Day 2440

I was going to take Janet out for a birthday dinner this evening, but there was a horrendous rainstorm and both dogs were freaking out. We canceled our dinner and huddled with the dogs until the storm blew over. You really don't have a lot of flexibility with storm phobic dogs. Dot and Dash get so upset that they could easily injure themselves. Since Dot is already injured, there isn't much margin for error. I learned my lesson about Dalmatians and thunderstorms with an earlier dog we had. We came home after a surprise thunderstorm to discover overturned furniture and a big hole in the bedroom carpet where Petey had apparently tried to dig an emergency storm shelter. He dug completely through the carpet, the carpet pad, and the plywood sub-floor. When the weather's bad, it's much easier to just stay home.

I felt bad about canceling dinner, since Janet thinks I never do anything fun anymore and seldom leave the house. Some things can't be helped though. We'll go out for a nice dinner when the sun returns. I wish Dot and Dash were a little calmer when it rains, but that's just the way it is. Back in the days when the roof used to leak, I was probably just as bad are they are.

With the exception of the bad weather, the day was pretty uneventful. When I went out for breakfast this morning, there were two huge trucks in the parking lot, apparently transferring sewage from one truck to another. I took a gamble that the restaurant's air condition system would filter out the smell and went inside for breakfast anyway. Throughout my meal, I kept thinking that the smell was seeping through the walls, but I was probably just imagining things. I still have no idea why the trucks were there or what their smelly cargo really contained.

It's been so wet lately that mushrooms are cropping up everywhere. They're in the yard and they're in the park. Some of the mushrooms are pretty, but I have no idea which ones are poisonous. I do my best to keep the dogs away room all of them. I have enough trouble keeping Dash from stepping on broken glass or getting stung by a bee. The last thing I need to worry about is whether he's been eating mushrooms.

My credit card bills were lower this month. It's a start. I've been trying to cut back on spending to compensate for my paltry income, but the exercise hasn't been easy. I'd still rather go buy something than read a book. I saw an article the other day about how important it was for older people to begin downsizing and simplifying their lives before they become senile. It was disheartening to realize they were talking about me.

Hopefully, the weather will improve this weekend. The dogs aren't calm on a normal day and it's even worse when they've got cabin fever.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1730

I think we have some of the best fed squirrels in the world living in our yard. When I went up on the roof to see if there was still any standing water, I discovered a thick carpet of broken pecan shells covering the entire roof. The big old pecan tree in the side yard had a good crop of nuts this year and the squirrels are making the most of it. It's a shame that the squirrels are eating every last nut on the tree, since these tasty pecans would make dozens of great pies.

It doesn't look like we are going to get any pie this year. The squirrels have already won this battle by eating all the nuts before they have even matured. In addition to being gluttonous little piggies, the squirrels have also created a huge mess. The broken pecan shells act as a natural dye which turns any standing water on the roof a dark brown. This burnt sienna colored water in turn stains the white surface of the epoxy coated roof. I no longer have a white roof.

When I took the dogs out in the yard after lunch I smelled something dead in the corner of the yard. I looked and looked, but I couldn't find anything. I hate dead things in the yard because Dash eats them and then he gets diarrhea. The feral cats in the neighborhood are always dragging their catch of the day into the yard. Over the years I've found dozens of dead bird and mice. I'm sure the dogs have found even more. The only thing I did find today was a deep hole that looked like it had been dug by a possum or an armadillo. The hole was about eight inches wide and tunneled into the earth for over two feet. When I filled the hole in with earth, the bad smell subsided a bit. Maybe there was something dead inside the hole. If so, it's dead and buried now. I didn't want to investigate.

One of the websites I update frequently has disappeared. The server just isn't there anymore. Maybe it is down for repairs or has been taken offline for other reasons. Either way, it is a big mess because nobody received any warning that this was about to happen. People never notice a site when it's up. As soon as it goes down however, everybody notices. I have a feeling that I will be moving the site to another hosting company soon.

The dogs seemed distracted at class tonight. Dash wouldn't sit and Dot seemed to get lost during one of the exercises. It's a shame that the days are getting so much shorter already. The sun was already setting when we arrived this evening and it was completely dark by the time we were finished. There are lights in the field that we use for training, but I still prefer daylight much better.

Tomorrow looks busy. Dot has her physical therapy day. There's a meeting I'm supposed to attend. Today's website problems will probably get worse before they get better. It's only one day though and then it's Friday again.

Cleo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1299

Today evaporated in a sea of small chores. I didn't do anything important, but whatever I did seemed to occupy the entire day. As proof that all tasks get completed eventually, I hooked up a mechanical timer to the sprinkler in the front yard. I bought the timer over a year ago and promptly forgot about it. I like the idea of a clockwork mechanical water timer, because water and batteries don't seem to go together well. The first of these timers I bought broke immediately, but this one appears to be working. I bought some clear nail polish for my Chigger bites and some Visine for my eyes while I was at the pharmacy. I picked up a sack of Tangerines at the grocery store while I was stocking up on vitamins. Tangerines are so much easier to peel than large Oranges that I thought they would be a quick and easy way to make juice.

When I was putting away the groceries at home, I turned on the television and heard that a plane had crashed in San Francisco. I've flown into that airport a number of times and it always seemed strange to be over open water until the last possible second. Now I'll be even more nervous if I fly there again. I need to remind myself to actually listen to those safety instructions the flight attendants give right before you take off. It's weird. I'm very conscious of the dangers of driving on Dallas freeways, but I tend to just take flying for granted. It's kind of like riding in elevators. They're very safe, but every once in a while they break.

There's something dead in the back yard, but we can't find it. The smell leads us directly to a patch of ground cover, but after inspecting things with a fine tooth comb, there was not a mouse, or rat, or even a bird to be found. Even the dogs couldn't find the source of the offending smell, and they're the experts about rotten things. I suspect one of the feral cats in the neighborhood has the answer to this mystery, but they're not talking.

I had the best of intentions to start on the Sheetrock repairs today, but too many trivial things got in the way. One of these days I'll get the damaged ceiling fixed, just like I finally got the mechanical water timer working. It's a good thing I bought the clear nail polish today. I got a host of new Chigger bites looking for the illusive dead thing in our yard. All is not lost however. I noticed that Red Dwarf has returned to TV this evening. Lister, Rimmer, and Kryten were some of my favorite oddball TV characters from the 1980's. Re-watching an old episode of Red Dwarf seems like a good way to end the day.

Cisco is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day