Day 2669

I found out this morning that the guy who played lead guitar in my old band is dead. I was going to wish him Happy Birthday on Facebook and when I went to his page I discovered that he had passed away last September. I'm so out of touch these days that this isn't the first time this has happened. I'm kind of wary about wishing someone my age Happy Birthday now without checking to make sure they're alive first. I'm not sure about the etiquette of these things, but it seems disrespectful to send a Facebook greeting to a dead person. Although it's a little late now to pay my respects, I was really sorry to learn about my old friend. He was a good guy. The years I spent playing in a band with him were some of the best.

I cut myself again today and didn't even notice until hours later. This is the second time I've done this recently. I have a feeling that I'm scraping my arms on branches in the yard when I'm holding Dot up when I take her outside to pee. I have to really concentrate when I'm walking her around like a marionette. I used to be able to just walk behind Dot, holding up her rear end as she walked. Now, her front legs are starting to become weak as well, so I need to provide support for both the front and rear. It's kind of awkward and hard on the back, so I have to be careful that I don't trip. It's not really surprising at all that I don't notice when I've bumped into a tree.

Blueberries are back. There was a big supply today, but they had doubled in price. I wonder sometimes how stores keep a steady supply of seasonal items. These berries probably came from South America instead of California or Mexico. Somewhere there's a guy who's job it is to source berries from all over the world, so people like me can enjoy them in their smoothie all year long. I'm always impressed that things like this work so smoothly. Maybe I'm not as much of an isolationist as I think I am. I enjoy having access to fresh fruit all year long. I routinely buy coffee from Ethiopia and Sumatra. And I'm continually amazed that you can get good sushi in Dallas.

The indestructible pants I bought at REI last year are already falling apart. I'm disappointed, but Janet tells me that you're not supposed to wear the same pair of pants every day. The knees of these pants tore first, which isn't surprising since I spend half my day on my knees cleaning up poop, or trying to get Dot back in an upright position. If lifting weights is supposed to build muscle, I don't understand why I'm still having trouble with muscle atrophy. After two years of lifting a fifty pound dog, I should look like the incredible hulk by now. Sadly, my muscle mass hasn't increased at all and all I've done is tear up both shoulders.

It looks like we got a bumper crop of wildflowers this year. The fields and meadows around our house are in full bloom now. I'm seeing new varieties almost everyday. Some flowers only bloom for a few days and others stick around for months. Some bloom very early in the morning and disappear by midday. It's fascinating to watch this pageant of color unfold. I spotted some Lazy Daisies this morning. I wonder who names these things.

I'm going to have to be careful when I walk the dogs in the park tomorrow. Every year, hundreds of families have their Easter Egg hunts here. Nobody seems to hide real eggs anymore. They hide plastic eggs filled with candy and chocolate. The kids never seem to find all the eggs, but the dogs do.  Since chocolate is poisonous to dogs, I definitely don't want Dot and Dash to go snooping around in the grass for stuff the kids left behind. It's amazing how much litter appears every Easter. Nobody even tries to pick up their mess.

It's been a long day. Two rugs and a blanket got soiled, but it could have been a lot worse. Dot is tired now and so am I. Hopefully we'll get some decent sleep before we start all over again tomorrow.

Krissy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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