It has been a while I have posted. We had a busy summer, and this Fall I got my first guide dog, Baldwin. 
Just a little update for the regular readers. During the summer collecting went very well with Emily, but as school started it slowed down a bit. I don’t really mind it as long as she keeps it in mind for the next summer, she has a lot going on given her age, and collecting is not a priority for now. However, I would like to get back to it more seriously, for now we fill in a couple of holes in the album here and there.
I still wasn’t able to get hold of the currency recognizer, if I can’t get one for testing, I will probably get to play with one early next year at one of the conferences.
But the biggest news is my guide dog, Baldwin. I was in New York State for three weeks to train with him. He was trained for about a half year before, and the very end of the training is that we spend three weeks together to get used to each other. So, practically, I don’t get a fully trained dog. The reason is that it is important to learn to work together, and find out how we react to different situations, and how I give directions. As far as Baldwin and collecting, I wanted to make sure that I surround him with smells and noises during the training that he would encounter once we get home. So, amongst other things, I brought a bag of large coins that I sorted here and there, and showed him some of my favorite music. I also used my computer and phone without the headphones. I hope these sounds at least helped him a little to get used to the new place.
As weather permits, we walk quite a bit around the neighborhood, and plan to explore the world together. For now, we will start with the Cleveland area.