Look Who Crawled Out of The Woodwork

So, it would seem that my goal of one blog a week didn’t turn out so well. But here I am again.
Second term is almost half way over and I am loving it. It’s a lot harder than first term in that our class volume has increased (we are taking seven classes instead of five, plus we have public clinic once a week), but a lot of things are coming together for me. All of the anatomy memorisation I did last term is starting to make sense as we’re able to actually apply the knowledge to real life situations.
We are also required to do 30 hours of outreach clinic and I did my first one at the beginning of June. It was a cancer research fundraiser where people cycle from to Toronto on the Saturday and then from Hamilton to Niagara on Sunday. My classmates and I were waiting on Saturday as the riders arrived to alleviate some of their muscle problems. I was able to apply a lot of the information I had learned in the first month of second term and that was really exciting. Spending that time at the outreach solidified that I definitely want to get into sport massage therapy.
Glacier was with me of course and he was fantastic. He got a little antsy towards the end of the day as we were there for over ten hours, but who can blame him? He was just tied to my massage table and I took my shoes off and treated in my bare feet just in case I stepped on him. I didn’t want to hurt him. Not to mention, when my hands are busy, I use my feet to “see” what is around me. It’s hard to “see” through shoes.
I’m again in the middle of midterms. That seems to be when I feel the need to blog. This week I have two more-the last two of ten or so-and then we’ll have some time off from testing before finals start. Glacier is doing well at school and is amazing in public clinic. Every once in a while he tries to pull a fast one and get petted by a client, but for the most part, he stays snuggled up under the massage table on his blanket.
I did have one incident where the receptionist did not tell clients booking in on my night that there was a working dog on site and I happened to get the guy with dog allergies. People were freaking out, but I just went back into the clinic room and was like “anyone want to trade clients,” and one of my classmates switched with me. Seriously, I don’t know what the big deal was. The switch didn’t hurt anyone. I think people are so obsessed with paper work because of the way our profession works, that little changes scare them even if they’re not a big deal.
I’ve been trying to spend time with Glacier doing non-school things as well. When we’re at school he works mostly inside and it’s such a small place that it doesn’t challenge him at all. Today, we took the bus out for lunch and then wandered over to Pet Smart. We had never been to Pet Smart before, so I was a bit worried we wouldn’t find it, but the dogs definitely knew where the store was and got us there quite safely.
I am having problems with the drivers in Cambridge though. Glacier’s crossings are much better now, but people around here don’t watch for pedestrians. It seems like no one walks-they all drive and drive way too fast and carelessly. Last time I checked people were supposed to slow down before turning a corner. It’s basic courtesy and physics! But here they don’t bother. Almost every time I’ve gone for a walk in my neighbourhood and surrounding area, I’ve almost been run over. Glacier’s traffic checking works well, but he’s so confused because we’re usually at least half way to three quarters across the road when people turn in front of us. It’s frustrating and a bit scary. I was even out with another guide dog user and someone turned between us! These people need basic driving lessons! Lol
Anyway, there was my big gush for the last month or so. I make no promises of when I’ll blog again, but I’ll be back eventually. 