Day 4605

Modern life is weird. The phone seems to ring constantly now but I never answer it. All the landline calls are spam. The phone company even knows the calls are spam but still puts them through. Typically, there is a message on the caller ID that says "Suspected Spam" or "Telemarketer." Why are these spammers so relentless about attempting to contact you? I suspect that virtually nobody answers these calls. If someone really wants to contact you these days, they send you a text message. It probably all just comes down to money. Spammers are probably the phone company's best customers.

Nobody knocks on your door anymore. If they did, you definitely wouldn't answer it. If you go out for dinner, you have to be careful where you go. Some places are no longer safe after dark. If your car breaks down on a busy road, you lock the doors, call AAA on your phone and wait for the service vehicle to show up. You can't depend on a friendly stranger for help anymore. When did the world change? It definitely wasn't this way when I was a kid. My friends and I never worried about being kidnapped and half the time our parents never knew where we were. Even when I was in college the world seemed relatively safe. I hitchhiked all over the country during my college years without a care in the world.

I feel like movies like Mad Max and Bladerunner were just preparing us for a dystopian future. Sadly, that future is here. I hate to even turn on the TV anymore because there is nothing but bad news. At least there are dogs. I find solace in dogs and am convinced that they are nicer than most people. I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way. There are a lot more pictures of dogs on my Facebook feed than there are of people enjoying each others company.

I may not go out at night anymore, but I still go to the gym during the day. There is nothing threatening about my gym. Most of the members are older like me. They seem quietly determined not to let themselves fall apart. It is somewhat inspirational to see a person even older than I am lap me on the indoor track. I doubt that there are many drug users in this group. I don't know these people but they seem like confident self starters. Even the people in physical therapy seems like they are really trying. Am I slowly becoming a gym rat? I doubt it, but there are definitely worse groups of people to hang out with. The Gym is OK.

Our heat wave seems never ending. It seems strange to read about floods in other parts of the country. We haven't had rain in so long that I've almost forgotten what it feels like. One of the smaller trees in our front yard is dying. I've been watering it, but it seems beyond hope. The asian jasmine ground cover that is out of reach of the sprinkler is dying as well. Almost all the grass in the park is dry and brown. This is not good. The drought will end eventually. Fall is usually our rainy season. Often is seems to rain continually during the State Fair. When the rain begins, there will be a sigh of relief, some temporary joy, and then we'll all start complaining about the rain.

I was surprised that Janet and Dawn went to training class tonight. It was still very hot around sunset. Janet said that Dawn was the only dog in her class and that she got a private lesson with the trainer's dog. The class was short and Dawn didn't get too hot. You can't be too careful in this weather. It will be nicer when we take our sunrise walk tomorrow morning. Sunrise walks are still the best part of the day.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day