September 29, 2012
Dear Carlene, I’ve been enjoying the reports of the December calendar shot. I can picture the sleigh and eight Dane deer, Santa off-screen voicing her commands. To me, the scene sums up what the Service Dog project is all about. Danes, yes. Teamwork, yes. But beyond all the skilled trainers and trainees lies a bigger story. The real story of Rudolph. As a kid, Rudolph topped my list of TV Christmas specials, second only to the Grinch. Frosty had no real issues and the Peanuts gang aaw-shucked their way through life – not very realistic. But, despite the sometimes disturbing claymation expressions, I could relate to Rudolph. He was different. As an adult, however, the TV special has lost its ranking. Rudolph was different. So diifferent that others laughed and called him names. In fact, they bullied him. At one point, even Santa asked him to tone down that unfortunate […]
September 28, 2012
Welcome home, that is! Sir Thomas has been home for 24 hours. We haven’t finished the training yet. We’ll simply commute in to class now that Tommy is in his off-campus housing. The photos say so much. I’ll fill in the details when the fur settles.
September 23, 2012
I attended my grade school reunion last night. Interesting how this get-together reminiscing about old times marks a new time for me: This is my last unaccompanied trip. It ends up that, but for visiting with two dear friends — my best-of-best pals all through those years of wandering the instututional-green hallways — the event paled. On the plus side, the void gave me room to continue the thought chain that started linking together back at the start of my trip: How would my service dog fit into this travel scene? To the Airport: As I boarded the bus, a comfortable and convenient means to the airport, I determined that we’d need to climb the steps up single-file. Hmmm, who goes first? If I do, I can select a seat, but I can’t watch that he’s with me and not scarfing muffins from people’s laps. No, he goes first and I need to […]
September 20, 2012
Big Day: Tommy came over for a visit to meet Elsie and check out his future house and yard. He sniffed, sniffed some more. Big Hit: Elsie refrained from her usual Nice-To-Meet-You barking-while-running-in-increasingly-tighter-and-tighter circles. He strolled into the yard in a calm fashion, unfazed by the size of her visitor. Much sniffing ensued. Big Dog: Thought I was getting used to the Great Dane size. Apparently not as I heard a little gasp escape from my throat when Sir Thomas stepped into the dining room and rested his chin on the table before sniffing in all those food smells. Big Hugs: Having Thomas in my home made it that much tougher to take him back to his doggie digs. I was sniffling as I drove away.