Michigan Trip, Day 2

15 August 2013

Our second day in the Mitten State, we got to sleep in. How delicious. When I finally got up, the first order of business was a walk for Kaline. Our hotel had a nice little walking path behind it, plus a pond, with geese, and this big grassy strip where I later let Kaline get all his running ya-yas out. That day we did a regular walk plus some basic obedience practice.

Morning walk.

Morning walk.

We met my mom's old college roommate and her husband for lunch at a place called Sava's. The first thing the waiter brought was a bowl of water for Kaline (I didn't ask for it) which my puppy happily lapped up. He was excellent through the meal, snoozing under my chair quietly. After lunch we exchanged the car at a nearby Hertz outpost and talked dogs with all the employees (haha).

Kaline the rock star at Sava's.

Next we went to the mall (our hotel was basically across the parking lot from Briarwood) where I worked a lot with Kaline on matching my pace—sudden stops and turns, changes of pace, etc. He did a nudge alert right before I went all fibro foggy. He pulled pretty well once that started but I was still only about half-functional. We came back to the hotel for a break after that.

Kaline at Briarwood Mall.

When we got up, Dad and I took Kaline in the back on his e-collar and just let him run himself out. He also wriggled hilariously on his back in the grass. He was just having so much fun.

Getting the ya-yas out.

 After the run, we went to State St. for some shopping and dinner. In Nickels Arcade, we saw a guy approaching with an Airedale, so I got Kaline out of the way and was keeping his attention on me. Once the Airedale saw Kay, it began lunging and basically screaming, trying to get to him. I shoved treats in Kaline's mouth and just waited for the guy to go away. But of course, when he got close, he goes, “Can he say hi?” I replied pretty sharply, “Absolutely not.” Probably offended him, but better than getting my dog hurt.

Other than that guy and one other, though, basically all the people I encountered in Michigan were politely curious about Kaline, rather than the intrusively curious folks you get in Northern California. It was really pleasant to be asked things about his training rather than about my personal medical information. And Kaline was a great Dober-ambassador, since a lot of people had never seen a Dobe SD before.

We went to Buffalo Wild Wings for Boneless Thursday, and actually saw another SD team! It was a Golden Retriever and a man in a wheelchair. I generally don't go up and talk to other teams I see unless it's a meetup, so I was just quietly happy they were there. Kaline was again excellent, the food was very tasty, and we got to see part of the Tigers game.

At B-Dubs, yum yum!!

After dinner there was yet more shopping and a stop at Insomnia Cookies on South U. And then, the obligatory Meijer run.

Shopping at the M Den. Yes, I bought this, I never put things in his mouth that aren't mine/I don't intend to buy.

Meijer is this store in Michigan (well, chain of stores) that has everything. I am not kidding. Everything. Food, clothes, hardware, pet supplies, you name it, they probably sell it. My parents used to take me on Meijer runs when they'd visit me at school, and we still do a run each trip. It is ridiculous. Somehow we always manage to fill up the cart with stuff. You wouldn't think we'd need groceries and such but apparently we do. Kaline did awesome, even though he was pretty tired.

Kaline and Faygo, the best pop ever. Many flavors, but Rock & Rye is by far the best. It's a Michigan thing.

Filling up the cart!

Kaline meets his cousin; Juno goes to Pride

We had a very exciting weekend! The week was mostly a slog due to a disgusting heat wave, lots of walks in said heat, and the air conditioning not functioning properly. (WHY?!) But then Kaline's cousin Rowan, and his mom Amber, arrived in town after a very long drive from the magical land of Canada, and that made everything wonderful and exciting.

Saturday was a little bit crazy. I got up early to take Kaline to class (Dad and Juno skipped), and he did pretty well. There was a lot of stationary stuff because it was so hot. We came home and I did his nails at warp speed, because I had to get Juno to her massage appointment. (Don't judge me, it definitely helps her not have soreness.) After her massage, I switched dogs yet again and took Kaline up to Berkeley to meet Sonja, Chief, Amber, and Rowan at Paco Collars! Did I remember to get the keeper I've been needing for Kaline's collar for MONTHS? No, I did not!

We arrived and there was Rowan in all his glory. He and Kaline were immediately friends. Kaline licked Rowan's ears and face and Rowan seemed to find this delightful. He also did not mind Kaline swatting him with his paws, and swatted happily back. The cuteness was just overwhelming. Sonja and I were exceedingly distracting while Amber was trying to order Rowan's Paco, which will be totally gorgeous. Alas, she did not choose to have Canadian flag conchos put on it. I cannot imagine why!

Canadian Dobermans! Rowan's mother, Lucy, is a littermate of Kaline's mother, Dolce.

I was allowed 15 minutes of comparing Kaline to Rowan, so I will do a little of it here too. Rowan is five months older and looks (and acts) so much more mature. His chest is much broader and he's definitely taller. The boys' paws are the same size though! I actually hope Kaline doesn't grow much more vertically, because right now he is the perfect height. They have just the same play style and a lot of the same happy scratching spots. Rowan is so freaking snuggly and cute, and gives lots of kisses if you ask. I was kind of cheating on Kaline and Juno with him, it must be said.

After Paco, we took the dogs to Cesar Chavez Park to play off leash. Kaline did well except for a really annoying interlude where he would not hold a down-stay for love or money. This after a morning where he did perfect out of sight down stays. I definitely got overly frustrated with him, and must work on not doing that. Otherwise, everyone had a complete blast. Well, maybe not Chief, who had to be carried a lot or the Dobermans would have broken him with their insane crashing about. They absolutely loved playing together and racing around like maniacs! Whenever there was a lull Kaline would practically put his face into Rowan's mouth. So much cute. We exposed the dogs to a flapping kite at the end, right in their faces ... didn't care. Woot.

Kaline and Rowan at Cesar Chavez Park, photo by Sonja.

Sunday was the Pride Parade in San Francisco, which was extra festive and huge because of the recent Supreme Court rulings. Originally Sonja wanted to have our own contingent to march, consisting of owner-trainers of service dogs. But we couldn't get enough people or monitors, so when the Atheist Advocates of SF sent out an email asking for more marchers, I volunteered us. I went up with my high school friends Rachel and Lia, and we met Sonja, Hendrik, Amber, Chief, and Rowan in Brisbane, where we caught a bus.

Juno in her Pride gear!

Juno looked super, with rainbow ribbon wrapped around her guide handle and a big rainbow bow on the saddle of her BLD. She also wore her rainbow Glow collar from Paco and a rainbow bandanna from Rachel. At the parade, the only thing people could talk about was her boring, grey Ruffwear boots. Le sigh.

It was Rowan's first time on a bus, and he did wonderfully. Juno even let him touch her. The bus driver on the way there was amazing. He made all the people in the disabled seats move for us, and kept looking out for us the whole ride. Definitely planning to write a complimentary letter!

Rowan and Juno on the bus to Pride.

We got to the assembly area at the appointed time, found the atheists, who were absolutely LAST in line to march ... and waited. For over two hours. The dogs met a lovely cockatoo named Casper and got lots of oohs and ahhs. Did really well in the crowds also. Juno's pulling was, shall we say, spotty. But we all have our off days, right?

We waited in various places around the bus plaza, keeping the dogs and ourselves cool and hydrated. Unfortunately, Rachel and I both had to be back in Menlo Park in time for 6:00 dinner plans, so we reached a point where even if our group started marching that second, we wouldn't make it back in time. And thus we didn't get to march. Sad face. We still had a good time!

Rowan with rainbow ribbon and stickers.

OHMIGOD LOOK AT THOSE SHOES!!!!!!!

Adorable Chief.

Juno looking less than thrilled about holding this ...

Amber & Rowan; Sonja & Chief; me & Juno

Rowan, Chief, and Juno.

Rowan on the bus back--such a fantastic boy!

Since Juno had done Pride, Kaline came to Dad's birthday dinner. It was his first time at a really nice restaurant (I think). He was so good. He stayed under my legs quietly the whole time, ignoring dropped french fries and such. On the way to the bathroom (TMI, I know, but there's a point!), he was very deft at swiveling his butt out of the way of doors opening and closing. Maybe he's finally getting some body awareness! Wouldn't that be wonderful.

Other developing stuff with Kaline: His anxiety/panic alert is supposed to be a leg nudge. We're working on this. But he has other thoughts. For a while, it was jumping on me in a non-excited way. I would tell him “off” and then get the nudge, and then he got to do DPT, which is basically a reward for him. So he's not really doing that anymore. Now, he's freezing in place and staring hard at me. Absolutely will not move. I appreciate the alert, but even after DPT he's reluctant to move, and that's a little inconvenient. So we need to figure out how to get to that elusive leg nudge. Homework!

Let's face it, I'm tired!

I've been watching a little too much Blazing Saddles in my bits of free time. Fifty bajillion Internet points to anyone who knows what bit of the movie the title of this post is from.

So, we are back on our normal insane schedule, which in a week or two will get just a smidge more insane, whoopee! Thus not a ton of energy or motivation to write, unfortunately.

I also gave myself a flareup on Saturday night, so we didn't do anything that interesting recently. Saturday night was Senior Night for the Stanford men's gymnastics team, so Juno and I went to the meet. It is the first time in I don't know how long that I left a men's gym meet early. This sport gives baseball a run for its money as my favorite, for crying out loud.

Juno and I were sitting fairly high up on one of the bleachers so we could see everything, and there was a lot to see—it wasn't just Stanford and Cal, like normal, but a Japanese collegiate team, as well as club teams from Arizona State and the University of Washington. Stanford, though, has one of the worst main arenas for men's gym of any team. (Iowa is by far the worst, but Stanford is down there. Also, I say main arena because if any team is hosting a conference or NCAA championship, they almost invariably use the larger basketball arena rather than the facility they have regular-season meets in.)

Not only does it have bleachers instead of real seats, there are no aisles on said bleachers. None. So once you're up, you are stuck there. Especially if you happen to be attached to a tall 65-pound service dog. Mentally, I do not do well blocked in, and physically, I was in a ton of pain by the second rotation (there are six). I had not been feeling that great to begin with, but it was the only Stanford meet I could get to so I felt obligated. But that meant I only had a little vest on Juno, because I couldn't take even the pressure of momentum pulling on my arm. Let's just say that when we finally decided it was time to go, it was extremely interesting getting down the bleachers. Thank goodness I had brought Juno instead of Kaline, because at least I didn't have to worry about her behavior as she picked her way through the crowd down the bleachers behind me. Kay probably would have stolen a hot dog or two, or at least kissed several people.

So yeah, I'm still paying for that stupid decision (or series of stupid decisions). The good parts of the meet: We got to see Eddie Penev, among others, on floor, and he's one of the best in the world on that. Everyone was extremely nice to us (especially while we tried to weave down the bleachers). One of the guest services people complimented me on the clarity of Juno's patches and I practically hugged her. That's so what I was going for when I picked them!

Was the meet worth missing a cool SF outing on Sunday with Sonja? Jury is out, just because of the guilt I would have had about not seeing a single Stanford home meet. But with guilt out of the picture? SO NOT WORTH IT. Gaaaah.

Earlier in the weekend Kaline and I went with Mom to the post office and shopping center to train. Post office was a nightmare—a huge winding line of people (two of whom had pet dogs) packed into a tiny inner lobby. Kaline began whining immediately the moment we stepped in. I was stupid for a couple minutes, then realized just how insanely high my anxiety was ratcheting. I asked for a nudge instead of a whine, then booked it out into the outer lobby. As soon as I sat against the wall, Kaline awkwardly but emphatically pressed his chest against mine, eventually working his way into a more comfortable position draped across my lap with his torso pressing heavily into my chest, just the way I need. We stayed out for quite a while before we could go back in.

The shopping center was much better. I had just watched a friend's video of her former foster/SDIT pit bull practicing “under” with various objects, so all through the various stores, I had Kaline do “under” with anything where he'd fit. He was a bit confused at first because it's not something we have worked on lately or very much, but then he got it and was a star. He also retrieved, on command, his In Training tag which fell off his vest and two of those plastic rings they use to hang up scarves. WIN. Another mundane, non-task/obedience but nonetheless very useful command we practiced was “roll” which for Kaline and Juno means to roll onto a hip while lying down. I have been neglecting commands in that category—not a task, not formal obedience, but totally useful—so I hereby resolve to stop doing that and get with the program. Naughty, naughty trainer.

In random cool news, LDS sent us another blue vest. No I did not order it. YES I am keeping it. I already ordered another set of patches. Once it's got all its stuff sewn on, I'll take our current one back to the tailor to get the patches sewn rather than what they currently are, glued. Bleh, glue.

Kaline's ten months old!

Kaline turned 10 months old yesterday, and did great today in his usual round of Sunday morning public access. First was the Farmer's Market. Just as we were heading in, we saw a super adorable Large-Eared Black-and-White Dog tethered at the entrance: Max! I of course had to say hi to him and love him up, so Kaline got to practice a little self-control and try to hold a sit while I did so. He was great at heeling and blocking through the market and only did a little illicit sniffing.

We were in the part of downtown with several handicap buttons, so Kaline got to work on those, including the difficult one at Walgreen's which is mostly blocked by a trashcan. (He will usually hit the trashcan at least once before figuring out how to orient himself to aim at the button.) In there, Mom and I did things with the small rolling baskets to work on proofing. I had him do a block and then got Mom to gently nudge him from different angles with the little basket (came up to about his thigh). I also had fun flipping it around in front of him, sometimes clipping his toes gently. No problems.

In Village Stationers, we ended up having a big training opportunity. Kaline was lying at my feet while Mom talked to one of the cashiers when a lady with a Basset hound came in. Kaline had no clue the dog was even in the store until she started barking at him. At first he was startled and jumped up with a little growl. Then he was like, “Oooh, a dog! Playtime?” The Basset continued barking away (no, I have no idea why the owner didn't find a way to shut her up) so I decided to take advantage of it—I turned Kaline away, so he was facing me, and just had him do very basic commands that he knows well and likes, such as touch and the “up-down” game. Once he was mostly focused again, we headed out.

Trader Joe's was the best. As I've noted, Kaline is always really on in there. He was being really great and we were almost done. Mom sent us to the other side of the store, and for some reason my anxiety just started rising. Kaline stared up at me and then started nudging my leg (yay!!!), then my drooping sweatshirt pocket for more emphasis. Once I stopped he leaned into me with his whole body. I was so thrilled with him. And then soon after that, I started getting all foggy like I sometimes do, where it's like my brain is on a seven-second delay. We were standing in line and Kaline jumped up on me, trying to press into my chest. It wasn't like when he's being a goofball and leaping up at me; he came up pretty carefully, for him, and just tried to stay there. I acknowledged him, cause I definitely want him to be proactive, but then I got him down, had him do some leg nudges, and gave him treats. Excellent little boy!

In retrieving news, Kaline continues to steal shit all over the house and deliver it to me with great pride. On command, he is very glad to retrieve clothing, but not my sneakers. (Mom's nice shoes, or Dad's leather dress shoes, not a problem!) He will also gleefully retrieve things like plastic water bottles or vitamin bottles, which I find a little odd just because Juno didn't want to get stuff like that for the longest time. When I dropped my chapstick (capped, thankfully) in the kitchen, both dogs went to get it for me and Kaline was the one who came up with it.

Kay doing deep pressure and looking extremely cute while doing it.

This weekend we also headed up to Berkeley to pick up Juno's beautiful new Paco collar. It's a black rainbow Glow and she looks fantastic in it. She posed for pictures while we were there, which hopefully will end up in the Paco Gallery (fingers crossed!). Kaline was uninterested but Juno did a paws up on the lowest shelf with collars and then when asked looked fetchingly over her shoulder to show off both the collar and her insanely cute face. She got to come along to Johnny Rockets later that night, teehee.

Hard at work in her new bling.

I also did my first Hitchcock film with Kaline this past Friday, also with my friend Ben who I've known since high school. It was Kay's first movie since Sonja and I took him and Chief when they were wee-er. There was a bit of improvement but Kaline was still a fidgety little boy. I think (read: hope fervently) that a lot of it was because he was cold. I expected it to be warmer in there; next time I'll bring his jacket. Anyway, he settled after about five minutes or so, and then would pop up every twenty minutes and have to be put back in his down on his cushy mat. Good thing there are seven more weeks of Hitchcock at the Stannie. Lots of low-pressure practice.

Bizarrely, after the movie, when Ben and I headed to Pizza My Heart across the street, Kaline blocked fairly well (he wanted to sniff some people, and also to lie down sometimes), and then when we got to our table, he went under, curled up and didn't move till we were ready to go. Explain yourself, wee one! So he really ended the night on a good note.