Thumbs Up! Thumbs Down!

Well this week has been one of those up and down weeks, meetings in London meant that we needed to stay in another hotel and use the public transport in the city.

Firstly, a huge Thumbs Up to The City Inn, for not only having all their alarm cords easily accessible, not only for removing unecessary furniture from our room, but also for providing Caesar with a wonderfully comfortable bed to sleep in and nice big dog bowl. Great stuff!

Welcome to The City Inn!

Thumbs Down to the people on the Jubilee Line train who thoughtlessly stood in the doorway, acting like lemmings, preventing easy access to the doors at our stop, in spite of being asked politely to move and make a clear gangway, causing my wheelchair to become caught in the doors of the train and a few missed heartbeats!

Thumbs Down to the woman with a pushchair at London Bridge underground who tried to insist I remove my dog from the lift, and almost immediately rammed said pushchair into my knuckles ... great community spirit!

And finally, Thumbs Up to the staff at Westminster tube station, who in spite of a broken lift, ensured I caught my train and offered to phone ahead as well!

I guess you win a few and lose a few, but the bruised knuckles and stuck in a train door episode rather coloured the trip!

Snakeproof?!

Imagine our surpirse as we turned into our driveway a couple of evenings ago and saw this!

It was originally basking in the centre of the driveway, but moved as we had clearly disturbed it. Thankfully, Caesar took two steps backwards and sat down behind me, looking at me as if to say, you deal with it! A very concrete resut of my attempting to proof him against snakes! Well done Caesar!

It was an adder, sometimes called a viper, the only UK venomous snake presumably from the nature reserve at the back of the house.

They are at their most venomous is March / April, so all dog walkers would be wise to keep their eyes open in heathland areas from now until they hibernate again in the autumn.

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.

Well, we have finally caught up with ourselves after all the excitement of Torch Relay weekend!

A couple of days ago I did another radio interview; but it was so early in the morning, Caesar slept though it all! Funnily enough, the interviewer asked if I would do it again, and although I don't think the opportunity is likely to come my way again, I had no hesitation in saying yes.

Ironically, because the relay was rerouted, and we ran a leg across London Bridge which had no demonstrators, the footage may have been seen in China. I have had a few emails from around the world from people who saw it. I hope that our participation has sent a message that not only are people with disabilities included in our society, so are their assistance dogs!

Here's some footage of our leg of the Olympic Torch Relay!

A couple more photos from Torch Relay weekend

The day before the relay, getting a feel for the torch!

With Ed Coode, Olympic Rower, who handed the torch to me in the relay, at the Waldorf Hilton Hotel
With Matthew Pinsent, Olympic Rower at the finale event in Peninsula Square, Greenwich

Photo from London Bridge

Here's one of the first photos through of us on London Bridge with the Olympic Torch.

Truly a day to remember!

Well, after an absolutely exhausting and eventful weekend, we are safely home and relaxing.
In spite of all the protests, the torch relay was completed, we did run, not in the place we were planned to run, but in a much safer location ... so we got the honour of transporting the flame across part of London Bridge.

More details later, but here's a couple of photos to be going on with ;o)

Wendy & Caesar with Police and BOCOG flame escorts in blue tracksuits, moments before handing the flame to Brian Thompson a fellow Samsung Everyday hero contest winner.

Note: at least thirty minders!

One day closer to the torch relay!

Today Caesar went to the groomers for the full works! Very kindly, Erin, his groomer gave up a day of her holiday to work and groom Caesar for his big day. Thank you so much Erin, we really appreciate it. :o)
Now all we have to do is hope it doesn't rain so Caesar can have dry walks and not get too wet until after the weekend ;o)

Meanwhile, Wendy did another radio interview!

Tainted Terminal 5 proves too hot for Olympic torch arrival

Olympic Torch to get VIP arrival in London! It arrives at Heathrow Saturday night in readiness for the Torch Relay through London on Sunday.

read more | digg story

Getting Ready for Our Big Day

The past couple of days have been a bit hectic with media interviews and preparations for our big day next Sunday.

Caesar and I are carrying the Olympic Torch during the London leg of The Olympic Torch Relay! Woo Hoo!

Last autumn, Wendy was nominated by a friend (Karen) in a competition run by Samsung to find "better life heroes", people who had triumphed over diversity. To our surprise we won, and the prize is to carry the torch in London and also later in the year travel to Xi'an in China to support the relay there too. Both Wendy & Caesar will be carrying the torch, Caesar is so much a central part of Wendys' life and a catalyst for her achievements, it would not be the same without him.

We attended a star studded bash in London last autumn, where we were presented with a certificate and a super Samsung phone, and met Kimberley Walsh from Girls Aloud and Olympic Legend Sir Steve Redgrave.

The event was reported in The Daily Mirror

I have scanned another couple of nice articles from The Daily Echo and The Sun.

Wendy & Caesar with Sir Steve Redgraves 5 Olympic Gold Medals

The Olympic Torch Relay will run from Wembley to Peninsular Square in Greenwich and Wendy & Caesar will be running along Cannon Street from the junction with New Change to just east of Mansion House. To see a view of our route, click here. We'll be expecting to run at about 3.06pm.