Sixth Month Home
To start our sixth month home I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year! To start this month off @loveuleslie and I went to lunch with @s.e.l.z at @navy.proof. While there the staff remembered us and gave us the same spacious spot in the corner that we had sat at the last time we were here. It was a great time to catch up, as we had not seen each other since mid September. Not only did we get lunch together, but @s.e.l.z gave me the canvas of Eve that she had been working on. Since this was also New Years Eve, I knew that the safest thing that Eve and I could do was stay home and watch the livestream of the ball drop, as I was not sure how she would react to a large amount of fireworks going off. In typical Eve fashion, she seemed to sleep through them and even slept through a small earthquake on New Year's Day.
Oil, painting of Eve in harness with dog bones in the background by @s.e.l.z.
Lindsay and @s.e.l.z standing while @s.e.l.z is holding the art piece of Eve. Eve is also laying between Lindsay and @s.e.l.z.
The day after New Years Eve and I returned to the office as normal. This week was short and pretty uneventful minus Friday when as I was working we experienced another small 4.6 earthquake. This earthquake was considered small as it was a short 10 second jolt. At the moment I was not sure if I would have to get under my desk with Eve, as that is the safest place to go usually, as the earth is moving. I also knew if I had to get under my desk to keep myself safe during the earthquake that it might wake Eve up from the good nap that she was in the middle of taking. Thankfully this earthquake was short enough where this was not necessary.
The second week of the new year Eve and I worked in the office as normal, the only difference was that my office was making plans to move to a different location on campus to be closer to our main office. In addition to making plans for my office to move, I had a few virtual meetings to prepare for the spring semester at SFSU and Washington Seminar. Washington Seminar is the National Federation of the Blind’s (NFB) main legislative event of the year, where members go to Capitol Hill to discuss issues that impact those with blindness or low vision. This year the three issues surround website accessibility, employment, and accessible medical devices. At the end of the week Eve and I attended my local NFB chapter meeting where we discussed Washington seminar and the other conferences that the NFB would be hosting throughout the year. Eve’s favorite part of my local chapter meeting was getting to finally run around with my chapter president’s guide dog, as the last time we were together they both wanted to play, but it was not the time and place for that.
The third week of the new year started off with Eve and I going to Costco to get home essentials. To get these home essentials it took two Costco trips because my dad and I went on Sunday to grab what we could but it was quite hectic as a result of being Sunday and everyone else being out too. I was so glad for this Costco trip I decided to leave Eve with my mom at home because there were at least 200 people there making it hard to maneuver with just my cane On our second trip to Costco it was less busy, so I was able to take Eve with me and we were able to get the rest of the items we needed without incident. The rest of this week was pretty uneventful with Eve and I going to work, continuing to prepare for Washington Seminar, and meeting with my advisers to start the process for student teaching in the fall.
I wish I could say that @Shelbi_nichole and my Friday night to @disneyland was uneventful but unfortunately not. It was going great until Eve discovered all the popcorn on the ground and wanted to go after it. I of course got after her for this every time it happened but it was not easy. It also did not help that as it got later and later @disneyland got more crowded causing Eve to stop until the people got out of our way. This was most challenging during our last ride of the evening, which was Pirates of the Caribbean. I think what also made this most challenging was that the lines split in two for both the lightning and stand by lanes. After getting off Pirates of the Caribbean we took the Disneyland Railroad to main street. This was not an easy train ride as there was a train at the station when we got there but we would have been separated, which we did not want, so we waited until the next train. Once we got on the train it took us 20 minutes to get to Main Street as the trains were delayed due to an earlier event. As a result of this delay we did not make it to Main Street until 7:55 pm. This made both @shelbi_nichole and I very nervous, as both of our paratransits were scheduled for 8:05 pm. It did not help that at that point @shelbi_nichole was getting a call that her ride was going to depart soon and give her a no show meaning that she would not have a ride home. When this was happening, I did everything in my power to get Eve to go where I needed her to so that @shelbi_nichole and I would not miss our rides. When we got to the pickup point both of our paratransists had arrived, but @shelbi_nichole’s had already called for a no-show. Thankfully the driver hadn't left yet, so @shelbi_nichole had to call to have the no-show reversed. Although she had to call to have the no-show reversed, it was still scary at the moment because we did not know if the driver was going to leave in the process of the no-show reversal. Thankfully that did not happen and we both made it home
Lindsay and @shelbinichole sitting on a bench in front of Cinderella’s castle, while @kristentheguidingeye lays at @shelbinicholes feet and Eve sits at Lindsay’s right.
Lindsay and @shelbi_nichole hugging while Eve is standing looking at @shelbi_nichole and @kristenthe guidingeye is sitting at @shelbi_nicole’s left.
The third week in January started with a good rain storm, which caused some minor flooding on campus, but nothing that Eve and I could not get through. I learned through this rain storm if I am stern in using my teacher voice I can get Eve to go where I need her to at a steady pace. It also did not help that my campus and the other California State University faculty were on strike during the first day of classes during spring semester. This was not helpful because many of the buses were either not running or had a hard time accessing campus. Thankfully I left plenty of time for my paratransit to get Eve and I despite the traffic.
Eve sitting in her raincoat in the university student union.
The rest of this week I chose to start varying Eve and my route home a little more to help expose her to our other transit systems and unique street crossings, For the most part adding these other routes did not faze her. This was with the exception of one annoying X intersection near my house. This X intersection is annoying because as someone who relies on the auditory feedback of traffic to cross the street safely it is almost impossable to cross without a steady flow of traffic since the only way to know it’s safe to cross this intersection is once all cars stop. At the time of day I attempted this I did not have the steady flow of traffic I needed resulting in my dad having to come and rescue Eve and I. Through this incounter I learned don’t cross this intersection unless a lot of people are around.
To start the last week in January Eve and I traveled to Washington DC to lobby on Capitol Hill. For being our first solo trip together across the country since coming home I think it went well with the exception of some minor hiccups. Some of the challenges we faced were Eve and @kristentheguidingeye wanting to play but in time that could happen and Eve always looking back while we were walking in a double to ensure that @kristentheguidingeye was still behind her. When getting on both flights they slept peacefully together as seen in the below picture. The biggest challenge Eve and I faced was navigating through a hotel with somewhere around 150 other guide dogs, but somehow we made it through.
Lindsay, Eve, @shelbi_nichole, and @kristentheguidingeye standing in front of the #FLYLGB sign.
Eve and @kristentheguidingeye lying together on a plane.
Stay tuned in our Seventh Month home to hear about what we get up to while being here in Washington DC.
