[nagdu] Fw: 12 hours from gdb visit.

Tracy Carcione carcione at access.net
Sun Feb 20 15:16:08 UTC 2011


Stepper, that's great!  I thought of you often yesterday, sending you good
luck wishes.
It's seems odd she'd say they'd specially have to train a dog so you could
feel with your other foot.  I think I feel with whichever foot happens to
be handy at the moment, most often my right.  I don't really think about
it.  I don't think Ben does, either.
Tracy


> Hi to all.
> Well, we got her done!!!
> Spencer wasn't happy with me crossing down here near my home. She thought
> I
> wasn't aware of when the parallel traffic was starting crossing.
> But we had such lite traffic, I wasn't sure when in the cycle the parallel
> traffic was?
> So I offered to go down the road a couple of miles and cross where there's
> much more traffic flow.
> We did, and I did it very well. I could hear the change of tone and relief
> in her voice, so I believe I put her to ease.
> She said that I should know if I am in or out in about a month or less.
> She also told me that because I can't use my left foot to detect the edge
> of
> the curb, they would have to train a dog so I could use my right foot
> instead.
> Because of my built up left shoe my left leg is 5/8 of inch short.
> So the layer of build up on the bottom of my shoe, plus I where very
> radical
> orthodics, and a brace that the bottom part is under my orthodic for foot
> drop.
> When you put all that together, I have no feeling of surface, or curb
> edges.
> Plus they want a dog that will be steady for balance if and when needed.
> Also a dog that can walk slower without going nuts, and that isn't
> distracted easily.
> I asked for a Yellow Lab, because of the summer high heat tempts here,
> plus
> my other two Guides were Yellow Labs.
> She was with me from 9 A.M. to 1 P.M.
> Now I can relax, and just let go of it, and wait for there decision.
> However, Sheila did say, that I was what there home training was about.
> It didn't snow at all last night, and just lightly today.
> Thanks for listening.
> Now I can go take a knap, I am bushed!
> Stepper,
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Stepper" <stepper12 at cableone.net>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Saturday, February 19, 2011 8:29 AM
> Subject: [nagdu] Fw: 12 hours from gdb visit.
>
>
>> This is Saturday morning at 8.30 A.M. and yes! yes! yes! there is no
>> snow,
>> no rain, no wind, at this time.
>> I think were going to get her done.
>> I will write back as soon as Spencer leaves after our interview this
>> morning.
>> Here goes, what a deal!
>> Stepper
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Tracy Carcione" <carcione at access.net>
>> To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Saturday, February 19, 2011 7:22 AM
>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] 12 hours from gdb visit.
>>
>>
>>> Best of luck, Stepper!  Hope the bad weather holds off just a little
>>> while
>>> longer for you.
>>> And thanks for the hearing tip.
>>> Tracy
>>>
>>>> Hi to all listers.
>>>> Stepper here.
>>>> I can't stand it another minute.
>>>> What I want to share with you is that on Saturday 2-19-11 at 9 A.M.  I
>>>> am
>>>> to have a home visit, and yes, Juno walk."
>>>> I and to do this with a lady named, Sheila Spencer.
>>>> She is field manager and wheelchair guide instructor from the Oregon
>>>> campus.
>>>> My only real concern is that we are to get a snow storm in here over
>>>> night
>>>> with up to six inches of snow by morning!
>>>> My hope is, there were almost wrong for the last two days.
>>>> We only have an inch yesterday morning, non this morning.
>>>> However, you can see from our front porch the lights at night on our
>>>> ski
>>>> mountain.
>>>> I started this process for the third time trying for a dog over the
>>>> last
>>>> eight years.
>>>> I even had the local O and M instructor out yesterday and she worked
>>>> with
>>>> me on the closest large intersection to my place.
>>>> I have been thrown with crossing with my lining up.
>>>> What I didn't know was when the city widened the street to five lanes
>>>> from
>>>> two lanes, they changed the corners from what I know as what, right
>>>> angled
>>>> corners? To forty-five degree angled corners. So I guess there like
>>>> rounded off so cars can make like a sweeping turns on turning right,
>>>> instead of hard right turns.
>>>> What I am after is home training.
>>>> Also I got over the last year, the mystery of my hearing figured out
>>>> as
>>>> well.
>>>> I came home last year from gdb California so toasted I never touched a
>>>> dog.
>>>> I got home, and spent five days in bed.
>>>> Wa La, the miracle that came my way is my pain pump miracle med,
>>>> called
>>>> Prealt. Its one thousand times more powerful then Morphine.
>>>> On October 8th, 2010 I reapplied with gdb to try for home training.
>>>> Well, here were are just what eleven hours from our home visit.
>>>> I keep this all from my family, friends, and wife until telling just
>>>> my
>>>> wife two weeks ago today.
>>>> I was asked to tell my story of recovery at a Saturday night birthday
>>>> meeting of about 120 people were there I was told.
>>>> At the very end with my wife sitting in the front row, I told her I
>>>> had
>>>> a
>>>> surprise to tell her.
>>>> So I told her in front of everyone, that in two weeks we were going to
>>>> have a home visit and I was to do another Juno walk to see if I could
>>>> get
>>>> home training.
>>>> She started crying, I started crying, she came up front, and we
>>>> hugged,
>>>> laughed, cried, and the place went nuts.
>>>> We still haven't told any of our family, or friends yet.
>>>> I just do not want to if I don't make it want to go through that with
>>>> everyone again.
>>>> I also got my hearing fixed.
>>>> Please listen to this. This is really important.
>>>> Over my life time I had three pairs of hearing aids. They never worked
>>>> right for me, I was always screwing with them. Turning them, down,
>>>> sideways, pulling them out, putting them back in.
>>>> They were never really right no matter how many times I went back to
>>>> the
>>>> hearing places. But I thought it was me not doing something right.
>>>> The last time was getting ready for the last Juno walk I had over  a
>>>> year
>>>> and a half ago.
>>>> I couldn't hear to cross this intersection I was at yesterday.
>>>> I tried, and I tried, but I couldn't sort it out, with five lanes, and
>>>> two
>>>> left turn lanes.
>>>> The last place I went to get the best hearing test in town was the
>>>> Elks
>>>> Hearing Center. It has a huge rep.
>>>> So after my hearing test, the Dr. of hearing aids tells me I need a
>>>> pair
>>>> of aids that cost $7,500, no shhhh!
>>>> Before I left, now she's down to $5,000.
>>>> I said I had to think about it, and left.
>>>> Next I went to another hearing center with a great rep as well.
>>>> Same story second verse. They tell me it will be $6,500 for a pair of
>>>> aids.
>>>> Now comes the good part.
>>>> I don't know why, but I said to myself the short form of the serenity
>>>> prayer, and said I am, before I go in to hawk for new hearing aids
>>>> again
>>>> since its been about ten years since I bought my last pair at $4.500,
>>>> am
>>>> going to a Ear specialist doctor.
>>>> So I did.
>>>> Here it comes, don't go away yet!
>>>> My doctor told me I had what is called.
>>>> "Narrowing and curvature of the ear canal."
>>>> The doctor said that he believes that at least five percent or more
>>>> people
>>>> have this.
>>>> What this means for those of us that have this is this.
>>>> When we try to clean out our ears, the "Q tips" can clean out the
>>>> first
>>>> half but the second half or so narrows down, and bends so much you
>>>> can't
>>>> get a "Q tip" to go all the way down.
>>>> Plus when we try, we are pushing wax further in and packing the wax
>>>> titer.
>>>> Plus, even when we try and use ear wax licquid remover, the wax is
>>>> compacted, and harded and old, that it takes the ear Doctor with there
>>>> special magnafications, and tools, and special licquids to get this
>>>> stuff
>>>> to come out.
>>>> It takes a ear doctor that has the skills and the tools to clear this
>>>> out,
>>>> and most people that have this needs there ears cleaned out every
>>>> couple
>>>> of months.
>>>> Doctor said that hearing aid centers should be able to spot the
>>>> problem,
>>>> but they can not clean it out.
>>>> The centers should tell us, and recommend to see a Ear doctor.
>>>> After all this, after getting my ears cleaned out, which the first
>>>> time
>>>> took him more then an hour using tools, liquids, and so on.
>>>> Now I see him every two months, and what a difference.
>>>> I now can tell traffic including left turn lanes, and so on with no
>>>> problems.
>>>> No $7,500 hearing aids, and I mean no aids at all.
>>>> Please if your hearing aids just never seemed right to you please see
>>>> a
>>>> hearing doctor for yourself.
>>>> Or if you just feel things are not right, check it out you may be
>>>> surprised.
>>>> I just watched the weather, and its saying snow, rain, wind, so who
>>>> knows?
>>>> I am just hoping I can get this behind me before I go nuts.
>>>> Thanks for listening, and I will write in the morning and let you know
>>>> if
>>>> I got to get this done or not.
>>>> Stepper
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>>>
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