Blog 19 Turning Point

Blog 19 February 2 2012

Turning Point !

I cannot believe that January is over! It felt like we were just at New Years Eve! Well they say that after the first 30 day’s that the New Year’s resolutions are broken and people return to their old bad habits you know the ones, eating fast foods, not going to the gym eating chips in front of the TV, all things thing’s you said that you would not do this year but you are! Well I can honestly tell you that I did not make any of those promises so I do not feel bad for doing them! The big promise I made for myself this year was if I am not having fun doing something I am not going to do it! I have to tell you it has been a hard promise to keep. Trying not to fall in those same traps, but this last 31 days have been a lot of fun. I have been back to University since the 3^rd of Jan and I have never looked back. I have good professors, I am taking another course at a different University once a week and I have even been to lecture in the evening.   I have to tell you my wife was scared to death about me being downtown at night without a dog, I had to remind her that I was big boy. One of my other resolutions was to get back out traveling on my own and not relying on a lift. Not that I was not traveling on my own before but I was not as independent as I was when I had Jags, so that was one more of my goals.

I have been thinking a lot about Jags since on February 1^st was 8 months to the day that he passed away. It has been a lot of 8 month anniversaries, it was 8 months since Eric passed away and ironically it was 8 months since my best friend got married, the strange thing was for that time period we were at his house for the wedding he was just at our house for those very same dates.

So as we head into the month of February I can honestly tell you that I am very glad that we have not had a lot of snow! This is the time I think about Jags and how much he helped me.

When we would walk on the ice he would turn his body just on a little angle to give me some extra support, I did not have to worry about finding the trail on the side walk and I definitely never had to worry about snow banks on corners or big puddle of water and slush at the corners. Jags would always find the best route to take. Walking with a cane in the winter is really a very hard thing to do, there is no tact-tile way of finding the sidewalk when it is covered with snow it is hard to find the edge of the side walk so you kind of guess where you are. Trying to walk in a straight line, listening to traffic making sure you are not in the middle of the street. If you ever want to get the feel of walking with a cane in the winter is like and trying to find your way down the street. Take a broom handle and go outside close your eyes and try to walk to the corner of your street. I am hoping that this won’t be for long.

As I mentioned I sent my application into a school for a new dog. At the beginning of January I had my first phone interview, it went well and now it is waiting for good weather for the second interview that last for about 3 to 4 hours, this is including a walk using my cane and also walking with the trainer to mimic how I handle a guide dog, after that it is another phone interview and if all goes well I wait until a dog is suited for me.

So the long and the short of it is that it will still take a while yet to get another dog.

In the mean time things are great and I and my family are doing well and we are just having fun!