Long Day

Trishna and I did three pretty long routes today, and we are very tired. In fact, I think she's asleep in the corner right now.

This morning, we worked all around Berkeley's campus, mostly looking for skateboards and bicycles, as those are very prevalent at UCR. She did very well in the campus environment: sidewalks going off at weird angles, paths that look like roads, roads that look like paths, etc. We had a great time. It was kind of cool, because everyone else went to the airport. But I said I already knew how to work the airport, so we went to campus instead. It was great one-on-one time with the instructor.

After lunch, we spent a good amount of time at the mall. Trishna's work in large buildings is outstanding. For those of you who remember Stacey, you'll know that she didn't really enjoy working in buildings and would take every opportunity to find me the outside door. Trishna is a pleasure to work inside. Inside, outside, it doesn't matter; she just likes to work. I have to say, I'm really starting to fall for this dog. I love her.

Finally, tonight we had a very long night route, which is why this post is coming so late. We had to rework a couple of overhead obstacles, which are some of the hardest things for the dogs to see. Nothing dangerous, just some thin branches. We had to rework them a few times, so we'll continue to work on those tomorrow. Apparently, for the next day or so, we'll find all kinds of objects to hit me in the head that are not too hard or sharp.

I got an opportunity tonight to help one of the first-time students who had a difficult route. She got scared about going home in a few days, because she felt like she'd done something wrong. I shared with her that things like this happen to everyone at least once, and that she doesn't have to be afraid when she goes home, because she already knows how to work the dog and how to work through things. It feels good to help someone new, because I still remember the route that made me feel like that with Stacey; that fear of leaving here and going home, of working the dog with there is no instructor. It's pretty intense. But she will do well, and in her heart of hearts, she knows it.

Everyone in the class is starting to anticipate going home. It's an odd mixture of trepidation and excitement, because very soon we step back into our lives. And what I'm learning is that this experience changes you a little bit each time.