[nagdu] waiting time?

Tamara Smith-Kinney tamara.8024 at comcast.net
Sat Jun 19 22:31:37 UTC 2010


Gail,

Having ended up doing my own O&M training, except for a very brief bit of
instruction before I really needed the cane full time, I would recommend
*not* blocking your usable vision in the beginning when you are out on your
own, except for in settings you know for certain are safe for practice.
Once your listening skils are kicking in and you're beginning to  be able to
process your environment pretty accurately without using your vision, then
at some point you will probably need to go in sleep shade or blocked glasses
or something like that.

Then again, when you're teaching yourself O&M because you've got a life and
need to keep going, you can't always pick and choose where and how you
practice.  /grin/  I ended up practicing by finding opportunities to do so
on my way through my real life because I didn't really have time an energy
left over to do things more formally.  I was, at least, able to avoid nasty
street crossings, even though it meant taking cabs to places I would
otherwise have simply walked to, since there was no public transit where I
lived...  The spouse could drive but was a problem.  Sigh.  Now he's my ex,
and I live where there's transit.  Well, I did move out towards the boonies
a bit and now have an unsafe main road to deal with, but my roomie is really
great about ensuring that I am able to get what I need and get things done
using his car.  The only downside is that I have to make special plans to
give my dog meaningful work sometimes.  /smile/

Anyway, I don't know if any of that is helpful.  I've heard of one other
person recently who learned the cane on her own.  As states continue to cut
services to cut budgets, there will be more of us.  I didn't hear about the
NFB centers until after I joined this list when Mitzi was a pup, and I never
did manage to talk my state agency into paying for me to go there.  By that
time, I had developed good skills anyway, so my situation with O&M wasn't
dire.  Still, as much as I think it would have been a great thing to to
there earlier on in my endstage vision loss, I can't imagine where I would
have pulled up nine months to spend there.  That life thing again, and the
responsibilities that go with it.  

Hang in there, and keep us posted on how it goes with the applications and
the eye test.  I've gotten the "why do you want to be blind?" business
before, but never from an eye doctor.  Also the tale of some other person's
accomplishments and why can't I be more like that guy?  Um....  What I end
up wondering about then is why are they getting *paid* -- usually by my
taxes -- to come up with that sort of crap to avoid taking responsibility
for doing what they're paid to do.  But that's me.  /smile/

Okay, now I'd better get going to give my dog some real work and me some
real exercise.

Tami Smith-Kinney

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Gail
Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 10:53 AM
To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [nagdu] waiting time?

I wasnt nervous while I have had my dogs....I AM nervous when I have to
trust my son! He has gone out with me when I was trying to be mobile on my
scooter, and when I had asked him to check about a car I thought I could
hear, but not see, he missed it, and I almost got smeared. Before that, I
had never been anything but confident in my dog's guiding and care...thats
why I'm nervous as a hurt cat while on my own. I can say with full
confidence if an examiner does the Juno test on me, I'll pass that well!   
 
I'm sitting here, checking my mail, before going out with my cane for the
first time. I do wear Cocoon sunglasses, but I can still see though them.
Should I be trying to block the inside, to make them opaque, like sleep
shades, even though I'm trying to train on my own? 


Gail
 
 
 
 
-------Original Message------- 
 
From: Linda Gwizdak 
Date: 6/16/2010 12:33:01 PM 
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users 
Subject: Re: [nagdu] waiting time? 
 
Hi Gail, 
I think the school is more interested in the fact you can travel 
Independently - with or without formal O&M training. I do think it would be 
A great idea to get O&M under blindfold before getting your dog. I did 
This and foound it VERY helpful even though I had traveled for years before 
Formal O&M myself with my first dog. 
 
Did you say you had some trouble with some mobility like crossing big 
Streets? Remember, you MUST be confident in all aspects of mobility before 
Getting a dog. If you have nervousness in any aspect of travelling, you will

Transmit that nervousness to the dog and that will really have a negative 
Impact on how you and your dog work together. 
 
Lyn and Landon 
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Gail" <deerskin at oct.net> 
To: <nagdu at nfbnet.org> 
Sent: Tuesday, June 15, 2010 4:44 PM 
Subject: Re: [nagdu] waiting time? 
 
 
> I'll do that as soon as that test is done this week, and get going on my 
> own 
> personal training tomorrow (too hot now today). I've found some vids on 
> YouTube on O&M, though not on how to cross big streets. The rest seems to 
> be 
> pretty much logical, or things I've already been doing with my crutch. I'm

> just concerned that GDB might be sticky about my not having had formal 
> training. But for all the searching I've done in our area (NE Kansas), 
> there 
> doesnt seem to be anyone at all who does this. No wonder I've not seen 
> anyone out with a cane but a handful of times in years. 
> 
> 
> Gail 
> 
> 
> 
> -------Original Message------- 
> 
> From: Julie McGinnity 
> Date: 06/15/10 16:01:11 
> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users 
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] waiting time? 
> 
> Hi Gail. I applied, and 3 months later I was able to go to the school 
> To get my dog. I only applied to 2 schools, and they were both very 
> Quick about getting back to me. I would definitely suggest calling 
> The addmissions departments of each school to which you applied. That 
> Way you can really tell if they are going to talk to you. They should 
> Answer all your questions over the phone even before you send in an 
> Application. I don't know anything about GDB though. Good luck. 
> Hope you find the perfect school for you. 
> 
> Julie and Brie 
> 
> On 6/15/10, Jessica Pitzer <rolosgirl at gmail.com> wrote: 
>> I have called, emailed, etc. Etc. Etc. 
>> GDA keeps just, not knowing, its yeah we think we have a dog, and then 
>> blam, oh no, not one in this class. 
>> GDB, I'm just waiting on the call from teh home interviewere but their 
>> earliest class dates are September. 
>> GDDI, wel.. They say 2 years.. I'm not able to wait that long. 
>> GDF, keeps losing my video and not knowing what is what so I'm 
>> honestly not sure their. 
>> Leader, I've got to send in a release still and fax my medical and 
>> then they ahve to do 6 refs and the home interview 
>> pilot, has all info and is my last choice, and they even said it'd be 
>> a while they'd get back to me 
>> seeing eye, just waiting on the call for the home interview BTU they 
>> also aren't sure what they ahve and don't have, and are still trying 
>> to do references. 
>> So far, GDB seems most on top of it which kind of saddens me as GDA 
>> and GDF were my top picks in schools *sighs* guess we don't always get 
>> what we want sometimes. 
>> 
>> On 6/15/10, Tracy Carcione <carcione at access.net> wrote: 
>>> Hi Jessica. 
>>> If I were you, I'd follow up my applications with an email or a phone 
>>> call. Ask the Admissions office what's going on. 
>>> 
>>> I'd think the wait for GDB would be the shortest, because they have 2 
>>> campusses and they have short classes. 
>>> Tracy 
>>> 
>>>> So, I've applied to 7 different schools. 
>>>> I've had apps into some for as long as 6 months and others are more 
>>>> recent. 
>>>> It just seems to be taking forever and that's probably because of the 
>>>> 6 month school heh. 
>>>> I'm just wondering what folks wait times have been like and if people 
>>>> know anything that can speed it up. 
>>>> I've been without a dog for 8 months now and it sucks big time. 
>>>> I have apps into GDA, GDB, GDDI, GDF, leader, pilot, and seeing eye. 
>>>> Thanks. 
>>>> Jessica 
>>>> 
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> net 
>>>> 
>>> 
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>> 
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> 
> 
> -- 
> Julie McG 
> Lindbergh High School class of 2009, participating member in Opera 
> Theater's Artist in Training Program, and proud graduate of Guiding 
> Eyes for the Blind 
> 
> "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that 
> everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal 
> life." 
> John 3:16 
> 
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