Training, day 12

Today was a good day for Jim and me. We went to the airport in the morning, and worked on some practice with clicker training in the afternoon. We also had a night route where we worked from the downtown lounge in San Rafael to this icecream store called 31 flavors. Jim did really well on the route, until we saw these girls who my instructor told me were stoned or drunk. They started yelling at me about my guide dog, and I was at a tricky point in the route with a really flat curb. It was also an area that I hadn't been to before, so that posed a bit of a challenge, but after an instructor helped get me back on the right track we were fine and finished the route with absolutely no problems. I was very pleased to see how well Jim did in that situation, even though we were both a bit discombobulated we were able to work through things and figure them out.
When I got back, I talked to one of Jim's puppy raisers. He was raised by two families, one who had him for most of the time, and another who took him at the end to help him with his distraction issues greeting people. Both of them are such great people, and I am so excited to meet them all! I am really greatful for all that they've done, and for the fact that they have both worked so hard to turn him into the wonderful boy that heis today! If it weren't for all their love and dedication he wouldn't be going home on Saturday to join me in my crazy and hectic life working at Apple. LOL, both of his puppy rasing families are loyal mac users so we joked that he was just meant to be an Apple dog. :)
Well, I think that's aboutit. Tomorrow, we head into San Francisco one more time, and do something in San Rafael in the afternoon. I can't believe that we only have two more days of training left. This time has just flown, and going home will be really exciting, but there will also be a bit of sadness. I've enjoyed this experience so much, loved my instructors, made some good friends, and most importantly, gotten a wonderful dog! I am very excited to take on the world with Jim at my side, and I know that we will work well together for many years to come!