house and not be afraid of falling while alone!!! Alli loved the whole experience.....especially swimming and squirming around on her back in the sand! She will retrieve anything you ask her to so when that is combined with her crazy love of swimming she is absolutely in heaven! She doesn't even mind the lead she has to be hooked to since the area is not enclosed. I found a very light weight 50' marine line so it doesn't get too heavy when it's wet. Since I can't have the pressure of the water on my chest I can no longer swim but we had lots of fun just the same. I am attaching this photo and then a brief video at the end in which she goes crazy over a very (yuck!!) dead horseshoe crab to show that, yes, a service dog's life is not only work, work, work! Because she has the large head with the droopy eyes and huge jowls(I've been told that it's because she is American and English Lab) people constantly tell me that she looks sad. They don't see her when she's at home or the dog park where she absolutely unwinds and goes crazy. When she plays with 3 other labs at the park, I swear that it reminds me of the huge bucks on the old "Mutual of Omaha" show, bumping their chests when it's mating time!!!! While it was great to be on the island with Alli, I don't think I can continue to make the trip alone to the ferry in Bristol. Highway driving used to be easier than local driving just because I wouldn't have to count on my leg being steady with the brake pedal constantly as is necessary with local traffic. Now, though, the pain in my limbs and especially my back is making it almost impossible to sit long enough(1 1/2 hrs)to get to P I. For the time being I'll trudge through it just because it's like a sanctuary for me so I'll try to ignore the pain. Mark always says that I need to learn that I have limits because 1 day's activity means at least 1....if not 2 day's of being totally spent and usually on my bed. I do know my limits. I just have to decide if the activity is worth the pain........more times than not I go for it.......just because I'm not ready to "give in" yet. With the summer months, however, I will be in most of the time anyway because I can't be out when the humidity even begins to rise. I guess breathing is more important than fun most of the time! At least it will probably mean that I'll post more often!
