Day 4414

Oliver and Charlie were playful today. We had plenty of time to spend with each of them because they are currently the only Dalmatians at the kennel. We've decided that Oliver should have been named Goofy because he acts like a giant clumsy puppy. He can't catch anything, but he sure has fun trying. He loves tug toys though. Playing tug is his favorite game. Charlie seems to be mellowing out a bit. He was content to just sit with us and let us pet him for a while this afternoon. You can't really relax with Charile though. He's not a lap dog. He can go from calm to chaotic in less than a second.

On the way home from the kennel we missed one of our regular turns and ended up getting lost in Richardson. It's weird to think that we have lived here over forty years and there are still many parts of the city and its surrounding suburbs that we have never even driven through. We had to set the GPS in the car for home to find our way out of the suburban maze.

I am continuing to do little chores around the house that I should have taken care of years ago. This morning I bought several hundred pounds of river rock and filled in a big rut in the driveway that was causing the suspension on my car to scrape against the pavement when I was backing out of the driveway. I have been able to avoid fixing the hole for quite a while because my car has a hydraulic suspension and I can raise the car up while I drive over the obstacle. Since I was doing this every time I left the house I began to worry that I might get a leak in the hydraulic system that would cost a lot more to repair than a load of river gravel. The rocks were heavy and kind of a mess to transport, but my repair was a success and I can now get the car into the carport without scraping anything.

On the way to get the river gravel, I stopped at an AT&T store and asked about the iPhone Mini for a dollar a month promotion I'd been getting notices about. "Oh, that promotion ended two days ago," the sales guy told me. Snooze, you lose I guess. I asked why they had been practically giving these phones away. "This was an iPhone 12 and we're practically up to 14 already," he told me. He also added that no one wanted this model because it was too small. "But I wanted one," I said. Too late. The promotion was over.

It was a rainy day today so I didn't even attempt to walk very far. We did manage to get Dawn walked this morning before the drizzle started but the rest of the day was a mess. I found a little dry spell on the weather radar after we got back from the kennel, but it didn't seem like it would stay dry for long. I only walked two miles today and my feet are probably thanking the weather gods. The weather was dismal, but I did see the eagle again. I didn't have my camera with me and didn't particularly care. Hey, I've already got a picture of the bird.

Janet has to get a Covid test before she can go see her doctor. It's weird. When we went out for Thanksgiving Dinner last November I was convinced that the pandemic was just about over. Now it's back  with a vengeance and everyone is scared of Omicron. You have to wonder if we will be stuck with this mess for the rest of our lives. So many things have been done wrong fighting the pandemic and now the disease has become completely politicized. Common sense certainly doesn't prevail anymore. Do you take the red pill or the blue pill. It's a tough choice sometimes.

I have no idea what I'm going to do tomorrow. I'm sure I'll come up with something. The weather forecast says it will be sunny. I'll take that with a grain of salt. It was supposed to be sunny today.

Holly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4379

It was raining when we woke up this morning, so we had to wait to walk Dawn. Janet went to the gym. I started the pumps on the roof, did a load of laundry and ate breakfast. Eventually the rain stopped and we resumed our regular schedule.

When I checked my Fedex account this morning I saw a note that the barcode on my package was unreadable and a new shipping label had been applied. Jeez. It took them a week and a half to discover this? Maybe they just wore the original barcode out by scanning the package so many times. Apparently Fedex only does one thing each day because there has still been no delivery scheduled. I didn't bother to call again. I have nothing left to say.

When the rain stopped we took Dawn on her morning walk. After she completed her one mile loop, Dawn and Janet returned to the house and I continued walking. This was a terrible day for foot pain. I still don't know what makes things so different from one day to the next. I probably should have cut today's walk short, but I finished my entire route. This might have been my slowest day ever. I keep walking because I don't know if the foot pain is ever going away and I'm not ready to be housebound yet.

Janet got some special Christmas cookies for Charlie and Oliver when we went to visit the kennel today. The dogs were glad to see us and we played until each dog got tired. Nobody wanted to go outside in the yard because it was still very cold. This will be the last time we get to see Charlie and Oliver until the holidays are over. Holiday travelers will start boarding their dogs soon and we would just be in the way. I thought we might meet the two new puppies that entered the rescue program recently but they are still at the vet.

Yesterday I had to figure out why U-verse wasn't connecting to the new TV. Today I had to figure out why my new Fitbit was draining my iPhone battery. As is typically the case with these type of problems, I found a lot of people online who were experiencing the same battery drain frustration. I was able to slow down the battery drain by turning off background app refresh on my phone but then I discovered that the Fitbit wouldn't sync anymore. This is still a work in progress. It's too bad that I am hooked on steps and tracking stats. Today the Fitbit was just a giant nuisance.

The dehumidifiers have prevented moisture forming on the windows in the Winter, but the house still gets cold. My office is always the coldest room in the house since it is the most distant from the furnace. I've had to break out the little ceramic heater again to keep warm while I'm at the computer. I still spend a lot of time at the computer because old habits are hard to break. I'm not sure what else I'd do around the house anyway. At least our current cold wave will be a short one. I think temperatures will be up in the 80's again by Christmas Eve.

I have a dental appointment on Thursday and then I'm done with medical visits for the foreseeable future. I hope I'm not done with everything. The NASA folks have been strangely silent lately and I haven't heard from my friends at the observatory either. Janet keeps wondering when I'm going back to the space center but I just don't know. Until something develops, I'll keep walking every day and looking for my lost package.

Lexi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4372

It was a normal Monday. We got up early, took Dawn on a sunrise walk, I ate my breakfast, and then took my own longer walk. The weather was a little warmer  today so I didn't have to change clothes as the sun got higher like I did yesterday. I has a leftover Santa Paws donut with my breakfast this morning and wondered how people can eat these things on a regular basis. There is an insane amount of sugar in a regular glazed donut.

The park has turned into a construction zone. You'd think they were building a new freeway instead of a trail by the amount of activity I'm seeing. It's going to be this way until next Summer, so walking options for Dawn are a bit limited now. I don't think Dawn minds. There is no construction near her favorite one mile loop. Janet has done an amazing job with Dawn at their Wednesday training class. She's starting to act like a well behaved dog now.

My feet gave me a lot of trouble on my long walk this morning but I managed to complete five miles. I've tried Biofreeze and Voltaren for pain, but neither makes much of a difference. Maybe it's just time for new shoes again. Despite the foot pain, it was a nice day for a walk. The weather was crisp and cool, but not freezing and windy like it was yesterday. All the ducks and geese were in their proper places too. I do like consistency.

When I returned home we went up to visit Charlie and Oliver at the kennel. Both dogs were full of energy today and we played for a long time. Oliver seems to be getting more mature. He loves to fetch things and bring them back to you. He is even learning to release the toys so we can throw them again. Charlie is a little different. When you throw a toy for Charlie, he wants to thrash and kill it. To get Charlie to release a ball or toy you just throw another. He has a short span of attention and is easily distracted. We washed Janet's car at a car wash next to the kennel on the way home. I was surprised at the price of a car wash now. It seems to have doubled since I've taken my own car through a car wash. 

I was planning to pick up my FedEx package on our way home from the kennel, but it still isn't ready yet. I think this further delay might have been my fault. When I put a one day vacation hold on the delivery, I thought it would only apply to home deliveries. Apparently the package doesn't go anywhere during a vacation hold. It's still sitting at the main FedEx receiving warehouse. 

I guess it doesn't really matter when I get this little star tracker. I'm hearing on the Kickstarter support group that most people who received early shipments haven't been able to use them yet. There is nothing wrong with the product itself, the the app on your phone that controls the tracker is still full of bugs. I have a feeling that the lower price Kickstarter backers were able to get on this innovative product is because we are really just product testers. The company is using our feedback to refine the product for retail sale. By the time I eventually get a chance to use this thing under a dark sky, I'm sure all the bugs will be gone.

Tomorrow I have an appointment to see the dermatologist. This is the last of my annual appointments, although I still need to see the dentist toward the end of the year. I have to have these annual visits to make sure that my Actinic Keratosis doesn't turn into squamous cell skin cancer. This type of Keratosis is caused by caused by ultraviolet damage to the skin. It is very common. I guess I should have worn sun screen or at least worn a hat when I was younger. I'll be glad when I can check all these doctor visits off my list. I'm getting tired of going to the doctor.

Hopefully, I will finally be able to pick up my FedEx package tomorrow. I may not be able to use it for a while, but it's been a long time since I initially backed this Kickstarter project. I'm very curious to see if it works.

Cookie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4309

Last night's big storm didn't really amount to much. We got a lot of rain, but it was all over in less than an hour. It was pretty quiet at our house even though some people might have experienced a lot of wind. The roof didn't leak, there were no downed trees, and the pumps on the roof were still working in the morning.

I got all my walking in early today, so we could go visit the rescue dogs at the kennel. Dawn is definitely more adventurous now. At least every other day she's been walking longer and exploring some new territory. Today was a good day and we ended up walking almost two miles. I hit the trails again right after breakfast and had a nice long walk while the temperature was still pleasantly cool. I always count the resident geese and the Muscovy ducks when I walk and nobody was missing today. It's a simple thing, but I feel better when everything is in it's proper place.

Janet says I'm not doing my share of the driving, so I drove to the kennels today. We learned that the new girl who just entered the program wasn't going to be arriving until this evening. I guess I'll take her picture next week, assuming that she isn't already adopted by then. We were greeted by Charlie and Oliver. Although Oliver is a very young dog, he's large like Cooper was so I got the two mixed up for a while. I should have known the difference right away. Cooper could catch a ball like a champ. Oliver is a big, clumsy puppy who can't seem to catch anything. He has lots of fun trying though and makes us both laugh. We've finally gotten to know Charlie well enough that we can spend a few quiet moments with him.  He's usually like a coiled spring when we first see him and literally bounces off the walls chasing and catching things. After a while though he will sit on a bench with us and let us pet him. This is progress. I still think Charlie would make a great pet for the right person. You wouldn't want him sleeping in bed with you though.

I've never been a political person, but I hate what is happening in this country right now. I don't think any administration could make this many horrible blunders accidentally. Someone is doing this on purpose. These are people who hate this country so much that they are willing to tear the entire institution down in hopes that they can impose their own social order on the rubble and ashes that remain. The country was established as a republic instead of a pure democracy because the founders wisely valued individual freedom and didn't want to give the central government too much power. The battles we are seeing now are not really between Democrats and Republicans. I am neither. I see this as an epic struggle between people who think their own tribe or group matters more than the individual and people who still believe that the individual matters most. This country was built on the idea of individualism and it will be destroyed by tribalism. If tribalism and government mandates are what you want that's fine; but don't expect me to be on your side. I still believe in individual excellence. I basically just want to be left alone to talk about dogs, but if you keep poking me with a stick, I can be your worst nightmare. I don't think I am alone in this. Just look at all the Southwest Airlines pilots and staff who walked off the job recently in a massive "sick out" to protest their airline's vaccine mandates. I'm fully vaccinated, but that was my choice. Everybody should be able to make their own choices. 

I have no idea why anyone still reads this blog. I'd be the first to admit that it's pretty boring. I do know a small handful of progressives who read everyday and probably think I'm on their side. Nope. You got that wrong, just like everything else.

Katy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day