Thursday, February 28, 2013
Guide Dog Fun Fact....Feb 28, 2013.....
Fun fact: At Guiding Eyes for the Blind (GEB), the second or third day you are there, the people bring the Dog to your room and leave you alone with it so the "new team" can get acquainted and start to bond. Isn't that sooooo sweet??? I just love it. Reminds me of a new mother bonding with her baby.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
February 27, 2013 Almost Guide Dog Time.....
Monday, March 4, Alex embarks on the journey that he has been waiting almost his whole life for----he will be going to get his Guide Dog. He will be flying down to Guiding Eyes for the Blind (GEB) in Yorktown Heights, New York.
Ever since he was little he has wanted a Guide Dog; he would pester me and pester me about getting one when he was just 8 years old: Why do I have to use this stupid cane? Why can't I have a Dog? Nobody else in school/Bangor my age has a cane---I want a Dog. Etc, etc, etc.... The only way his braille/cane teacher, Lori, (Orientation and Mobility instructor)and I could get him to be patient was to explain that in order to have a Dog, you had to be proficient with the cane traveling skills. Eventually that got through to him and came to accept the fact that he would have to wait, but it took a while to get to that point. We also had to drill it into his head that Guide Dog schools wouldn't allow anyone younger than 16 to have one anyway.
Of course, when he turned 16 he was ready to roll with the tangent of wanting one again, so it took some maneuvering to get him to hold off until he graduated high school. By that time he was mature enough to re-think if he wanted one in college or wait until it was more feasible to have one. Of course, we know enough blind people that he was able to see the ups and downs of having a Dog; the care of one versus the ease of the cane; the mobility of The Dog versus the ease of the cane; the companionship of The Dog versus the ease of the cane..... The cane just gets folded up when not needed, hung on a hook when not in use, and doesn't require feeding, vet visits, or bathroom breaks. But The Dog affords greater mobility, a companion, more independence, and love. It definitely wasn't a decision entered into lightly (the mature Alex versus the 8 year old Alex)....but I really feel it's the correct decision for him now.
His second year of college (University of Maine at Farmington) he attempted to get a Dog. He went through the whole, drawn-out process of applying to The Seeing Eye in New Jersey, where a few of our friends had gotten their Dogs. The person/evaluator who came up to conduct the "home" visit (in his dorm and on campus instead of evaluating at the actual home)deemed him not "conducive to having a dog" based on the answers Alex gave him. Alex is not a talker or conversationalist (to put it mildly) so when the guy asked him if he went for walks, Alex said no. Because Alex didn't venture out a lot by himself because he needed the Dog to help him find places. The guy took it to mean that Alex wasn't physical enough, thus meaning that the Dog would never have exercise. I think a good evaluator could/should have fleshed the real answers out; I also think Alex needed to be a lot more forthcoming with good answers. So, that experience kind of put a damper on his desire for a Dog for a while. Once he graduated college, the yearning reared its head again, so he applied to Guiding Eyes for the Blind.....and here we are!!!
This time, though, when the evaluator/home visit guy came out, Alex was ready to answer in full sentences AND let him know that the Dog would be exercised regularly, taken for walks, etc. I also think it helped that Alex was home as opposed to living in the small-ish dorm room so the sweet four-legged baby can be in a real home.
We also know a few people who have gotten their Dogs from GEB. The school pays for his round-trip plane tickets, supplies all meals, and--best of all--gives the Dogs to deserving people.
Alex will be keeping a blog while he is there. I just love when he keeps a blog on things. He's always so much fun to read....in addition to being a fantastic writer. The address for it is http://cane9.wordpress.com Ha ha ha.....get his play on words...? ha He's going from a "cane" to a "canine"....well, I thought it was cute anyway.
Such an exciting time....!!! God bless those puppy-raisers who do so much to get these sweet four-legged angels to this point so people like my precious Alex can have a set of good eyes, which comes bundled with four paws, unconditional love, and companionship.
Ever since he was little he has wanted a Guide Dog; he would pester me and pester me about getting one when he was just 8 years old: Why do I have to use this stupid cane? Why can't I have a Dog? Nobody else in school/Bangor my age has a cane---I want a Dog. Etc, etc, etc.... The only way his braille/cane teacher, Lori, (Orientation and Mobility instructor)and I could get him to be patient was to explain that in order to have a Dog, you had to be proficient with the cane traveling skills. Eventually that got through to him and came to accept the fact that he would have to wait, but it took a while to get to that point. We also had to drill it into his head that Guide Dog schools wouldn't allow anyone younger than 16 to have one anyway.
Of course, when he turned 16 he was ready to roll with the tangent of wanting one again, so it took some maneuvering to get him to hold off until he graduated high school. By that time he was mature enough to re-think if he wanted one in college or wait until it was more feasible to have one. Of course, we know enough blind people that he was able to see the ups and downs of having a Dog; the care of one versus the ease of the cane; the mobility of The Dog versus the ease of the cane; the companionship of The Dog versus the ease of the cane..... The cane just gets folded up when not needed, hung on a hook when not in use, and doesn't require feeding, vet visits, or bathroom breaks. But The Dog affords greater mobility, a companion, more independence, and love. It definitely wasn't a decision entered into lightly (the mature Alex versus the 8 year old Alex)....but I really feel it's the correct decision for him now.
His second year of college (University of Maine at Farmington) he attempted to get a Dog. He went through the whole, drawn-out process of applying to The Seeing Eye in New Jersey, where a few of our friends had gotten their Dogs. The person/evaluator who came up to conduct the "home" visit (in his dorm and on campus instead of evaluating at the actual home)deemed him not "conducive to having a dog" based on the answers Alex gave him. Alex is not a talker or conversationalist (to put it mildly) so when the guy asked him if he went for walks, Alex said no. Because Alex didn't venture out a lot by himself because he needed the Dog to help him find places. The guy took it to mean that Alex wasn't physical enough, thus meaning that the Dog would never have exercise. I think a good evaluator could/should have fleshed the real answers out; I also think Alex needed to be a lot more forthcoming with good answers. So, that experience kind of put a damper on his desire for a Dog for a while. Once he graduated college, the yearning reared its head again, so he applied to Guiding Eyes for the Blind.....and here we are!!!
This time, though, when the evaluator/home visit guy came out, Alex was ready to answer in full sentences AND let him know that the Dog would be exercised regularly, taken for walks, etc. I also think it helped that Alex was home as opposed to living in the small-ish dorm room so the sweet four-legged baby can be in a real home.
We also know a few people who have gotten their Dogs from GEB. The school pays for his round-trip plane tickets, supplies all meals, and--best of all--gives the Dogs to deserving people.
Alex will be keeping a blog while he is there. I just love when he keeps a blog on things. He's always so much fun to read....in addition to being a fantastic writer. The address for it is http://cane9.wordpress.com Ha ha ha.....get his play on words...? ha He's going from a "cane" to a "canine"....well, I thought it was cute anyway.
Such an exciting time....!!! God bless those puppy-raisers who do so much to get these sweet four-legged angels to this point so people like my precious Alex can have a set of good eyes, which comes bundled with four paws, unconditional love, and companionship.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Blizzard of 2013
The Blizzard of 2013 hit us with a vengeance. Almost 2 feet of snow in Bangor; deeper in southern Maine and the Coast. Such is the nature of a Nor'easter....they are hard to predict and the snowfall totals are always not what one would think in any certain region.
Businesses closed that I'd never though would close; except Walmart. We were open. If I could have gotten out I would have been there. This was the first time I've called out of work due to the weather. My van was snowed in and not going anywhere for the duration. Even the Postal Service shut down in New England....but the Bangor Walmart was open.
It was kind if nice to be forced to to do absolutely nothing for a day. So I took lots and lots of pictures....and had a relaxing day. Fortunately we didn't lose power.
So, Blizzard Nemo came and went on the exact day/weekend as the last enormous blizzard 35 years ago in 1978; 34 years before "they" started naming winter storms as they name hurricanes.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Businesses closed that I'd never though would close; except Walmart. We were open. If I could have gotten out I would have been there. This was the first time I've called out of work due to the weather. My van was snowed in and not going anywhere for the duration. Even the Postal Service shut down in New England....but the Bangor Walmart was open.
It was kind if nice to be forced to to do absolutely nothing for a day. So I took lots and lots of pictures....and had a relaxing day. Fortunately we didn't lose power.
So, Blizzard Nemo came and went on the exact day/weekend as the last enormous blizzard 35 years ago in 1978; 34 years before "they" started naming winter storms as they name hurricanes.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Location:Bangor, Maine
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Katie's 26 Birthday!!
February 5, 1987.....the day my life became so much better, richer, happier, and fulfilled. Being blessed by God to be allowed to raise one of His own creations is an amazing honor. My precious baby girl has grown into such an incredible young lady. She is almost finished--another two semesters, I believe--obtaining her third degree from college. The first two were double majors from UMF (University of Maine/Farmington); this time it's a degree in Nutrition from University of Maine/Orono (UMO). This past summer she had applied and was accepted for a Fellowship at Perdue University on a research grant. She was in Indiana for two months. While she was there she also was able to meet family on my dad's side. I was so glad she had such an incredible learning experience.
Katie has such a lovely personality. She is gentle, kind, sweet, loving, and amazing.
I am truly humbly blessed to have her as my Daughter.
I love love love love you Katie. Happy happy happy happy wonderful birthday
~~love, Mom
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