Day 3602

I really enjoy the time we spend with the Dalmatians on Mondays. We currently have lots of dogs, so our visit takes most of the afternoon. It is time well spent. The dogs all have distinct personalities now. Some are rambunctious. Others are still shy and timid. Most of the dogs walk well on a leash now. A few have already learned basic commands and will sit, stay, and even lie down. Even the shy dogs have learned to take a treat from your hand. We're making progress.

I wish I knew what makes the shy dogs so fearful. You never really know with a rescue. They probably have a good reason not to trust people. Building trust is one of the reasons we spend so much time with these dogs. They need to learn that life can be good. Happy dogs always have an easier time finding a home. It helps that the kennel staff is so good with these guys. You can tell that they are gaining confidence.

Leftie found his forever home this week and someone is going to adopt Ginny as soon as she finishes her heartworm treatment. It's not surprising that the friendly, affectionate dogs tend to find homes faster than the shy ones. Luckily, shyness is seldom a permanent condition. Many dogs have led a difficult life before they entered the rescue program. It is only natural that they might not immediately trust you. Hopefully our attempts to socialize these guys will help them find the homes they all deserve.

I take a shorter walk on Mondays now. I only walked three miles today but it was nice to get outside. I wonder how long this nice weather will last? It is rare that you can take a walk in the park without feeling either too hot or too cold. Today was one of those days.  We're not getting a lot of Fall color this year, but I need to start taking a good camera with me anyway. There are lots of trees in the park and you never know when you'll see a spectacular splash of red and gold.

It looks like the little circus has finished its run in Dallas. They were starting to take down their tent this morning. I wonder why the performers would choose to spend their life this way. Audiences are small and nobody is getting rich. To each his own I guess. The circus performers would probably wonder why I'm attempting to spend time in a remote part of the Davis Mountains looking at the night sky.

I got a bid to replace the large sliding glass door. Unfortunately, it was not the same type of door and the replacement won't look good with the existing architecture.  Even custom fabricators say they can't duplicate the existing door. Jeez. I need those guys on that "This Old House" show on PBS to come to my house. Ordinary contractors just don't seem well equipped to deal with vintage house problems. So many things in our house just aren't made anymore. Even simple things like cabinet hinges have disappeared over the years. I bought spares for some hard to find items years ago, but when the spare parts start to wear out, you are out of luck.

I'm glad that the dentist was willing to reschedule my appointment so I could visit the dogs today. I'm wondering if it is even worth the effort to replace my retainer. I haven't been wearing one lately and everything seems fine. What do I know though? I seldom question doctors and dentists anymore. I've learned that I get better results by doing what they tell me.

Ginger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3223

Surprisingly, nothing went wrong today. Dash slept through the night for the second day in a row. There were no accidents and when I took Dash outside when I woke up, he pooped and peed like any normal dog. We took a nice walk while Janet was fixing breakfast and enjoyed a brisk Fall morning.

I think this was the last day for the State Fair of Texas. It appeared to be the last day for the little circus in the park as well. There was a performance today, but there was also a large truck getting ready to pack everything up and travel to their next destination. The little circus has been here almost a month and during that time they've only had three clear days. Hopefully they'll have better luck in California.

I don't know why I keep stopping at REI on the way to the gym. There is nothing that interests me anymore. It's disappointing. For years this has been the place where I've found sturdy shoes and durable pants for walking Dash. The place is full of clever solar powered gizmos, binoculars, satellite phones, freeze dried gourmet food, and other gear that satisfy my prepper fantasies. I just walk away without buying anything now. The store is still full of cool things. I guess I just have everything I need.

I still can't figure out how my gym can stay in business when there are so few customers. For over a month the place has been virtually empty on Sunday. Maybe it is crowded at other times of the week. I'd never know. I wasn't shooting very well on the basketball court today. This is a mystery as well. Some days I do really well and other days I suck. You'd think there'd be more consistency. I'm really a very consistent person.

I was going to vacuum this afternoon, but I got sidetracked repairing Dash's protective boots. He drags his feet so much when he walks that the boots get destroyed pretty quickly. It would be impossible to walk without these things. They do a good job of protecting his feet. They just don't last long enough. I've used almost three tubes of Shoe Goo trying to keep these boots operational. We've got four pairs that we rotate, but I probably need a few more. Too bad these little shoes are so expensive. I've spent less on my own shoes.

I think I'll go look for a new storage warehouse tomorrow. If I can find a better price, this might be the incentive I need to actually start throwing things away. There's nothing like being forced to move something to make you realize that you don't really need it. Where do I throw stuff away though. The storage warehouse won't let me use their dumpster anymore. Actually nobody will let you use their dumpster these days. Most businesses keep them locked up behind chain link fences now. The city ought to have a lot of big communal dumpsters strategically located throughout the city but I think they spent all their money building bike paths.

I hope that Dash has turned over a new leaf and continues sleeping normally for a while. When Dash sleeps normally, I sleep normally. It was such a weird sensation to wake up rested this morning. I need more days like this.

Lance is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3220

I cleaned up poop in the middle of the night again. Luckily, Dash made it off the bed, but he couldn't make it to the back door. Several people have suggested that I try diapers. Unfortunately, diapers seldom work on a dog with severe mobility problems. Dash can barely stand up as it is. We've tried doggie diapers and while wearing them, he can't seem to move his rear legs at all. Puppy training pads don't work either. Dash has always moved around at night. If you place a pad under him when you go to bed, he will be somewhere else when you wake up. Puppy pads worked great for Dot. I've still got several cartons of them at the storage warehouse. I've just got to realize that Dash is a different dog. It's not his fault. Old age catches up with all of us eventually.

It was damp and overcast today, but there was very little rain. I'll take what I can get. When I was walking Dash this morning, I noticed that the little circus in the park was getting ready for a show. You've got to admire these guys. They couldn't have picked a worse time to come to Dallas, but they refuse to give up. I almost feel like going to a show to help them out, but I've never liked circuses all that much. Hopefully, the weather will stay dry this evening. They've worked really hard to rebuild.

I found out on Facebook that another friend is in the hospital. This happens way too often. My generation is falling apart. I guess younger people still find out about weddings and engagements on social media. Older people find out about their friend's knee replacements, back problems, and cancer. The page for my high school class has kind of turned into an online obituary. All this decline and decay makes me nervous, but I still feel healthy. I hope I've got a few good years left.

I have no idea how long Dash has left. He's hung in there a lot longer than I expected. I think the pain pills are helping. He still stumbles and falls, but he seems more confident now. For a dog who can barely move, he sure loves his walks. Dash is facing old age with a lot of dignity. He accepts his many frailties and does the best he can. He and Dot have been an inspiration. When I wake up with a stiff neck or a sore back I keep thinking "if these dogs can do it, so can I."

Neither of us set the world on fire today. My to-do list has shrunk to breakfast, dinner, and walking Dash. I did a little house cleaning this afternoon, but I also took a long nap with Dash. Hey, I deserved a nap. I felt like I was up half the night cleaning up after Dash.

I think it's supposed to rain again tomorrow. I wonder how long this can go on? I think we have doubled our annual rainfall in less than two months. We'll see how it goes. I've taken the trash out to the curb and am ready for bed. If it's nasty tomorrow morning, I'll just stay home and make pancakes. I can always go out for breakfast when things dry off.

Little Petey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3215

What a mess. The rain was relentless today. Just as I predicted, the roof started to leak again. Lately, it's been leaking whenever there's been an extremely heavy downpour. The fact that standing water alone doesn't cause the roof to leak ought to tell me something. I still can't find the leak, unfortunately.

Although I've got buckets on the living roof floor again and can still hear a steady drip, drip, drip as water hits the buckets, my problems are small compared to the little circus in the park. I really feel sorry for these guys. When Dash and I took our evening walk, I noticed that their tent was totally underwater. The water was three to five feet deep. I saw circus performers and crew standing waist deep inside the tent, trying to salvage chairs and props. Some chairs were actually floating away in the lake.

I wonder why nobody bothered to tell these guys that they were pitching their tent in a flood plain and that this was the rainy season in Dallas. Sadly, there is another city park less than five miles away on top of a hill. If they had located there instead, they never would have had a problem. One of the performers told me that they had four shows scheduled today. There were two matinees and two evening shows. The show obviously didn't go on.

Amazingly, in spite of the downpour, Dash still got two walks. The rain didn't start until almost 9 AM and by 6 PM, it was all over. In between, there was lots of thunder, a very scared dog, and a pretty soggy trip to the grocery store. It's sad that Dash has such limited mobility now. During thunderstorms, he still wants to crawl under my desk. This is his safe place. Unfortunately, he gets stuck in small spaces and can't get up. When he starts to struggle, his fear only increases. I had to block the office off today with a gate for his own safety.

When I went grocery shopping this morning the rain was coming down so hard that I could barely see the road. Several cars appeared to have stalled out and were sitting on the side of the road with their blinkers flashing. Nevertheless, this was still just rain. It's hard to even imagine what people in Panama City Beach are going through now. I've seen the pictures and it looks like this little costal town was totally destroyed by the hurricane.

The weather forecast says the rain is likely to continue through the end of next week. I'm not looking forward to that. Janet told me that there was a roof leak over at the storage warehouse. I'll have to take a look tomorrow and make sure that my unit is still dry. The pump on our roof still works, but it doesn't do much good. Right now, it is only removing water from the carport. I'm not even going to attempt to clear the standing water away until the rain stops. It's dangerous and ultimately the effort is pointless.

If it has to rain tomorrow, I hope there is no thunder. Dash has enough problems as it is. He definitely doesn't need to deal with storm phobia. We'll see how tomorrow goes. Maybe I'll still go to the gym. Maybe I'll just stay under the covers.

Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3213

I had an enjoyable conversation with the art expert at the auction house today. I'd made an appointment so he could appraise the stuff I wanted to consign. The guy was German and loved mid-century houses, so we had a lot to talk about. I achieved my objective too. All the work was accepted to go to auction and I returned home with an empty car. It's been years since I've had a serious conversation about art with anyone, so I was surprised that I still had knowledge and opinions. Talking about art and artists made me a bit nostalgic for my younger gallery hopping days. Good times. Maybe collecting is a meaningless activity, but I did have a lot of fun.

Dash is wearing me out. He got me up three times last night. Then he got alarmed when Janet left the house while he was asleep and he couldn't find her when he woke up. Dash doesn't react well to surprises these days. The good new is that the Rimadyl we've started giving him for pain appears to be working. He's walking steadier now and seems to have more energy. I've never been a fan of Rimadyl, but I don't want him to be in pain. Hopefully, there will be no serious side effects like there were with one of our other dogs. We'll see what Dash's lab results look like at his next exam.

I can't believe how slow I've become. I made my appointment with the art appraiser for noon, thinking it would give me plenty of time. I barely made it. All I did this morning was walk Dash, eat breakfast, and take a shower. I used to be able to do all this by the time I left for work at 8 AM. If I get any slower I'll soon be spending the entire day making the bed.

I noticed that the little circus in the park was having a performance while we were taking Dash on his evening walk. I wonder how these guys make any money? It didn't look like they had much of an audience tonight. I thought these guys must be local, but I looked them up on the Internet and they appear to be national. Their next stop is somewhere in California. What ever possessed five people to start a miniature circus and travel around the country giving performances in public parks? I'm curious, but apparently not curious enough to buy a ticket.

Another week is drawing to a close. For some odd reason I keep thinking that Thursday is the last day of the week. It feels that way to me. The week is over when I take the trash out to the curb on Thursday night. Maybe my breakfast excursions on Friday morning seem like a new beginning. I guess it doesn't really matter when the week starts or ends. All the days seem the same anyway.

Katy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3211

What's up with Google? Remember when their motto was "Don't Be Evil?" Good times. Now it appears that they just don't know how to be good. Google had one of the most massive security breaches in history and they don't even bother to tell their users. Maybe they thought nobody would notice. They agree to build a totally separate censored search engine for China. Maybe no one would notice that either. There are all kinds of rumors that Google search results are biased. Who knows. They probably are. Google certainly isn't talking. I used to get most of my news and information from Google Reader until Google abruptly discontinued the clever feed aggregator. I was fascinated by Google Glass. I was even thinking about buying a pair until the innovative augmented reality spectacles quietly disappeared. Now, Google+ is going to be discontinued as well. I loved Google+. It was the only social media site where I actually took the time to interact with anyone. Come on Google. Would it have killed you to keep this platform going? What is Google going to abandon next? I hope it isn't Blogger. I've spent so much time using Blogger that I can't even imagine starting over someplace else.

Remember when I thought the little circus in the park would wind up in the water if we had another heavy rain? When we were walking Dash this evening I noticed that the circus tent was in the lake. I feel sorry for the circus performers. There won't be a show tonight, unless it involves ducks. Yep. We had another day of record rainfall. So far my own roof isn't leaking again, but I think we missed the worst of today's storms. At least we aren't in the path of a hurricane. One of my relatives lives on the Florida coast. Things don't look good for them.

I called the roofers again today, but I got a message saying "Mailbox Full" and my call was not accepted. This has happened before. If my roof is leaking, chances are that thousands of other roofs all over town are leaking as well. I imagine the roofers are pretty busy today. October is traditionally the rainy season here in Dallas. It sure would be nice if we got our rain in the Spring when the grass was starting to grow, rather than in the Fall when it is beginning to go dormant.

I finally contacted the last auction house on my list. They agreed to evaluate all the remaining items I'd still like to consign. I never realized that decluttering would be such a huge task. Inch by inch, I'm getting there though. I wish I was faster. My storage warehouse comes up for renewal at the end of the month and it looks like I'm going to have to rent the unit for another year. I was hoping that I'd be able to thin things out enough so that I could get a smaller storage space, but that's not happening. Maybe next year.

Dash wanted to eat grass and leaves again tonight. He hasn't done this for several months and I was hopeful that we had finally found a diet that agreed with him. Now, we're on vomit watch again. He hasn't thrown up yet, but he could at any time. It's frustrating that none of this is apparently under our control. Dash just has good days and bad days.

I hope we both have a good day tomorrow. The unrelenting rain is giving me cabin fever again.

Maverick is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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