Trip to San Diego
Kristi and I had a great time visiting San Diego this weekend. We used the RV for the first time, which was rough going at first and hard on Kristi with her fibromyalgia. We arrived at the campground very late and only got 3 hours of sleep before we had to get up to be at the class where we were on a panel about disability and sexuality. The panel went great - I think we opened a lot of people's minds to seeing people with disabilities as being sexual beings just like everyone else. After the panel, we hung out with Angela at the college and at her apartment, then went out to dinner with her and her girlfriend, Beth. On Friday we got some desperately needed sleep, then went to Angela's, and on Saturday we spent the whole day at Sea World! The best part was petting the dolphins - the area was very crowded, so Angela went to get some assistance from a staff member. That person turned out to be one of the dolphin trainers who let us go into a special area where we got to pet them and give them hand signals to do their tricks! It was fascinating to see the same type of training that I do with dogs applied to dolphins (actually, it started with them.) I really must read "Lads Before the Wind"; I've had it for ages and have just forgotten about it/been too busy. Dolphins are such amazing creatures; you can look into their eyes and see their souls radiating out just as you can with a person who is filled with life and joy. I fully believe that they are every bit as intelligent as we are; it is simply that their living environment and therefore their way of thinking and being is very different from our own. I would really love to spend more time interacting with them; I'm going to post to one of my service dog lists about it at some point as I'm sure someone on there knows people at Sea World.
Here's a picture of me with the very sweet Dottie the dolphin:
Isn't she beautiful? Not the most wondrous pic of me, but oh well.
We returned home to find that the guys have nearly finished our new floor, which looks great. So glad to be rid of that carpet!
San Diego is a wonderful place - much more open space, and friendly people. I wish there weren't so many service dog programs in the area already; we'd really love living there, and we'd still be within easy visiting distance of our L.A. friends. There is affordable acreage within an hour of the city, too! *sigh*
Here's a picture of me with the very sweet Dottie the dolphin:
Isn't she beautiful? Not the most wondrous pic of me, but oh well.
We returned home to find that the guys have nearly finished our new floor, which looks great. So glad to be rid of that carpet!
San Diego is a wonderful place - much more open space, and friendly people. I wish there weren't so many service dog programs in the area already; we'd really love living there, and we'd still be within easy visiting distance of our L.A. friends. There is affordable acreage within an hour of the city, too! *sigh*