Everywhere you look people are Zooming… book clubs, dog classes, family get togethers, cocktail parties. UCLA, in an effort to keep everyone connected and to let more faculty, staff and students meet the dogs, has been holding all sorts of sessions. We are experiencing this difficult time together so it’s also a chance to communicate, commiserate and support each other.
With the variety of virtual visits the Doods and I have been doing lately, I’m proud to say that my tech “savvyness” has grown by leaps and bounds.
ELBEE That is not a word. And “leaps and bounds” means that she can now log in to a meeting and actually get the video turned on.
This week some of the teams from the People Animal Connection did a teleconference with the history department. I think that’s what it’s called when you can see everyone, including yourself, in little squares on the screen.
It was going great. Students and staff from the department were so enthusiastic about meeting the dogs. Someone even commented that Gus’s hair looked just like Brian May’s from Queen. Being a fan, I loved the comparison.
ELBEE Bohemian Rhapsody is my favorite movie. Yes, we have screenings up here.
Then I had an etiquette dilemma. I noticed that my blush, which I was wearing for the first time in days, was too heavy. I didn’t know whether to discreetly try to blend it or duck out of the meeting, fix it and return.
ELBEE Is she kidding?
On another morning we did a virtual visit with the younger kids and the teens from the neuropsych units. We’ve done a couple before and have been trying to figure out ways to get the patients more engaged.
Shortly before we were going to start, Ursula, an amazing therapist whom we’ve worked with for years, e-mailed me and said how about costumes for the dogs. Having dressed up the Doods more times than I care to admit, it was a no-brainer. I threw together hats, scarves, sunglasses.
It was a hit from the beginning. The kids were laughing at the costumes and voting on the costume changes. We let them choose red hat or tan, pink tiara or blue? By the time we signed off, I was as happy as the kids had been.
A short time later, I received another e-mail from Ursula. Prior to the visit, one of the girls had been extremely withdrawn. During our onscreen costume party she had suddenly come to life. According to Ursula, “she was totally engaged and distracted while she was watching.”
It was one of those moments that make me look at Gus and Stanley, plus Charley and Elbee before them, with such incredible gratitude and wonder. No matter how many times these little miracles occur, they will never cease to amaze me.
