Day 2225

I frequently forget what day it is. It seemed a lot like Sunday to me. Since Janet had the day off, we got up late again and didn't finish breakfast until almost lunch time. We walked the dogs a little later this morning on the theory that if the sun was a little higher in the sky, it would be warmer outside. It never did get very warm, but at least it was clear and there was no wind.

Since I didn't go to the gym yesterday, I decided to go today. I'm always surprised at how crowded the place is on Monday, but maybe it was because today was a holiday. I stopped at a new REI store I always pass on my way to the gym. I hadn't been inside a REI store since I used to live in Seattle, but was delighted with what I saw. I love this kind of stuff. There were tons of warm coats and lots of sturdy pants with pockets everywhere. There were boots that looked like they would last forever, although I could probably wear them out in a year. I like to dress like the apocalypse is just around the corner, so this store was right up my alley. Oddly, they were having a Winter clearance sale during one of the coldest days of the year. I found a nice goose down jacket on sale and bought it. When I was at the register the clerk asked me if I was an REI member. I didn't think so, but the guy insisted on looking up my name. "Sure, you're a member," he said. "Did you ever live in Rogers, Arkansas?" "That's my Dad," I told him. "Well, would you like to use his membership for this purchase," he said. It didn't seem right. My Dad has been dead for over a decade.

Since the gym was kind of crowded today, I had to use some different equipment than I normally use. One of the machines required me to move my wrist a lot. Ouch! I hadn't used this particular machine in over a year and it was obvious that during that time my carpel tunnel had gotten worse. I'm not sure what to do about this wrist. I do my stretching exercises, but my range of motion continues to gradually get worse. I definitely don't want surgery. I know several people who have had surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome and their condition didn't improve at all. I've learned from the dogs that surgery should only be an option when you have run out of other options. Dot and Dash wouldn't be here today without the help of some very talented surgeons, but their cancer surgeries weren't without consequences. It takes a long time to recover from major surgery and the older you are, the more difficult the rehabilitation becomes.

Dot's front leg continues to improve. I think we got lucky, because it appears that all she did was strain a muscle or ligament. We're still taking it easy on our walks though. We walk slow and watch carefully for any sign of weakness. It's always a balancing act with Dot. It is essential to keep her moving to keep her condition from rapidly deteriorating, but she is very fragile, so you've got to be careful not to let her overexert herself. At least for today, I think everything is in balance. Dot had a good day.

Tomorrow should be busy. Janet returns to work and so do I. I have new writing assignments to complete and another website to update. There is a fresh supply of strawberries and bananas for my morning smoothies and a new winter coat if it is really cold in the morning. I measure my days now by my ability to get Dot outside before she poops. We'll see how tomorrow goes.

Dovey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day