Well off we went, the heavens were crying tears of huge cool
drops on us. I had decided to take Waggatail to guide me rather than my white
cane. As you know, she doesn’t like city life, she panics when she hears cars of
plenty, and our city has loads of all kinds of vehicles. But today was
different, Hub was taking the Little fella who by the way is miles bigger than
the wagging one but she is older, he is our little boy. Hub was slightly
anxious as we had never been to this part of town before. He loaded the ap on
his iPhone called Blind Square. Hmmm.
Waggs was delighted she was out, she does love being out and
the harness doesn’t faze her. My last guide dog hated putting that on, once on
she was OK, but Waggs would put on her own harness if she could!
Both got mobile phones, check. Paying cards, check, dog
treats check and doggy doodle bags check.
Umbrella’s? no not very blind friendly, our left hand has
our dog harness and our right hand has to be free to grab the dog lead to
correct our dogs if they decide to, well, be dogs and shout over to another dog
asking to play. Or, just do what Waggs loves to do, sniff every corner and
refuse to walk until she has totally sniffed what she wants to sniff. On
previous experience, this can take a while. Also, our right hand to carry
anything, such as a dog bag full of something one wouldn’t like to carry around
a busy town. Or just to open doors or put our hand out to touch something we
are not sure about.
Also, umbrellas are not safe for us as we can’t guide them
past people’s heads, worst still, their eyes with the spikes that love to pop
out.
As we headed to our bus stop, I said to Hub, lets chance it
and quickly run well, almost run, well, walk fast, to the next stop, as that
has a shelter. He said, no it’s far away an we will miss our bus, then we will
have to wait fifteen minutes, I insisted, I said I’m not standing in that I
would rather miss the bus and wait for another in the dry shelter. So
thankfully he was a good Husband and obeyed. Smile.
Well, no pressure Fifi, I blooming walked so fast, trying
not to slip on the wet leaves and splash too hard going through the puddles, as
we don’t know they are there until we are in the middle of one. Our dogs are
great, they walk around them. Whilst letting us feel the cool dirty water on
our feet. I’m sure they have a little smile on their faces that normally have a
look of total innocence on them. My last dog, Black Beauty used to walk around
the puddles and make sure there was a big gap for me to miss them too, I used
to know this as my right foot just used to tease the puddle and get slightly
wet.
Up steps down them passing loads of cars going into our
local zoo something planned for the monkeys that day, obviously as it was a
Saturday and our cheeky monkeys are normally away from their weekly enclosure
at weekends.
Well, one thing, my Waggatail doesn’t follow. So, she headed
towards the crossing for the road on my right to go to the park. I had to say
the commands, not today.
Straight on she went and crossed the really wide road well
thankfully Hub heard me pounding behind him and warned me there was someone there
at the bus stop. Otherwise the poor person perhaps would have been bounced into
by a big blonde wet blind person.
The man luckily spoke and he said there was a bus due in ten
minutes, so we must have just missed the one at our first stop, but we were dry
under the shelter.
The cars splashed by wheels getting a good wash.
The rain on the roof of the shelter was like dry peas being
tipped on a tin lid.
Our bus came and on we got looking like drowned rats. Please
let there be a seat? And don’t make it awkward for us? When we are trying to
find a seat it’s so hard, as no one speaks and I for sure don’t want to sit on
a knee. It has, been known. It’s also been known for me to remove hair from
heads as I have gone along and the bus has pulled away or stopped suddenly and
I grab the closest thing.
Woops.
Luckily, we found a seat with two together. As we went the
long journey I pondered. Oh, please let this be my lovely old hair dresser who
did a runner. Hahaha. Well, left mysteriously his last place, you know, the
place we could get to with such ease? I was devastated when I learned that he
had left and no one would tell us where he had gone. No way I was going to get
my hair cut by anyone else. I know if I hadn’t have found him, I would have to,
but I have tried the rest and I had found the best, and he had gone. Not only
was, is, he the best hairdresser, he is a lovely man, the kind you would want
as your brother. Or great friend.
Well this place he was meant to be at, was so far from our
comfort zone. As we drove by, Blind square was in Hubs ear telling him all the nice
shops we were passing, very nice but we were on the bus, hopefully it will be
so useful when we get off?
Hmm. It wasn’t. It was rubbish. We got so lost, the rain
kept coming, the town was so busy, tourists everywhere, no one knew where we
were meant to be going, oh, the worst part was crossing the roads we didn’t know.
One time, there was a van parked so we had to cross further up and there were
loads of bikes parked there of course we didn’t know this until we stepped off
the kerb. Another road lead us into road works with cones around where the step
up should be. Hub had his earpiece in trying to get location details. He
couldn’t hear me shouting on him like a mad woman. My dog was doing so well,
she stopped me from walking in the middle of the road works, but she froze,
waiting for further instructions, oh, God, where to go, how to get to the kerb?
My heart was pounding. I was terrified. Trying to remember what a lovely lady
was telling me hours before about slow breathing, suddenly my lungs were
battling against my mind and I went into panic mode, but not half as bad as I
used to get. This time last year I would have passed out, but I was still
standing.
When I say passed out, not really, just felt like it.
Well, a man said to me, love, he is just to your right, he
took my arm and lead me to safety, the people in our city are the best, I have
never felt such kindness as our folk, when we can find them separately to the
tourists where they seam to way out more than locals.
Where is Hub, why did he not wait for me? Shall I stand
still and call him? No, I plodded on Wagga was loving it, her tail was wagging
away, and she hates the rain bless her, she weaved me in and out of bins and
objects I wasn’t aware of. Avoiding lamp posts thankfully as they hurt. I was
scared she would walk me too close to the road I would come off the step and
fall under a bus, well, you know me, always think positively. Smile.
So, I kept us to the building, any people peering through
the popular shop windows, well, sorry like, but I need to be there.
I thought the rain would mean people would stay away but I
guess if you have a holiday planned, you don’t want to be staying in.
Where we needed to be is the most popular place for people
visiting our town as that is where the most history is.
At last, what seemed to be forever, I found the man himself,
to our hairdresser, oh, no, this nine-minute walk was now up to thirty odd. I
had found the Hubster and the little Fella who put his wet head in my hand as
if to say, Mummy, there you are. See our last dog, Hubs Suki would have refused
to walk I her Mummy was far away. LF just does as his Daddy tells him. His flat
or had gone all curly with the rain.
We stood trying to get our Barings, we were now twenty
minutes away, oh goodness. But which direction? Blind Square just kindly kept
telling us what shops there were near us which is a great thing. But not really
giving us instructions.
We asked and asked again.
Seven times, then eventually got close to where we needed to
be.
Oh, I was shattered. Mentally. Please let us find the place
and moreover, let it be the right guy? What if it was another man with his
name?
Fifty minutes later, our nine-minute walk was over, we were
so close an yet so far away. An inch is as good as a mile when you can’t see.
Hundreds of doors. Windows, so much glass, where was number 51? I called the shop
and a kind lady asked what were we standing by? Hahaha. Good question. I could
tell her what our software said? A pub nearby she said she would come for us,
bless her, she did, we were forty seconds from the shop door.
Oh my, once in, it was packed. We got a seat, our dogs were
dripping, I looked so bad, clothes clinging to my fullumtious figure. Hahaha.
I sat there, in shock. I said to Hub, I feel as if I am
being tipped backwards as if I am really going to faint, he said he felt
exhausted too, but reassuring me, we did it. Yep, but we had to find our way
back home now…
Among the noise, I heard my man, I found him, it was our
guy, oh brilliant, like a comfy cushion on a tiresome day. He came for me it
was a great feeling, the shop was difficult but because he knows me he was
great as he told me about the large step up to get my hair washed. I love it as
he does all the work now, from greeting to washing to even making me a cup of
tea.
The lovely girl made Hub one too, I guess bless him, the
colour was drained out of him.
My hair was cut and I felt so good. My guy is such a
brilliant stylist. I am proud of him he is going alone just he better take me
with him if he decides to move again.
Now for the journey home. Passing smells from bakers I would
have loved to have sampled, but priorities first and right now we just need to
learn this route, still raining, we went back a totally different way and it
took us just over fifteen minutes. We got to a place in town we knew, so next
time, we will go that way, rather than the way we were told to do on the Sat
Nav. We used Apple going and Google coming back. Google was better. Hub and LF did really
well, proudly LF walked and the familiar sounds were a welcome especially the
nightmare we had going. Goodness knows how we would have done that without our
dogs, and they loved it. I just wish we could see to live a simple life easier.
The bus journey was long and we were soaked through because
we waited twenty minutes for a bus, just missing the one we needed. We couldn’t
sit together but a man said I could sit next to him and he talked the socks off
me. Well, not that I was wearing any but he chatted for sure. When we were
almost home, I suggested to Hub that we went to our local restaurant for lunch.
So, we got off the bus at a different place and walked there. Met by the lovely
staff and had a most enjoyable meal where we could reflect on our big
adventure.
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