Good morning!

So far this blog has been only about the guide dog stuff, but that is the most interesting thing happening in my life right now.

Tomorrow, Nancy Denier, from Guide dogs for the Blind, GDB, will be here to conduct a home interview for my retraining application. Weird that I’m more nervous about that one than anything else! I don’t think I’ve met Nancy personally, but I have worked with her a lot in the past when I was in admissions at /GDB and handled all the travel info for the Oregon campus.

I’ve been worried aobut the weather, because it rained and snowed last night. If it stayed cold, I wouldn’t be able to go for a walk at all, since ice and snow are treacherous for me and the risk of falling and injuring myself, one of those precious artificial joints is too high. But fortunately, it’s in the forties today and the sun is so bright and warm! And it’s supposed to be around seventy tomorrow. good walking weather. Wow, twenties and snow last night, and seventy tomorrow! Have I mentioned how much I love Colorado?

last Sunday, I received a call from Michael–can’t remember his last name–from Guiding Eyes for the Blind, GEB. We scheduled a home interview for this Wednesday, the 12th. Yay!!!! I’m looking forward to this one. I greatly enjoyed talking to him on the phone and felt like we established a comfortable rapport right away. It will be interesting to see how different their interview process is from GDB, if at all.

Of course, it’s supposed to snow Tuesday night!!!! grrrrrrrrr.

For anyone who doesn’t know, a home interview usually involves a lot of discussion of lifestyle, conditions under which the guide work will be done, my preferences and needs in regard to dog breed, working style, handling style, personality and things like that. Then the interviewer and I will go outside for what is commonly known as a Juno walk. This means, the interviewer will hold a guide dog harness and walk ahead leading, as I hold the harness handle. They get a feel for walking pace, balance, reactions to faux distractions, my orientation, ability to judge traffic sounds and cross streets safely, things like that.

And once the medical happens on the 20th, everything needed for the GEB application will be done,a nd then it’s just waiting to see if I’m accepted.

On the other applications, I’mn still waiting for my friend’s son to schedule a time to do a video. This is for schools that are too small to send someone out to do in-person interviews. But I’m wondering if I could just have someone take some video on my iPhone. Does it take good enough video?

so, anyone reading, wish me luck tomorrow and pray for good weather!