Settling In?

Very soon, as of this Wednesday, Cher and I will be ensconced in our new home in Albany, Oregon. Well at least it is new to us if not exactly new to the neighborhood, since it was built in 1999. 

Ms. C, in her almost seven years with me has lived the life of a country pumpkin, then became a nomad when we sold the house for full time travel and living in the motor home. Now she will live the life of a city girl with neighbors all around and a fenced in yard to call her own. OK so Albany, Oregon may not be considered a "city" when compared to say Albany, NY. And those in LA, California (where we attended the Dogs for the Deaf "HollyWoof - 2" event a couple of weeks ago) may scoff at my use of the term, but by Oregon standards it is considered a city, granted a small one. 

Cher has already been working the sounds during our daily work visits to the house as my hubby and I prepare the insides with the requisite new coats of paint on the walls and the cleaning frenzy that overtakes those who have purchased a house that has had previous owners. Today new carpeting will be installed in some of the rooms, making that the final "to do" before we trundle our belongings through the door. 

Until Cher and I become known in the neighborhood I will be putting her hearing dog vest on her when we take our walks.  My neighbors will be learning about service dogs, in our case hearing dogs, and hearing loss and even Deafness, when they see fingers fly when my Deaf friend come visit. Well my friends' fingers fly, mine kind of jerk along. I know that there will be misunderstandings as my neighbors encounter what they may see as my over protectiveness of Cherelle. Why would anyone have so many rules about how to interact with a dog for heaven's sake? Why does that woman make such a pucker face whenever she sees an off-leash dog? Then of course there will be the inevitable mistaking my unresponsiveness as unfriendliness, not understanding that I simply did not hear a neighbor's greeting or spontaneous comment. And there will be the thoughts sometime expressed, sometimes not. "She can't be really partially deaf. Her speech is too good!"  Eventually, the people I call neighbors, will get it, at least as well as someone who is "hearing" can. I am hopeful that Cher and I will be accepted. We will then be what I consider "settled-in".

And before I forget, as promised. Below is the URL where you can see the "HollyWoof - 2" event photos from Dogs for the Deaf. Enjoy.

www.dogsforthedeaf.org/photo-albums/hollywoof-photos-2

Best Wishes from me and tail wags from Cherelle, aka Cher.

Making Miracles Happen

Wow what an experience! Lovely Hearing Dog Cherelle got to meet the very lovely and loving Betty White! Ms. White is a supporter of Dogs for the Deaf (DFD) the organization from which I received Cherelle almost seven years ago. She generously gave of her time by attending the DFD fundraiser "HollyWoof 2 - The Sequel" on October 27th. She also made a matching donation for money raised at the event. I feel very honored to have met Ms. White.  Her love for our furry canine friends is very evident. She is also a most gracious women and has the ability to put everyone at ease.

My hubby's cell phone pic is a bit blurry. I think he was as excited as I was and perhaps his hand not too steady!

We also had the privilege of meeting a number of cast members from the television show "Switched At Birth" who also generously gave of their time to support Dogs for the Deaf at the event. Thank you 

Ms. Marlee Matlin!

And Constance Marie, Ryan Lane, Lea Thompson and (not pictured), Stephanie Nogueras. Ms. Nogueras was kind enough to pose for a photograph but it was so fuzzy as to not do justice to the actress. 

I am very grateful to CEO Robin Dickson and General Manager Vaughn Maurice of Dogs for the Deaf for giving me the opportunity to speak at this event and to share what having Cherelle in my life has meant to me and to thank all of those present for their support in helping DFD to continue their work of rescuing dogs and helping people. Hearing Dogs do make miracles happen in the lives of those who receive them. 

When Dogs for the Deaf posts information and photos from the event I will add a link to this blog.

Until then.......Warm wishes to everyone from me and tail wags from Cherelle aka "Cher".

 

Going to HollyWoof!

Cherelle and I have been invited to be presenters at the upcoming Dogs for the Deaf fundraiser, "Hooray for HollyWoof....the Sequel".  We are doing the Snoopy happy dance! The guest host for this event is Betty White! I am such a huge fan. Another one of my idols, Marlee Matlin will also be in attendance! To get more details and to see who else in Hollywood will be at this fundraiser go to:

http://www.dogsforthedeaf.org/hooray-hollywoof-2-sequel

I suppose I should mention that my often overlooked husband, Larry has been invited too. It is not unusual for the spouse of the hearing dog team to find him or herself standing in the background. After all the person with the dog is the focal point. But make no mistake the spouse is an important part of the team. That person has "on call", backup dog duties whenever the hearing dog recipient is for whatever reason, either incapacitated or not with the hearing dog.  He or she also helps with the ongoing training that is involved with having a hearing dog. This can include the introduction of new sounds for the hearing dog to work.  So this is a chance to acknowledge the lesser known  "Star" in Cher and my lives, my husband Larry Holcomb. This will be his opportunity too.

We will be driving from Corvallis, Oregon to LA but this time not in the motorhome. Since we are in a long term rental spot here, it would have meant that while we were in the immediate LA area we would have been paying for our space in Corvallis, a space to park the RV just outside LA and then our hotel rooms for the day before and night of the event. Cher and I have some rehearsal time the day prior to the event which means we need to be close to the country club where it is to take place. Oh boy now that will be interesting. I haven't done a rehearsal since my high school theater days!  We decided it would be less hassle to hop in the car and take a leisurely two day drive to LA, and then two day drive back to Corvallis after the event. I will admit it will seem strange being on a road trip without the motorhome! 

I have more news to share but I will keep you in suspense a bit longer. Stay tuned............

Warm wishes from me, and tail wags from Cherelle (aka Cher).

Hunkering Down

Well the three of us are preparing to "hunker down" by becoming home owners once again. Larry and I have made an offer on a house in nearby Albany, Oregon. We are hoping that before the holidays arrive Cher will have her first fenced backyard to call her own, a new neighborhood for "walkies", new neighbors to get to know, both two legged and four legged. We have one more big adventure before year's end and that will be the topic for our next blog. A trip of Hollywood proportions. That was a clue that I tossed in there.

Before signing off I thought I would post a few more photos from our time on the road. Some favorite spots we visited.

Warm Wishes to Everyone from me and Tail Wags from Cherelle (aka Cher).

Cher with her human Dad at Grand Tetons National Park in Wyoming near Jackson Hole.

From our trip through South Dakota. Cher in front of the abandoned Frerichs Mine in Deadwood SD., located in Whistler Gulch. The former mine is now the home to a bat colony. The fence keeps people out but the slats are spaced to allow the bats to come and go.

In Butte Montana we spent some somber minutes at the Miners Memorial. Butte is a fascinating city, rich with history of mining in the U.S.  

 

Cherelle meets some members of the Rotary Club of Revelstoke in British Columbia. Larry and I attended a meeting as visiting Rotarians. Cher and I did a "meet and greet" after the meeting ended. As always she was very popular and a first class ambassador for Dogs for the Deaf.

Cher does her balance beam routine at the Benton County Fairgrounds. I gave her a "10". The Benton Oaks RV Park and Campgrounds (located in the fairgrounds in Corvallis, Oregon), is where we started and ended our four month experiment of living and traveling full time in our motorhome.

The Journey Continues, Sort Of.

     Yakama Nation RV Park in Toppenish, WA

Well we have successfully made our way back to Oregon and into the Willamette Valley. Cherelle working the sounds like a pro. Good thing too because I've been distracted and l left the refrigerator door practically gaping, something you'd think would be difficult to do in a motorhome. Cherelle heard the door ajar alarm and let me know that I'd better get the thing closed. During a visit to my mother's in Forest Grove, Oregon, where we had lunch and a nice visit, Cher alerted me to both the toaster-oven timer and the microwave. My auntie who has lived with my mom since dad passed away three years ago, always seems to get a kick out of Cher. She and mom make sure that the big water dish is set out and filled for my girl when we visit. Last night we went to a gathering at my sister-in-law's where Cherelle gave me a tap with her nose when some guests knocked on the door and while there alerted me to a mystery sound. She and a couple of the guests heard it but could not quite pinpoint exactly from where it was coming. Cher and the guests were in agreement that the sound was somewhere in the kitchen but then it stopped and did not reoccur, leaving everyone scratching their heads. Me? I had to trust everyone else on the matter but was very proud of Cher showing her skills, working when there were a number of distractions.

    Catching some z's on her cot.

We will be taking a bit of a hiatus from traipsing all over the countryside, staying awhile in the town from which we launched our travels,Corvallis, Oregon.  I have found that I need some of the familiar. It is nice to be someplace where Cherelle and I are a fairly common sight and where I know that the odds of her and me being challenged as a Service Dog Team are slim. It is a relief to interact with people who know I have a severe hearing loss and take it in stride, making the effort that it often takes to communicate with me. 

Every interaction has some stress for me. I need to always and I mean always be concentrating each time I talk with anyone, and more so when there is environmental noise and the individual's voice is not familiar to me and/or soft spoken and/or has an accent and/or the person turns their face away and/or......you get the idea. And as a "tourist" discovering that you are missing out on information that everyone else has access to via audio, is disheartening. Financially it is no bargain to get one third or one half for what you have paid.  All these factors, combined with frequent new environments, does after a time, this case almost four months, push me to my limit. 

So I am taking time to recharge the batteries, so to speak, before further travels. But then every day each one of us is traveling on a journey that is our individual lives.  So then "Travels With Hearing Dog" continues even when the motorhome does not.

Best wishes from me and tail wags from Cherelle (aka Cher). The journey continues...........

Update On The "Oxbow Incident"

The General Manager | Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce contacted me via email to let me know that he was sorry that I had such an unpleasant experience while staying in Penticton, BC. His email was timely and thoughtful which speaks highly of the Penticton Chamber of Commerce. He sent me a complaint form to fill out to file with the Chamber. I replied, thanking him and expressing my regrets at not being able to spend more time in his city.

The Chamber of Commerce cannot address the incident with the owner of Oxbow RV Resort because Oxbow is no longer a current member of the Chamber. However Oxbow has the Penticton Chamber of Commerce member symbol posted predominately on its web page. 

Not for long I imagine since the Chamber now knows.

I have been informed by the BC Human Rights Tribunal that a US citizen is able to file a complaint with the Tribunal. I will need to wade through Section 8 of the Human Rights Code and review Tribunal Guides 1 and 2 before filling out the compliant. My issue may or may not fall within the guidelines. I have 6 months to file. A little light reading in the evenings while I snuggle with Cherelle. (Big wink inserted here.)

I want to thank everyone who has offered words of encouragement, support and words of comfort to me and snide comments about the individual discussed in my earlier blog and Facebook page. Each one has helped alleviate the unpleasantness of that encounter.

Hugs to all of you

Cherelle sends kisses along with the tail wags.

Stay tuned.........

    Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

 

Canada: The Good, The Bad and the Truly Ugly.

I thought I would try for light humor, hence the title, but I just cannot do it. I had a truly ugly experience at a RV park in Penticton, B.C. Canada. It involved not only the denial of access for my service dog, and therefore denial of lodging for me and my husband, but pure harassment about my status as a person with a hearing loss. 

I do want to say that the parts of Canada in Alberta and B.C. that we visited are beautiful and the majority of the citizens warm and friendly and other than three incidents of Cher being accosted by off lead dogs (that is "the bad"), she and I had no problems and were accepted as a team. However the following experience at the final leg of our trip was upsetting enough for me to dampen my spirits and my enthusiasm about that part of B.C. 

The humiliation I experienced yesterday (September 15th, 2013) as we attempted to check into Oxbow RV Resort with my Service Dog was inexcusable. Her ID, which I showed when asked was rejected. "It's a fake" the owner screamed at me (the husband of the husband wife owner team).  When I refused to back down on Cherelle's legitimacy as a Service Dog, he then attacked my disability status. This made the situation more appalling and traumatic for me. The owner harassed me, insisting I prove I was "deaf". I never claimed I was deaf, rather severely hearing impaired. He demanded I show him if I was wearing hearing aids. Flustered and in shock I did. Even then he refuse to believe that I was hearing impaired because in his opinion I did not meet his criteria as "deaf". He attempted to get me alone to conduct his own hearing evaluation on me which felt just plain creepy and at that point I walked away from him badly shaken. Perhaps if I were Canadian rather than American this would not have happened? If his goal was to be so unpleasant as to make us leave then the campaign was a success. My husband and I could not leave Penticton or B.C. fast enough.

However his demeaning and insulting actions will have consequences. I will be contacting the following and registering a complaint: Good Sam, (which is a huge supporter of Dogs for the Deaf the organization that gave me Cherelle), Penticton Chamber of Commerce, The Canadian Hard of Hearing Association, B.C. Human Rights Clinic, BC Human Right Tribunal, and The Ministry of Attorney General. There is also an American Attorney who specializes in legal rights of those with hearing loss whose advice I will be seeking. 

When that business owner went from refusing me access because I had a Service Dog to refusing me lodging because he did not want to believe I was hearing impaired, he crossed over into territory he had no business going into and I might add no qualifications to make that determination. I do not want anyone else having to undergo that kind of ugly experience by that individual. 

Warm Wishes from me.

Tail wags from Cherelle aka, Cher.

    Bow Falls at Banff, Alberta, Canada.