I was reading someone's guide dog training class journal, and it makes
me remember my days in class with savannah. I wish i'd not lost my blog
from 2001-2006. I put a lot of work into those pages and the database is
gone.....but....anyway, I was reading Amy's journal and i was thinking
back to the antisipation i had when i was waiting to go into class. It
made me remember the juno walks and the lectures before and after
getting my dog.
Over all, I miss having a dog because i was more confident with mobility
but it seems as though something has changed. I seem to be a much more
confident cane user and that's only grown in the past several months.
Traffic still makes me nervous and edgey but walking around san jose has
made me a lot more confident in myself and most of that confidence came
from getting and working with dogs and descovering that yes, getting out
and learning how to get places can be scary so i walked slow, but i also
learned with the dog that i can walk faster, as long as i clear the
areas around me and make sure those areas are covered.
Since chris and i have met I've also descovered that having a much
longer cane helps. When i was replacing my cane a couple months ago they
were out of the length i wanted, so i went with something 2 inches
taller.....My cane is taller then i am! But there's an advantage to
this. I know what's in front of me where as before i never quite knew. I
also know more of when streets are coming which is somethng i'd missed
in the dog. I feel the ramps before i'm on top of them and this helps.
The longer cane means i can walk farely fast and still know what's
around me and i can do it with or with out a dog, I'm liking this.
