I had just finished a very productive day in the office at the University of Florida. My research was going well, and I was certainly in high spirits!

As usual, I rode the bus and walked for another 10 mins from the bus stop to my apartment.  It was a brilliantly blue day, as it is most days in Florida. I had my headphones in, which is generally not a very good idea for a blind person. But don’t worry: one of the headphones was not completely in, so I could still hear my surroundings.

So I walked along, listening to my awesome upbeat music and slightly skipping along the sidewalk. The longer I walked, the more spirited I felt, and my mood was greater because of the productive day I had just had.

But suddenly, I feel a wetness on my right hand! I nearly jump out of my shoes!  I am shocked, and quite obviously confused, so I stop and remove my head phones. Now I hear laughter coming from behind. This makes me even more bewildered! I look down at the ground and find a dog looking up at me, his mouth open, panting. I jump and squeal, which causes the dog to also jump in shock. His owner comes up and tells me, “My dog has been following you. Sorry he licked your hand!“