few feet away! We repeated this routine several times. Finally, all four booties were on at the same time. "Gardenia, heel" and we started moving down the dorm hallway. I could not help laughing, as she walked like a crab plucked from the Chesapeake Bay! Hopefully, we won't need to put the booties in service too often!
Immediately following dinner, we participated in a lesson with our guide dogs. We received hands on instruction from an animal massage therapist on how to properly massage our dogs. By the end of the lesson, every dog was asleep!
We gently coax the dogs awake to take them outside for the 7:30 park and pee. Afterwards, we gather in the coffee room (right now it is more like the coffee table) for some hospitality. Everyone shares funny stories of their time here. We affectionately tease S. about the evening she tried to pour a glass of water for herself at the dinner table. She did not realize that the table is set with the glasses upside down at each place setting. Cold metal pitchers of water are placed at each table. At this stage in blindness, we all know that when we pour a drink we have to stick part of a finger in the glass so we know how full the glass is and when to stop pouring. S. started pouring the cold water at the table, but had forgotten to turn the glass right side up! Water began to spread over the table, off the table, onto the dogs, etc. She realized the error from the great exclamations from her tablemates! Fortunately, the staff here has seen every possible error we can make with food, utensils, glassware and napkins. We are never made to feel embarrassed. This is probably what makes it so easy to share our funny stories with each other.
On Saturday morning, we had group obedience exercises immediately after breakfast. Afterwards, Lori reviewed with us each item in our going home packets. Lori does a great job of helping everyone earmark or paper clip important documents like the accessibility laws for our state.
We had hoped to escape the counter conditioning exercises. We dread the next distraction: cats! We all love cats, but we are concerned about how excited our dogs will become. The two cats live in the kennel building and at the vet hospital, and they are not bothered by dogs. The dogs, however, want to visit the cats and be friendly! I have two cats at home, so I know the drill on what to expect.
We return to our rooms to get ready for graduation. Saturday was full of surprises! A large contingent of puppy raisers from the Bay and Baltimore regions came to witness our graduation. They even brought my daughter! I was so very happy that she came to my graduation! It was truly the best kept secret- I had no idea. I had even called her around 12 Noon on her cell phone. She sounded like she was sleeping! The only sadness was that I could not go home with her. I want to thank everyone who organized the day trip- I know they drove for many hours.
During the graduation, S with dog Cammie sat on my right. C with dog Odin sat on left. On the other end was W. with dog Lyle. W. gave the brief graduation speech that we had worked on. My classmates are I were truly moved to hear him speak. I do not know how the audience reacted, but I hope that they were moved to tears like we were.
After a few other speakers, the ceremony was finished. We were grateful that we could remove the dog's harness so that they could greet the families and puppy raisers. I had not realized that I had so many visitors in the audience! I also met the members of the staff here at GEB who were involved with Gardenia prior to my arrival.
My classmates and I find various spots and nooks in the building to meet with our guests and puppy raising families. Formal photographs are taken. My daughter took a suitcase home with her so that I have one less heavy bag to take to the airport next weekend. I have advised her that if anyone tries to unzip the bag, they should wear eye protection as it is stuffed like a "jack- in- the- box". I get to meet with the Bay and Baltimore region puppy raisers only briefly, because they have to drive several hours to return to Maryland. They are all so very kind and encouraging. It seems like they just got here! I try not to cry when I hug my daughter goodbye.
Gardenia and I returned to the dining room. Gardenia's puppy raiser has invited me to dinner ( maybe, I invited myself?!). The family is staying overnight at a nearby hotel. We go to Applebee's and share a lot of great stories about Gardenia. The atmosphere is relaxed, and we return to Yorktown Heights for park and pee time. They have been reading my training journals online. I am glad that I maintained the journals. Originally, I thought the journals would keep my family up to date on what I was doing in training (my sons' suspected I had taken a four week vacation!). The feedback and comments that I have received on the training journals have been overwhelmingly positive.
I invite Gardenia's puppy raiser and her family back to my dorm room so that they can see Gardenia and say "so long for now." Saying goodbye seems final and inflexible. They sit down and give Gardenia the "lovin train"
( praise and affection). I promise to share Gardenia's endeavors with them. Usually, this is be a painful moment. As we exchange contact info and play with Gardenia, it seems that goodbye is not an appropriate end to our first meeting. We have a common bond. We are all happy with the outcome. They are raising another puppy already! I think they are comfortable with Gardenia's match to me.
My classmates and I meet in the coffee room for our last evening together. Five students leave early on Sunday morning. One student will leave on Monday.
Entry Fifteen Sunday, March 19
This morning, four of my classmates departed for La Guardia airport at 0700. Lori and Jesse looked like tour directors trying to move a small herd of people, dogs, luggage, etc. to the van to leave on time for the first departing flight. My classmates were certain that we would have to secure the luggage with bungee cords to the top of the van! Guide dog Lyle will live in Maine, Gilroy in Texas, Wally in Illinois, and Cammie in Pennsylvania. Guide dog Odin departed for Pennsylvania by early afternoon. As a group, we have many differences. We are diverse in age, cultures, religions, careers, and interests. We share one unbreakable common bond: we are partners in working guide dog teams.
As we repeat our farewells, a deep silence fills the dorm hallway. L with guide dog Portia is packing for his departure early Monday morning. J with dog Josh is sleeping. I do an extended session of long leash play with Gardenia. I groom her. I do some laundry. The cooking and housekeeping ladies know that I am missing home and family. When they clean my room, sometimes they will sit and visit for a few minutes. Today, Marie cooked one of my favorites for me: pierogies and zucchini sticks.
I attempted to do dental care on Gardenia this morning. It was about as successful as my attempt to put booties on her paws! I approach her with a happy voice and a tiny finger brush. Initially, she would not open her mouth. After her first taste of the toothpaste, however, she starts to lick the brush and toothpaste and I could not do the remainder of her teeth. The toothpaste is a poultry flavor. We will try again tomorrow.
Entry Sixteen Monday, March 20
I just finished the 0600 park. pee, water, feed, park, and pee. As Gardenia and I stepped out of our room we discovered that it is snowing! Not the heavy, cold, blizzard type of snow. Although there is a thin layer of wet snow on the ground, this is not the type of snow that even warrants coffee room discussion with the people who live and work in New York. But for J and I, this is great fun. J is from California. I am from Maryland. Where I come from, this could be characterized as " 2 hour delay snow". This treat is unexpected to me. I must have been "asleep at the wheel" when checking the weather reports!
I heard from some of my classmates last night. It was great to hear their voices and know that they arrived home safely. They all talked about how happy their families were to receive them and their new guide dogs. I can only describe their voices as effused with joy! J and I will be training together with our instructor this week. We are planning on training that would be more difficult to complete with the larger student group. Because it is just two of us as students, we can ask to tailor the training to activities or situations that we commonly encounter. In a larger group, the general training needs of the entire group must be assessed. Now, with just J and I remaining, we are asking for more specific targeting to our needs in daily living. I am sure that we will work well together, and get many opportunities to train.
I must run to breakfast now!
Entry Seventeen T