Day 1596

I took my last Sovaldi pill this morning. There are still a few Ribavirin pills left, as a result of the time when they lowered my dosage to compensate for a low blood platelet count. I'll need to call my nurse at the liver center tomorrow and see what they want me to do with the remaining pills. Your guess is as good as mine on this one. Maybe the two pills are only meant to be used together, or just as plausibly, the Ribavirin may still be useful on its own. I'm just glad that I've just about put this segment of my life behind me.

Dash has some medication issues of his own. The cancer center gave him some Tramadol on Monday to alleviate pain associated with the radiation sore on his neck. He never seemed to be in pain though, and after only one day, the medication is making him wonky. One of the side effects of Tramadol is that it can make you very drowsy, or in rare cases even appear sedated. I'm not sure Dash was actually sedated, but he certainly seemed out of it for most of the day. I think I'll discontinue the medication. It would be one thing if he was really in pain, but I think this drug is making matters worse. When I told Dot's physical therapy vet what was happening with Dash, she said that she'd be more likely to prescribe an antibiotic to help prevent a secondary infection than to use a pain pill at this point. It's frustrating that vets, like my own human doctors, rarely agree on everything. All I know is that Dash acted perfectly normally before he started taking the pain medication. Now, he is acting loopy.

Dot wasn't as relaxed as she normally is at her acupuncture session. She appeared a bit stressed today. Maybe it was just that kind of day. Everyone I encountered today seemed a bit stressed. Sadly, I'd have to include myself in this category as well. We got slowed down by road construction on our way to the vet. One of my nagging website problems has reared its ugly head again. I'm even behind on my writing assignments. It's only Tuesday as well. At least there were no tornadoes here. The weather was beautiful again today. Lets hope these nice Spring days continue for a while.

I forgot to put a large black plastic bag full of garbage in the trash can yesterday evening and awoke this morning to discover that racoons had torn the bag apart and strewn garbage all over the back yard. I don't know why I left the bag at the back gate without actually placing it in the garbage can, but that's how your memory gets when you get older. I'll certainly remember to complete this chore now. Those racoons really made a mess of things. It took me forever to get everything cleaned up again so the dogs wouldn't go looking for stray chicken bones or other things they shouldn't be eating.

It's hard to believe that April is over already. Tomorrow is the last day of the month. Before long, I'll be complaining about the relentless Texas heat and wondering how to get rid of the wasp nests that appear every June. I seriously doubt that I could go a week without complaining if my life depended on it.

Parker is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day