Day 2212

Dot's cancer is growing again. Her oncologist said that she wasn't that alarmed by the growth, but it was still disheartening. We had gone for over six months with no growth in the tumor whatsoever, so it was easy to start believing that the cancer was in remission. We talked about the merits of resuming chemotherapy and both of us agreed that in Dot's case, chemo probably did more harm than good.When Dot initially started taking Palladia to slow down the growth of the tumor, she quickly became weaker and within a week she could hardly walk. She was just too old and weak to tolerate the powerful drug. When we discontinued the chemotherapy, her mobility began to improve again. It's a tough choice when you have to choose between quality of life and length of life. Dot was miserable when she couldn't move around. Her mobility is still limited, but she can move around the house on her own and has a sense of independence. The cancer will win in the end, but for now she is a happy dog. I hope we did the right thing.

I wish I'd remembered to bring the lawn mower battery inside for the Winter before the temperatures dipped below freezing. I forgot, and now I've ruined another expensive 24 volt battery. I brought the battery inside this afternoon anyway, but I'm pretty sure I'll have to have it re-celled again in the Spring. I've learned the hard way that freezing weather and batteries isn't a good combination. This is the third lawnmower battery I've ruined. I wonder how car batteries survive as well as they do? They're out in the cold all the time. Any other type of battery is usually toast if you leave it too long in freezing weather.

Since it looks like it's going to be cold for a while, I'm doing my best to get ready for Winter. I've set the outside faucets so they drip a little to prevent the pipes from freezing. The dehumidifier has done wonders to lower the humidity in the house. Last Winter, I routinely had to mop the inside of the window glass with a towel in the morning to get rid of the condensation. Now, there is no condensation at all. We've learned how to attach Dot's Help 'Em Up Harness over a sweater, so she'll stay warm on our early morning walks. I've got a new pair of Winter gloves now, because my old gloves were falling apart. I can't say that I enjoy Winter, but I'm not going to let it get the best of me.

The year has just begun and there's already a stack of bills to pay on my desk. There's got to be more to life than paying bills and cleaning up poop. Maybe not. Sometimes I think I need to find a greater purpose to my life. Other times I think I've already found it. I do a good job of taking care of the dogs. I make enough sitting here writing so that I can pay the stack of bills on my desk without leaving the dogs. I haven't had a boss to tell me what to do in over 25 years. That's all got to be worth something. I'm not sure how writing this blog every evening fits into the grand scheme of things, but maybe this ongoing saga is valuable to someone.

Lucy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day