Day 2985

I went to the gym an hour earlier than usual, hoping to get some time on the court before the mid-day pickup game started. My plan failed. Half of the players were already there, warming up and practicing. For over two years this basketball court has been empty on Sundays. Now it appears to be a popular place for a friendly game. I don't know what has changed but the enjoyable days of having the gym practically to myself might be over.

Having the park to myself is definitely over. Today, another walk was ruined by two loose dogs. Dash has a long memory. Ever since he was attacked by an aggressive loose dog, he equates unleashed dogs with danger. Dogs on a leash are fine, but if he sees a loose dog anywhere, the walk is over. I don't blame him for being frightened. The dog that attacked him many years ago almost killed him.

It would have been a nice day for a walk. This was the warmest weather we've had all month. There were patchy clouds and intermittent sunshine. It was really a pretty nice day. I think we get another day of nice weather tomorrow and then the thunderstorms resume again.

We decided to try to get Dash's nails trimmed this afternoon. Dash won't let me get near his nails, so we have to go to the vet. I don't know why this once simple task is next to impossible now. The specialty vets at the cancer center don't want to clip his mails anymore. One one vet we know is quick enough and confident enough to get the job done, but she only works on Tuesdays and Wednesdays when Janet is at work. It takes two of us to transport Dash these days, so that option is usually out unless we can get an appointment for first thing in the morning. We tried and failed to get the nails clipped today. Dash made such a fuss that the vet tech was only able to trim a single nail. I never dreamed that trimming a dog's nails could be so difficult. Dash needs to be calm because of the blood clots in his heart. The person doing the trimming needs to be quick and confident too. Since Dash is taking powerful blood thinners, we can't risk any bleeding from a nail clipped too close to the quick. I'll have to come up with a Plan B. We certainly didn't accomplish much today.

I'm waking up tired again. There was a short period after Dot passed away that I was getting enough sleep, but now it's Dash's turn to keep me up at night. Almost every day he wakes me up in the middle of the night to go outside. I've grown to anticipate this, so I wake up at 3 AM, even if he doesn't. At least Dash isn't incontinent yet. It's only a matter of time. Incontinence is one of the cruel indignities of aging. Many of our dogs became incontinent toward the end. So did my Dad. I'm certainly not looking forward to this stage of life. It's bad enough getting up at night to pee.

I still haven't bought a new refrigerator. The roofers never replied to my latest e-mail and there's more rain on the way. I've got to fix the tiles in the shower stall, but I don't want contractors in the house. These should be easy problems to solve, but I can't even think about them when I've got a dog who doesn't want to eat and refuses to let anyone clip his nails. Worst of all, I've still got jury duty. I'm dreading jury duty.

Cookie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day