Hi folks, I just heard from Beth. She and Whit and their trainer Chris are off for a big test this morning: New York City. A combination of rides on commuter trains, subway trains, and buses–plus negotiating the sidewalks full of New Yorkers. Everyone’s determined to make a city dog of Whit, and I have […]

While preparing my essay for Chicago Public Radio this week I decided to send something about Harper’s early retirement to Bark magazine, too. They liked what I wrote and published When a Seeing Eye Dog Gets Off-Track as a guest post on the Bark blog last Tuesday. The post I wrote for Bark is similar […]

Laura Martinez is 26 years old and has always loved to cook. She attended Le Cordon Bleu before accepting a position at Charlie Trotter’s, a five-star restaurant here in Chicago. And, oh yeah. Laura Martinez just happens to be blind. In her spare time (!) Laura teaches a cooking class at Friedman Place, a non-profit […]

When I asked Wanda Bridgeforth what she wanted me to bring her for her 90th birthday, she didn’t hesitate. “Harper!” she said. “Bring him to class!” Wanda is an animal lover. You might remember the beautiful letter she wrote when it came time for Hanni, my Seeing Eye dog, to retire last year. Harper may […]

Loyal blog readers will remember Hanna Bratman, the matriarch of the memoir-writing class I teach for Chicago senior citizens every Wednesday. Hanna grew up in Germany. Her family was Jewish, and Hanna escaped on her own before World War II. She was only 19 years old when she arrived, alone, in the United States. Others […]