Day 2472

The bananas didn't ripen at all this weekend and were still green this morning. I thought about chopping them up and throwing them in the Vitamix anyway, but after tasting one, I decided against it. There must be a chemical change that goes on in bananas as they ripen. These didn't taste like anything I was familiar with. The taste was somewhere between a raw potato and wood chips. My smoothie didn't taste the same without the bananas. Bananas are tricky. If you pick bright yellow ones that are ready to eat, they go bad quickly. If you pick green ones, you're never sure when they are going to ripen. I'll try to do better next time.

You probably think green bananas aren't even worth mentioning, but they kind of became the theme for the day. Nothing really went as expected. Dot stumbled three times on her morning walk. All we did was go around the block, so the walk wasn't strenuous at all. I made sure she rested when we got home and sometime later in the day she pooped all over herself and made a huge mess.

The roofer finally called me back and said he hadn't forgotten about me. He told me that they were so busy fixing actual leaks that potential leaks had to wait in line. I hope they hurry. My potential leak is going to become an actual leak if the repairs get delayed much longer. The house I owned before this on had a flat roof too. It's hard to believe that I've spent almost 40 years dealing with one frustrating roof problem after another. Don't ever buy a house with a flat roof. No matter how cool the house looks now, you're going to regret your decision later.

The power went out for about thirty seconds early this morning. Even though the electricity came back on almost immediately, it took forever to reset all the devices that immediately lost their memory. Just about everything has a clock inside it these days. All the internal clocks needed to be reset. I reset the coffee maker so it would turn itself on and be ready for me when I woke up. I reset the timer that turns the living room lights on at sunset. I turned the washer and dryer off, because somehow they both turn themselves on after a power outage. I reset the humidity threshold on the dehumidifier so it wouldn't turn itself off when the humidity reached 50%. There were several clock radios that had internal clocks and probably a few other things that I haven't even discovered yet. Electricity can be complicated.

I got a new writing assignment today and finished several small website updates. The work I do now tends to keep me busy, but the budgets are so small that I never make any money. One more frustration in a long list of frustrations. There is no point in turning these little jobs down, because what else would I do? It would be nice if I would get a job with a decent budget every once in a while though. I have a feeling that this has something to do with Karma. I must have done something terribly wrong years ago when I was making a lot of money.

I'm not sure what we'll be doing tomorrow, since I canceled Dot's physical therapy appointment. Maybe I'll go buy some new bananas. I don't think the ones I've got are going to turn yellow overnight.

Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2471

Apparently, I'm not the only person dealing with frustration. Every call I got today involved some sort of frustration. Information wasn't correct on a website. Paypal deposits weren't being transferred properly. Responsibilities weren't being delegated. None of these problems were caused by me, but I did my best to fix them. In one case I had to get a new set of passwords to access a problematic website. Apparently I had been replaced and I didn't even realize it. The person who replaced me did a sloppy job and now the client wanted me back again. Sure, whatever. I had been completely oblivious to all the drama going on behind my back.

I'm glad I'm nearing the end of my working career. The work world seems so chaotic now. All my clients seem more stressed out than they used to be. Everybody is being squeezed. Customers are demanding more. Employees are becoming less reliable. The pace of change is definitely accelerating.  I haven't been responsible for hiring people for a long time. If I were faced with hiring millennials today, I think I would just throw up my hands in despair.

None of my own frustrations were work related today. Most of them involved my deteriorating roof. It must have rained a lot harder than I though the other day, because there was still a ton of standing water up on the roof. When I pumped the water away and swept the roof dry, I discovered even more damaged areas where the elastomeric coating had peeled away from the roof's surface. There are more than a dozen serious bad spots now. The roofer is ignoring me too. I've called several times and sent multiple e-mail messages, but have yet to get a response. I don't know where this is going. The patches don't seem to be working and the roofer clearly doesn't want to give me an entirely new roof.

Dot still seems tired and sore. She is slowly recovering from her fall last week, but I don't think she's ready for physical therapy yet. It's looks like I'm going to have to cancel our Wednesday appointment. Dot would probably still benefit from acupuncture, but it's difficult to travel with her in the car. Unless she's feeling pretty good, the adverse effects of the car ride negate any benefits she might receive from therapy.

I would like to think that tomorrow will be different than today, but it probably won't. I'll turn on the television in the morning and hear the same news about terrorism and political circuses. I'll fix the same fruit smoothie for breakfast, hoping that the bananas have ripened a bit. Dash will interrupt my breakfast with non-stop barking and Dot will poop when I least expect it. There will probably be websites to update, but none of the changes will be of any consequence. I'll look for something to photograph for tomorrow's blog post. My shoulder will hurt and I'll think about taking a nap, but the day will be over before I get around to it. Then it will be Wednesday.

Rhett is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2467

Dot fell on her morning walk and injured herself. She's limping on one of her front legs again. The only solution is lots of bed rest and maybe canceling her therapy sessions for a while. I think she is just sore, but she did take a nasty tumble. It's really hard to walk Dot when she stumbles so easily, but we do the best we can. It's still important to keep her moving. The last time this happened, she was a lot better 24 hours later. Hopefully, some added rest will help her recuperate again.

We've had trouble with our front loader washer almost from the day we got it, so I was encouraged today to read that a large class action lawsuit against multiple manufacturers of these machines had been settled and owners were going to be compensated for repairs. Whirlpool, Maytag, LG and a number of other popular brands were covered in this settlement. Where was Frigidaire though? Was I going to be compensated too? Nope. Frigidaire and their parent company Electrolux were the only companies still fighting the lawsuit and refusing to settle. The problem with all of these machines is that they they never really dry out after doing a load of wash and eventually mold starts to build up inside the machine. It doesn't take long for the rubber boot that is used to seal the front loading door to turn black. Frigidaire refuses to even acknowledge that there is a problem. I can show them a big problem.

One of my clients is having problems with their website forms again. Problems with forms seems to happen with disturbing regularity. The hosting company changes something on their server and doesn't bother to tell their customers. Sometimes they move the CGI Bin to a different location. Sometimes they stop supporting older forms altogether. I spent a considerable amount of time with tech support this morning trying to determine what was causing the "Internal Server Error" message people were getting when they submitted the forms, but I basically got nowhere. Tech support people don't seem to know as much as they used to. The person I talked to today opened a job ticket on my case and said she was going to escalate my request to a higher level of service. I'll probably have to call four or five more times before the forms are actually fixed.

The roofer still hasn't responded to my request to come out and examine the roof again. I was very polite when I told them about the latest problems, but so far they're ignoring me. This happens sometimes. Do they think I'm just going to go away?  I'll keep calling and sending e-mail until I get results. It's so frustrating when people over promise and under deliver. All I really want is the roof these guys promised in the first place.

I remembered to take the trash out to the curb this evening, but during the short time I was away, Dot pooped on one of the large living room rugs and then stumbled and fell in the poop. In case you haven't noticed, this hasn't been a very good day.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2245 - Superbowl Sunday

Today had its ups and downs. We woke up to discover that Dot was having difficulty walking. As most of you know, she has had trouble walking ever since her spinal injury last year, but today was worse than most days. She couldn't put any weight on her left rear leg at all. This has happened before, so we let her rest in hopes that she'd just slept on the leg wrong. Occasionally, her leg gets twisted in an awkward position when she attempts to get up and re-position herself during the night. If I wake up I'll check and make sure her legs are straight, but sometimes I sleep through her attempts to move. The only thing you can do is let her rest for a while and hope for the best.

Dash likes the mornings when Dot has to rest, because he gets a long walk by himself. We were out for over an hour this morning, walking along the shoreline, reacquainting ourselves with sections of the park that are too distant for Dot to reach these days. Dash didn't seem the least bit concerned that Dot was having a tough day. He just seemed happy that he was finally getting some individual attention. By the time we returned, Dot was already feeling a little more stable. The next time I took her in the back yard to pee, she was already starting to put a little weight on the rear leg. It's always a judgement call when we have to decide if Dot has had enough. If we quit trying to keep her moving, she would quickly become an invalid. Pushing her too hard is equally bad. You have to find the sweet spot where she remains motivated, without asking her to do anything that might make her condition worse. For Dot, and myself as well, life has become one long physical therapy session.

After breakfast, Janet went to a Dalmatian Rescue event and I went to the gym. I probably should have just taken the day off and rested with Dot, since my bad shoulder was really acting up today. I have a feeling that we both slept awkwardly last night. Dot twisted her leg, while I must have gone to sleep with my arm in the wrong position. It happens. I concentrated on cardio training this morning and didn't do any routines that would aggravate my shoulder further.

On the way home from the gym, I stopped by my favorite barbecue place and picked up two pounds of pork ribs, some fried okra, a pint of potato salad, some barbecue beans, and a couple of Corona beers. This seemed like the kind of food you should eat watching the Superbowl.

I enjoyed the game and was happy that Denver won. I always root for the old guys these days. I was glad to see Payton Manning go out on top, becoming the first NFL quarterback in history to have 200 wins as a starter. Everyone looked good today. Lady Gaga sang the best rendition of the Star Spangled Banner since Whitney Houston's memorable performance twenty five years ago. Lady Gaga seems to have grown up. Hanging out with Tony Bennett has been good for her. Nobody will ever top Michael Jackson's half time performance, but Coldplay, Beyoncé, and Bruno Mars put on a good show.

I'm still laughing at Larry David's take on the Bernie Sanders campaign last night on Saturday Night Live. Larry David is perfect as Bernie. The Iowa Caucus skit where Bernie lost by five votes because he alienated a voter by refusing to shake hands with a her after she coughed in her hand, and then compounded his error by refusing to try to pop another woman's shoulder back in place while he was going out for coffee was hilarious. Sienfeld meets politics, meets reality. This political season is very confusing. Am I watching an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm? Am I watching an episode of Celebrity Apprentice? Who knows.

Stortz is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2223

Dot had a bit of a setback today. She was perfectly normal on her morning walk, but later in the day we noticed that something was wrong with her left front leg. She was having a lot of trouble standing and walking. Keep in mind that her left rear leg is already very weak. Having both left legs lame made it very difficult for her to keep her balance. I figured out a way to rig her harness so I could support her both in the front and in the back, but I still don't know what is wrong. It could be anything. Her neurological problems could be spreading. She could have injured the front leg somehow. It's even possible that she was having a mild vestibular stroke. What I'm hoping is that she just slept on the leg wrong and it felt numb when she woke up. This happens to me occasionally. If you fall asleep on top of your arm, it often feels numb or prickly for a while when you first wake up. Dot is resting now. Hopefully her condition improves after she's had some rest.

It was a cold, grey day. It still might snow this evening, but I kind of doubt it. I think the worst of the weather is North of us. French Toast and sausages always seems like a good idea on a nasty day, but our delicious breakfast did little to improve the weather. I updated a website while waiting for the weather to improve a bit, but eventually I gave up and went grocery shopping in the rain. While I was out today I picked up one of those digital TV antennas that let you watch over the air broadcast stations without a cable subscription. I haven't installed the antenna yet, but it would be weird if it worked. When I was growing up, we had a TV antenna that let us watch a total of thirteen channels. That's exactly what the digital antenna promises. It's kind of a back to the future kind of thing. If the antenna works, I'd be real temped to drop the U-Verse TV. It's expensive and goes out all the time. Local over the air stations and Netflix is probably all you need anyway.

I was going to cut the tree limb that fell yesterday into manageable pieces that I could take to the curb for big trash day, but it was too cold. I'll take care of this task on a warmer day. I had my hands full taking care of Dot anyway. Why do bad things with the dogs always happen on weekends and holidays? I'm not sure a vet could tell me all that much anyway. This kind of lameness has happened before. It just seems to take longer to recover each time it happens.

I was thinking of going to bed early tonight, but it's already late. Hopefully, we'll all sleep soundly tonight. I need some catch-up sleep. I need a lot of things. I need to go to the gym tomorrow. I need to clean the house too. It's been two weeks since I vacuumed all Dot's rugs and they're getting filthy. At least it's a three day weekend. At my current speed it will probably take two days to get my Sunday chores done. What happens tomorrow will depend largely on how Dot feels in the morning. I hope she's walking again.

Shelby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2052

I renewed my storage warehouse lease for another year. I always rent the storage unit for a year at a time, because I get thirteen months for the price of twelve this way. I've had the storage space for so long that I think I've received an entire year in free rent by now. When I first got the storage space, it was just a convenient place to store amplifiers and guitars between gigs and bulky lighting equipment between photo shoots. Now, it has become a repository of memories. The remains from just about everything I've ever enjoyed doing in my life is sitting on a shelf somewhere. There are wind surfing boards, electric trains, framed pictures from old gallery shows, obsolete computers, old guitar amps, and much more. I wish I didn't need a storage warehouse at all, but I get very attached to things. Even broken things are hard for me to throw away.

The latest thing I'm trying to resurrect is the old Sony laptop I told you about yesterday. I asked the guy in the repair shop at Fry's if he could install a new hard drive for this 1997 machine and he told that I could get a brand new laptop for less than the cost of repairs. When I explained that I didn't actually need the computer and that it was just something I wanted to fix, he gave me a blank look like he didn't understand. Maybe the guy had a point. Why would anyone want a computer that only ran Windows 98 and had a hard drive that with less capacity than the memory sticks I use with my cameras. I did a little research on Google and discovered that nobody even makes IDE hard drives any more. All the replacement hard drives are SATA. I found a website that showed how to disassemble the computer, but it looked a little tricky. The article with the hard drive upgrade instructions was dated 2008 and the author considered this particular computer to be ancient even back then. It might be harder than I thought to bring this thing back to life. Jeez, if it's this hard to bring a modern looking little Sony laptop back to life, I wonder how hard it would be to get my old Osborne-1 running again?

Dot had kind of a rough day today. She was a bit shaky on her morning walk and walked with a limp around the house. I still can't figure out what makes some days good and other days bad. I may be wrong, but I think it has a lot to do with how she sleeps at night. If she goes to sleep with her bad leg tucked under her, she always seems to have a limp the next day. I always try to make sure she is sleeping on her side with the bad leg on top, but it doesn't really help. She always wakes up two or three times a night to circle around and reposition herself. Usually when I wake up the next morning, she has managed to get the bad leg tucked up under her.

I managed to find a replacement the tiny watch part I destroyed yesterday. The little screw cost me $5.00 but I considered that a bargain. I'll try to be more careful when I try to reassemble the watch this time. I received another writing assignment toward the end of the day, so maybe doing this new article will keep me busy enough so I won't be tempted to fix anything else this week. I've broken enough things for one week.

Tink is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2045

It was an exceptionally slow day. Now that we're getting up early to walk the dogs before sunrise, the days seem even longer. Sometimes they're too long. After I spent as much time as I could watering the lawn, eating breakfast, checking my stocks, and making sure Dot was comfortable, I realized I still had to get to work. I got on the Internet and reviewed how to install and configure Chromecast. I promised a client that I would set up Chromecast to play videos and slide shows in their lobby tomorrow and I've already forgotten how. I just added Chromecast to my own office network a few weeks ago, but since I was alone at the time, I didn't need to act like I knew what I was doing. It's weird how quickly I forget things. The online instructions were clear, so I think I've got my ducks in a row. You never know though; I could forget a lot by tomorrow morning.

Since there wasn't much work on the agenda today, I though I'd play my guitar for a while. I always play through a preamp using headphones, so I won't disturb the dogs. Unfortunately, when I'm wearing earphones, I can't hear what the dogs are doing. I would periodically get up, take the headphones off and check on Dot and Dash, just to make sure they were both still sleeping. It's hard for me to relax anymore. I seldom play entire songs. I usually just noodle around, playing random blues scales and riffs. I find this relaxing. I used to write songs this way. I would just aimlessly play random things until something melodic struck my ear. Sometimes it would take hours of aimless playing, but a song would eventually appear. I would then sit down and write lyrics to this scrap of a melody by hand on a big yellow tablet. If the tune still seemed like a song a couple of days later, I would call some friends and we would record it. I haven't written a song in a long time. I wrote sad songs mostly and I'm not sad anymore. I'm just tired.

I buy most of my camera gear from B&H in New York. Unlike most spam, I love getting e-mail from companies like B&H and Sweetwater. Every once in a while B&H sends me an e-mail with a Daily Deal that is impossible to resist. Today, they tried to tempt me with an HDMI field monitor at a ridiculously low price. It was a good brand too. I realize that most deals like this are for merchandise that will soon be discontinued, but what do I care. I still work with a lot of equipment that is thirty years old. When I realized that I could get the monitor for almost nothing if I used an B&H gift card that was lying around in my desk to lower the price even further, I was hooked. Lord knows when I will actually use this cool little field monitor.  I've only been asked to produce a single corporate video this entire year.

I'm worried about Dot. If she sleeps well, she's usually pretty good early in the morning. She still really enjoys her pre-dawn walks, but she tires quickly. After she and Dash have had their breakfast and morning walk, they basically just sleep for the rest of the day. As the day progresses, Dot goes downhill. By dinner time she has a pronounced limp and often can barely walk. We're trying to use acupuncture to stimulate her weak leg at our Thursday therapy sessions, but it doesn't seem to be working very well. The leg has a constant tremor now. It's almost like she has Parkinson's Disease. I really don't know what to do. Dot has a fabulous medical team and is receiving the best possible care, but sometimes you just run out of options.

I always look forward to the Thursday physical therapy sessions. The acupuncture really does make Dot feel better for a few days and I think the muscle atrophy in her rear legs would be even worse if she didn't use the underwater treadmill. We're just slowing down the inevitable though. I wish there was more I could do.

Pongo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2033

I got the go ahead to begin another new website project. It is a small project, but aren't they all these days. I'm just happy to have the work. I'm not motivated enough to look for challenges outside of work, so I depend on new projects to keep my brain in gear. This project will keep me thinking for a little while, and then I'll have to find another one.

Without projects and deadlines, I tend to obsess about little things around the house. I wonder why the ice-maker is filling up with ice too fast. Is it broken, or are we just not putting ice in our drinks anymore? Where do all the little ants in the bathroom come from?  I spray and plug up all the cracks that might let them in from the outside, but they are always there. Lately, I've been spending way too much time wondering when Dot is going to poop next. She doesn't give you much warning anymore and if you don't read the tea leaves exactly right, there's a mess to clean up in the house. I think I'm getting better at reading the subtle signs. I've gotten her outside just in time for three days in a row.

Last night I woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and noticed that I could only see out of one eye. The sensation only lasted a moment or two, but it was very odd and a bit alarming. It was almost as if one eye had see a very bright light, causing the pupil to contract. By morning, I was wondering if I had dreamed the whole thing, because my vision was completely normal. Assuming the momentary blindness was real and not a dream, I'm wondering if it was caused by the Apple Watch. The display turns on and off when you look at it and it is fairly bright. This feature works great when you are awake and standing up, but I've noticed that the display seems to flash on and off randomly when you are tossing and turning in bed at night. Often my hands wind up near my face when I'm asleep and maybe the watch was directly in front of my eye while the display was on in my sleep. Just a thought. I'm beginning to think this was just a dream though. If it happens again, I'll need to see an eye doctor.

I mowed the grass this afternoon. I usually do this on Saturday, but I thought I'd get the chore out of the way early and save Saturday for other things. I have no idea what I'm actually saving the time for, because I certainly don't have any plans for the weekend. The time will get used up though. It always does. Maybe I ought to go out and buy a flat of Monkey Grass at a garden store. The Liriope in one section of the back yard is starting to die. You'd think that with all the rain we've had this year that all the plants would be doing wonderfully, but that's not the case. Janet and I apparently do not have a green thumb. It is a constant struggle to keep the yard looking nice.

Dot's limp is a little better today. I still haven't heard anything from the oncologist at the cancer center, but since Dot has an appointment next week for a re-check, maybe I'll just ask all my questions again in person. I wonder if the receptionist didn't relay my message to the doctor. They are usually very good about returning my calls. Hopefully, Dot's condition will continue to improve. We need to keep her strong, but it's getting harder and harder.

Keller is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2032

Dot did well during her physical therapy session today. We talked about what was causing her to limp and came to no firm conclusions. The vet agreed that the limp could be caused by a wide variety of things, including an underlying neurological problem, too much exercise, or the Palladia pills she's taking. I'm going to ask Dot's oncologist if it would be OK to discontinue the pills for a month after her next ultrasound scan. If there are no adverse effects from postponing the chemotherapy for a while, at least we could determine if this was the cause of her lameness. For the time being, we will decrease the distance she walks slightly, while still having her climb small hills each morning to strengthen her leg muscles.

I finally finished editing all the images for my client's multi-media project. We've got enough pictures now for a nice slide show or a short Ken Burns style movie. If they want a slide show, I'm going to try to convince them to get one of those little Chromecast streaming sticks and just link it to pictures in a Google album. I've tried this and it's a super easy way to make a quick, professional looking slide show. When you select the Chromecast stick as the input source on your TV, the Google photo album you select will end up being the default screen saver. I used to spend days creating lobby presentations for clients and the first time I tried using Chromecast, I had a great looking presentation up and running in less than five minutes. I never thought it would happen, but I'm I'm finally willing to admit that I don't really need a DVD drive anymore. Netflix, Chromecast, Apple Music, and a host of other cloud based solutions are just so much better.

I traded my Apple Watch for the larger model. Why? Who knows. Truthfully, probably the only reason I exchanged the watch was because I could. I was perfectly happy with the smaller watch, but I like this slightly larger version too. Really, they're both pretty much the same. Hey, it gave me something to do after I brought Dot home this afternoon, it didn't cost very much to upgrade, and now I've got a bigger watch. I'll have to figure out something else to occupy my time tomorrow.

The reason it's been a slow week is that my writing assignments have dwindled to almost nothing. I finally discovered why today. The person who sends me most of the writing assignments is on jury duty. She must have gotten selected for a trial because she's been out of the office for quite a while. At any rate, when I resume cranking out articles, I'm be just as busy as I ever was. I actually ought to be grateful for the opportunity to take a breather. It's been nice not having much to do for a while.

This week has gone really quickly. I'm looking forward to going out for breakfast tomorrow. It will be nice to eat in peace without two barking dogs on either side of me. I created a monster when I started feeding Dot and Dash a banana while I ate my breakfast. Now, if the don't get their banana, they bark and howl until I peel and slice one up for them. Are these dogs spoiled? Of course they are. I've got to figure out another way to deal with this breakfast commotion though. Dot is gaining weight again. With her weak rear lags, we've got to be especially careful about her weight. She really doesn't need to be eating bananas and extra kibble after she's finished her regular breakfast. I've thought about solving the problem by just going out for breakfast every morning, but then I'd be the one gaining weight.

Greta is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2030

Dot is limping today. Her left rear leg has been a little weaker than the right leg for quite a while, but today she could barely put any weight on it. The limp seems worse when she first wakes up, so maybe she's sleeping on it wrong. When she circles around to change position during the night, she has trouble extending her legs after she lies down again. One leg often gets stuck under her body and I have to gently move it for her so she can relax and stretch out. I don't always wake up to do this when she wakes up though. Maybe the problem is neurological and has nothing to do with the way she sleeps. The doctors have always told us that some of her nerves may never grow back completely after the spinal injury. Maybe I'm exercising her too much. It's hard to tell. She walks better after she's been moving around for a while, but she's pretty frail. There's a fine line between getting enough exercise and overdoing things. Unfortunately, Dot doesn't know where that line is. Neither do I on many days. I'm doing the best I can, but this is not an easy rehabilitation.

When you get an Apple Watch, they give you two weeks to decide whether you really want it. At any time during the initial two weeks, you can return the watch and get your money back, or exchange it for a different model. Since my two weeks are just about up, I stopped by the Apple Store to see if I'd made the right decision. I have a small wrist, so I had selected the smaller 38 mm model. The watch fits perfectly and is about the same size as some of my favorite mechanical watches. Maybe I should have gotten the bigger watch though. Bigger frequently seems better to me. I'll always pick the biggest cheeseburger at a restaurant and I've never liked to drive a small car. You can tell that I probably didn't have much on my mind today. At any rate, Apple was out of stock of the larger 42 mm watch, so the decision was made for me. I should learn to stick with my initial instincts. They are usually right. Back when I was playing in a band, I would frequently trade guitars on a whim. Several of the initial guitars I bought turned out to be very collectible. The guitars I exchanged them for after I got bored turned out to be worthless. You should learn to trust your instincts and not be distracted by new shiny objects. I'm a Gemini though, so this is difficult.

I'm really curious to see what Pluto looks like. The NASA New Horizons mission is less than a week away from it's encounter with the ninth planet. This will be the last time that anyone alive today will get to see images from a brand new planet we've never seen before. We've already landed on or flown around all the other planets. We've even landed on a comet. It's amazing to me that Pluto is so far away that it take over four hours to send a signal to the spacecraft or receive a picture back from it. Even more amazing, in an odd way, is that the New Horizons spacecraft, along with all its sensors and cameras, is carrying a small container with the ashes of Clyde Tombaugh, the astronomer who discovered Pluto in 1930. I should have been an astronomer instead of an adman. I was never good at math though. I was always much better at convincing people to buy things they didn't need.

I don't know what I'm going to convince myself to do tomorrow. It's going to be a slow day. I'm just about caught up on converting the websites I manage to new, mobile friendly versions. My writing assignments have slowed to a snail's pace, although that could change at any time. My doctor's appointment got canceled tomorrow. Dash probably won't even want to take a long walk, because it's getting too hot. Maybe I'll fix myself an elaborate breakfast. Maybe I'll play the guitar. Maybe I'll just spend the day feeling ambivalent.

Delaney is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1826

I got impressions made of my upper teeth at the dentist today. I'd never had this done before and it was certainly an interesting experience. First they fill all the little gaps between your teeth with a special putty, so the liquid silicon impression material they use to make an exact mould of your teeth doesn't get stuck in your mouth when the material cures and hardens. Since I still have a cold, I was afraid I would start coughing during the procedure and screw everything up. Staying still while the first base impression cured was fairly easy. When the dentist started to make the second fine detail impression using a different type of material, he told me that I would need to breathe through my nose for four minutes while the impression material cured. "This ought to be interesting," I thought. I'm still very congested and breathing through your nose isn't something you often do with a bad cold. I tried to breathe very slowly through my clogged nasal passages and hoped the four minutes would be over quickly.

Dot gave me a scare today. When I got out of the shower this morning, she was standing near the bathroom door and refusing to put any weight on her left rear leg. The limp was pronounced and fairly alarming. I gently manipulated the leg to see if she might have had a cruciate tear. Older Dalmatians often tear their anterior cruciate ligament and I'm always afraid that this might happen with Dot. Her rear legs are so weak anyway that a tear could happen any time. I've seen many cruciate tears and Dot didn't seem to exhibit any of the obvious symptoms. I have a feeling that her leg fell asleep. She also could have slipped off her dog bed while she was having a dog dream and had difficulty getting up again. At any rate, she wasn't in any pain and could support her weight on the lame leg when I tested her. I rested with her for a while and then we walked slowly around the house when she was ready to get up again. Within thirty minutes, she was completely back to normal with no limp at all. I'll probably never know what actually happened.

I worked on getting all the Santa Paws equipment we used this weekend put back in its proper place today. Some of the stuff goes under the bed, some goes in the storage warehouse, and some I use all the time. Since we won't be doing this again for quite some time, there's no sense to clutter up the entry hallway any longer than necessary.  The house looks much better now that this stuff is hidden away again.

My Jawbone UP band broke today. Janet and I have each broken three of these things. I still think the little UP band is the most inconspicuous and unobtrusive fitness tracker out there. You quickly forget that you're even wearing it. I love the technology, but the quality is terrible. I've never had one of these things that's even lasted a single year. Sometimes Jawbone will sent you a replacement band for free. Other times they won't. It just depends on what kind of mood they're in. I doubt that they'll send me another replacement this time. I'm probably on a Jawbone blacklist by now. I'm hooked on these little activity trackers, but I don't think I'll get another one. Maybe I'll just wait until the Apple watch comes out next Spring.

I still need to do my Christmas shopping. We need to put up a tree too. For some reason, it's hard to get in the mood this year.

Jasper is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1342

Now Dot is having problems. She stumbled getting out of the car at the dog park this morning. At first I thought her slight limp was the result of landing too hard as she jumped off the car seat. After a few minutes, she seemed just fine at the park. Later in the day though, she had periods where she seemed unsteady and confused. Occasionally she would have trouble getting up. Once, when she was standing, she almost toppled over and I had to rush to catch her. For the most part however, she seemed absolutely normal, with no limp or side effects whatsoever. I started to wonder if her neurological problems had returned and shortly after dinner, my fears were confirmed. After taking a nap, she couldn't get up at all.  I helped her stand and she tilted to one side like she had vertigo. I'm almost certain that she's had another seizure.

It's stressful knowing that either dog could have a seizure at any time. Dot's seizures are completely different than the ones Dash has too. His are quite violent and hers seem like someone just temporarily switched off her brain. When Dot has episodes like this, she has a vacant, non-responsive look and appears totally confused.  The vet says she may be experiencing vertigo during these episodes and loses her sense of balance. I'm going to try to get her to see a vet tomorrow and find out if the problem is in her legs, or in her brain.

If it weren't for all the dog problems, it would have been a nice, relaxing day. The weather was unusually cool for this time of year and I'm more or less caught up with work projects. Since Janet has a birthday coming up, I did some shopping and package wrapping while Janet kept an eye on the dogs. Janet had to go to a meeting later in the day and I stuck to doing things where I could keep Dot at my side. She's resting peacefully now, but I think she might have problems when she tries to go out to pee just before bedtime. The last time she tried to get up, she was really shaky.

I hope things return to normal tomorrow. It was going to be a busy day already, but if Dot's condition doesn't improve with rest overnight, it's going to get a lot busier. Hopefully, I can get her in to see the vet in the morning, although I'm not certain if there's anything that can be done at this point. I wish the dogs were younger, since many of the problems that come with old age simply can't be reversed. I wish I was younger for exactly the same reasons.

Lucy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1184

The dogs don't like being walked separately. Both dogs want to be the first one to take a walk and get indignant when they are left behind. Eventually, everything gets sorted out and they are happy again after they've both had their time outside. Dot's legs continue to improve, so hopefully this new arrangement will just be a temporary one. It certainly takes me a lot longer to walk the dogs separately. I know I did other things, but it feels like dog walking was all I accomplished today. Next week I'm going to take Dot in for acupuncture therapy. Acupuncture really helps to reduce pain and inflammation for some dogs, and does absolutely nothing for others. We'll see what happens. I don't think it would hurt to try.

I wonder what would happen if we selected our president the same way the College of Cardinals selects a pope. I kind of like the mystery of the whole process. It probably wouldn't work though. If our senators and representatives went into a secret room that they couldn't leave until they all reached a consensus, I don't think we'd be seeing any white smoke for a long, long time. There's a good chance they'd never reach a decision.

I approved the landscaper's bid and they're going to get started on the back yard sometime next week. That's one ugly eyesore down, three or four ugly eyesores left to go. There are a lot more things that need to be taken care of around the house, but we'll have to deal with them one at a time as money becomes available. Sometimes I think my own services are the only thing that hasn't gone up in price over the years. Everything else has become incredibly expensive.

Tonight was supposed to be the best night to see Comet PanSTARRS. I looked and looked while we were at dog training class this evening, but couldn't see a thing. The comet was supposed to be visible to the naked eye, although I'm sure very few people saw anything inside the city limits of Dallas. There were clear skies this evening, but with all the city lights and haze near the horizon, I had trouble even seeing the moon. I'll try again tomorrow. Comets are rare and it's always fun to see one.

Wyatt is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1182

It looks like my car is going to be in the shop for a long time. How do I know? Well, the Land Rover dealer called this morning and offered to exchange my Toyota loaner car for a brand new Evoque. I took them up on their offer, of course. The Evoque is closer to a space age Jetsons car than anything I've ever driven. The entire roof is glass. It is a small car with a huge moon roof. There are no ignition or door keys whatsoever. You just put a small gizmo about the size of an iPod nano in your pocket and the car senses you. As you approach, the doors unlock and you just push a button on the dash and the car starts. Your seat automatically adjusts to the best driving position and off you go.

Hey, what could possibly go wrong?  I could just imagine going somewhere in this car and then being unable to get home again because the little gizmo in your pocket broke and you couldn't get the doors to open. I don't know how well this particular Land Rover would do off road either. It's pretty low to the ground. My simple, completely mechanical, all aluminum Defender is still basically the better car.

Dot rested well last night and was able to stand on all fours again this morning. She's still pretty shaky, but she appears much better than she did last night. When I went to make a vet appointment for her, I discovered that her regular vet is on vacation. I made an appointment with another vet for tomorrow and kept her resting most of the day. The only time she wasn't resting was when some landscaping people came over to give me an estimate on re-doing the back yard. Even though I kept Dot penned in my office, she got so upset at the strangers in her yard that she pooped all over the office floor. What a mess. I had tried to get her to go before the landscaping people arrived, but she was so stubborn about not getting her regular walk, that she refused to do anything.

There was very little writing going on today. I spent most of my time updating websites and getting the rest of my March invoices out. I had to attach past due notices to several of the invoices. That's never a good sign. I bet the mechanic working on my Defender and the landscaper looking at my yard today are both doing better than I am. It's hard to live without a car and it's irritating to live with a mud pit in your back yard. I'm probably not the only one who would pay whatever it takes to alleviate these sorts of problems. Unfortunately, the problems I solve in my own business aren't nearly as essential as having a car that runs. I'm learning that people can go a long time without changing their websites at all.

Tyson is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1181

The day started well, but ended with a mishap. Dot's rear legs gave out on her evening walk and she couldn't get up again. I've been afraid this was going to happen for a long time now. Dot is getting old. I knew she could never make it home, so I called Janet to come pick us up in the car. Dot is resting comfortably now at home, but she'll need to go to the vet tomorrow. Hopefully, she just overexerted herself today and maybe sprained something. There's a good chance she tore her anterior cruciate ligament though. ACL injuries are very common with older Dalmatians. Usually when an ACL injury happens, the dog isn't doing anything strenuous. Today, Dot was just walking slowly on level ground. That's the way it happens though. The ligament tears unexpectedly, just like an old rubber band breaking. I'm going to hope for the best and not even think about surgery at this point. We've done the TPLO surgery with other dogs, and it's pretty major. We'll know more tomorrow.

I never would have dreamed that this would end up being a traumatic day. The morning was uneventful, and so was the trip to the dog park a little later. Dot even seemed playful at the dog park. Maybe she was a bit too playful.

I started getting my tax records organized to take to my accountant this afternoon. It's always disappointing to see how much money just evaporates in a normal year with very little to show for it. The gas and electric bills looked pretty normal, but the cost of phone, cable, WiFi, and Internet services has grown exponentially. Health care is even worse. You don't even want to know what I have to pay for health insurance these days. Oh, I sold a house in 2012 too. Uncle Sam is already waiting for his share of that sale. When I look at the numbers, it's hard to feel like I'm doing well. It's hard to feel like the whole country is doing well. I think we are all just treading water.

I'm doing my best to keep the economy alive though. The Land Rover folks should be doing well after they get finished taking my engine apart. Whoever wins the bid to put on my new roof should be doing pretty well to. I certainly haven't gotten any low bids on the roof yet. I've got to hire a landscaper later this Spring as well. I could always do things myself again, but that would just be throwing good money after bad. Everything I've planted in the past three years has died.

Send your prayers to Dot. She's going to need all the help she can get.

Ely is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1165

There must be some money in the neighborhood. When I left the cool restaurant this morning, I noticed that my car was parked right next to a brand new McLaren MP4-12C. What a beautiful car! I've seen plenty of Ferrari's in Dallas, but this was the first time I've spotted a McLaren. I was curious who actually owned the car, since everyone in the restaurant was dressed like a homeless person. I guess this just underscores how blurred the boundaries between style and substance have become. Any one of the disheveled looking guys wearing grungy wool hats and plaid shirts could have been a hedge fund manager or the star of a new reality series. Maybe the guy who owns the McLaren will give me a ride someday. I'd love to tool around the neighborhood in a 618 horsepower rocket that goes from 0 to 60 in three seconds.

Sadly, my "go-to" breakfast at the cool restaurant may soon be off limits. I ran the scrumptious concoction made with two over-easy eggs on a bed of spicy pulled pork, spinach and hash browned potatoes through my tracker app and discovered that this single dish contained 171% of my entire daily cholesterol allotment. I had always considered this dish a "healthy" meal too. Sad!

I finally got a new assignment that isn't due in two hours. One of my European clients has given me an entire week to write an article for them. Such luxury! I've also been asked to bid on a new video project. Things are looking up.

When I was walking the dogs this morning, Dot tripped on a rock and started limping. We stopped for a while and I gently massaged her leg. Within a few minutes she seemed fine again. Dot is getting old and it is sad to see her start to fade. She seems a bit fragile now. Dot is the most athletic Dalmatian we have ever had and it's going to be hard on her when she starts to lose her mobility. Aging isn't much fun, for humans or their pets.

Maggie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 741

Today was one of those days that just couldn't decide what it wanted to be. I'd look out the window one minute and see sunshine and then an hour or so later, I'd look out the same window and it would be pouring rain. It went back and forth like this all day. The day couldn't decide whether it wanted to be a holiday or not either. Janet got the day off, but it was apparently business as usual for many people. Just about all the stores were open, but the post office was closed. Unfortunately, I didn't discover that the post office was closed until I went there with a pile of December bills to pay and saw the sign on the door that said they'd be open for business again on Tuesday.

When I was paying bills, I discovered an erroneous charge on my Mastercard statement. One of those companies that let people see their credit report online had charged me for something, even though I had never even heard of them before. When I called the company to see what was going on, they tried to sell me on the idea that their services would prevent this sort of thing. Huh? Not the best sales pitch in the world in my humble opinion. If this company can't even find its own billing errors, how is it going to police the rest of the world's fraud and incompetence?

Dot seems much better today. Her leg appears to be pretty much back to normal and we were able to return to our regular walks. I'm really glad that her limp was nothing serious. She's an older dog now, and I know we don't have an unlimited amount of time. Almost all Dalmatians develop weakness in their legs if they live long enough. She's still healthy now though, and I guess that's all that matters. We try to feed both dogs a very healthy diet and take them to the vet whenever anything appears abnormal. What more can you do? We certainly can't make them any younger.

Dash is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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