Day 4801

This is weird. We're under a severe weather alert even though it is currently clear outside and the weather apps on my phone show no chance of rain. I probably spend way too much time fretting about rain, but I just finished cleaning up the house and have cleared all the standing water off the roof. I'm not ready to go through that drill again. 

Today was basically just like yesterday. Not a lot happened. Dawn got her sunrise walk. I got my long walk in the park later in the day, and then spent the rest of my time puttering around the house. It was surprisingly warm today. I almost wore shorts on my walk, but decided against it because of the high winds down by the shoreline. I continue to follow the my familiar route through the park while maintaining my weekday routine at home. I'm really hoping that my request for Crew-6 press credentials comes though because these days are getting a little monotonous even for me. It's time for another trip to Kennedy Space Center.

I think the bald eagles have left the area. There is still a large area that the city has been fenced off near their nest, but it's been several months since I've seen the birds. I wonder where they've gone? It seems strange that they'd go to the trouble to build a large nest and just abandon it. There are still five missing geese as well. I don't think they've moved to another park of the park because I would have seen them by now. I still think somebody ate them.

I paid bills and did my bookkeeping this afternoon. Everything balances, but it took me a while. It seems like I used to be a lot faster at this. I've always used Quickbooks, but now I crosscheck everything with my online statements. If there is a discrepancy it is always a data entry mistake I've made on my end. I don't even know why I do this anymore. The online statements are probably all I need. Force of habit is strong though. There are probably a lot of things I will continue doing whether they make any sense or not.

The roofing company wants to meet with me next week to go over their bid. I'm pretty sure I'll give them the job even though I have no idea if they are any better than other roofing companies I've dealt with. Everyone I've ever used came highly recommended but I've learned that this doesn't guarantee anything. Our house is full of little non-standard quirks that can make a joke out of anyone's bid. Oh, well. I've got to do something. I just wish replacing a flat roof on an architect's unique creation wasn't so expensive. I'd much rather buy a new car.

Janet said Dawn did well at her training class tonight. She's missed several classes due to bad weather and was eager to go tonight. No ribbons this time, but you can't win a ribbon every week. I used to go to these classes when we had Dot and Dash, but there's no point for me to go now. Janet does well training Dawn and Dawn trusts her. Dawn is never going to trust me completely and I wouldn't do well as her handler.

The severe weather alert has almost expired and we still haven't had any rain. That's good news. I have no plans for tomorrow, which means that it will probably be a lot like today. No complaints though. Today was a pretty good day.

Lucky is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4011

My swallow test was inconclusive. I thought this might happen. I ate or drank a variety of substances, all mixed with barium so they would show up on the x-ray video. It doesn't appear that I have any problems with pulmonary aspiration or dysphagia. The doctor said that my swallowing actually appeared fairly normal. She suspected that the coughing was associated with my ongoing heartburn problems. I used to take Protonix, a proton pump inhibitor that effectively eliminated the heartburn. As I grew older doctors said I should quit using this because it has been known to cause bone density to decrease. The older you get, the more your doctor tends to worry about weak, brittle bones. Gradually the acid reflux returned and now I just take a Pepsid AC whern I have a problem. "Why don't you just start taking these every day," my doctor suggested. Famotidine seems to work and there are few known side effects. We'll try this. It sure seems a lot easier than more aggressive treatments. While I was getting my tests done in the Baylor radiology department, I was afraid that I was just going to be referred to another specialist. Perhaps I would need to see a gastroenterologist or an esophageal specialist. Nope. We're just going to try the Pepsid for a while. Sounds good to me.

My medical exam ate up a lot of time today, so there wasn't much else on the agenda. Just finding a parking place in a hospital parking garage can take forever. By the time I returned home, there was time for an afternoon walk and not much else. Janet walked Dawn while I was gone. They went further than we did yesterday, but Janet said that Dawn still seemed uncomfortable. I still think she is just sore from the injections she got at the vet. My arm often feels sore for several days after an injection myself. Hopefully Dawn will be back to normal by this weekend.

I used to be so good at bookkeeping when I was working full-time. Now, I hate to even open Quickbooks. I finally got around to entering October credit card charges today but I'm still way behind. Sometimes I wonder what would happen if I just quit keeping track of things, but I'm way too disciplined to go that far. I guess I'll continue methodically keeping track of everything while gradually getting further and further behind.

My editor at Sky & Telescope gave me the go ahead to start on a new article. He wants an outline this time before I submit a finished draft. That's OK, even though I'm not much of an outline guy. When advertising clients wanted an outline, I often complete the assignment first and then write an outline afterwards based on what I'd already written. I've got a good relationship with SpaceFlight Magazine now. I hope I can build one with Sky and Telescope as well.

I went out after dinner and looked at Jupiter and Saturn again. The two planets are getting closer and closer together every day. I hope it stays clear for the conjunction next Monday. I'm going to try to photograph the two planets together, but since Jupiter is so much brighter than Saturn, getting the right exposure might be challenging. The fact that I'm even thinking about photographing the conjunction here in Dallas is a good sign that my interest in astronomy is real. I seldom even leave the house after dark in Dallas.

Tomorrow I'll go looking for the shoes that the foot surgeon recommended. I doubt that new shoes will eliminate the foot pain, but maybe it will help. I can live with the aches and pains I have now. I just don't want them to get worse.

Duke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2673

Dot threw up again last night and still seemed to be having trouble swallowing her pills this morning. Things are changing and I'm still trying to figure out how to adapt. Since putting her meds inside a small ball of canned dog food doesn't seems to work anymore, we're going to try cheese. Dot has always loved cheese. If cheese doesn't work, we can always try to boil a chicken breast and then cube the meat into small pieces we can use to hide a pill. One way or another, Dot still needs to take her meds.

I don't remember aging being quite as stressful with our other dogs. Maybe it was though. I tend to blot out things I don't want to remember. Spot lived to be fourteen. Like Dot, he lived through major spinal surgery and intestinal cancer. The surgery was successful, but cancer detection methods weren't as good back then and the cancer returned. Petey died suddenly of kidney failure and Greta never made it out of the hospital after a cancerous lobe of her liver was removed. Dot has lived longer than any dog we've ever had, but I doubt she'll make it to her next birthday. It's really sad to see this chapter of her life and mine coming to a close.

Occasionally, I'll look at old movies of Dot and Dash running and jumping over things. They were both very athletic and loved the dog park. Those years seem so long ago. Life has become so much smaller. Lately, we just try to make it through the day. Success is a day where Dot is able to hold down her food and enjoy a very short assisted walk to the end of our street. I've gotten so used to dealing with her incontinence that it just seems normal now. I can almost read Dot's mind by now. A glance tells me when she is in pain or when she needs to pee. We have become very close. I know she wants to continue. I just don't know how long she can.

Since there weren't any writing or website jobs today, I decided to get caught up on my bookkeeping. It's sobering to compare this year's billing to earlier years. Truthfully, there isn't much left of the business anymore. I just can't bring myself to formally close it. When friends of mine have found themselves in a similar situation, some of them have turned to teaching. I taught as an adjunct professor years ago, but couldn't imagine doing it anymore. I've become far too reclusive.

I wonder sometimes if Dash will be our last dog. Caring for two aging cancer survivors has been more tiring than I ever imagined. My Dad had a little Dachshund who was his constant companion until the day he died. Little dogs are easier to take care of though and tend to live longer. Dalmatians are extremely active dogs and deserve to be with an equally active person. I don't know if I have the energy for another Dalmatian, but I could never imagine having anything else.

I never made it up on the roof today. I never got my bone density scan either. Dot was restless. I was slow. It's amazing we made it through the day at all. I'm hoping that we both get a burst of renewed energy tomorrow.

Marley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2578

I got a call from an old college friend who was passing through town today. We talked for almost an hour, which is almost unheard of for me. First we compared notes about who was dead and who was alive among the people we used to hang out with. Then we compared notes about doctors and ailments. Jeez. How did I ever get this old? My friend and I used to play in a band together back in the day. Back then, I don't think either of use would have ever dreamed that we would be having a conversation about Medicare some day in the distant future. Hey, I'm glad my friend still remembered me. There are a lot of people that I don't remember anymore.

Today was even colder than yesterday. I think the temperature is going to continue to drop for the rest of the week. Dot seems to be the only one who likes this Winter weather. You'd think with all her problems that she'd be the one who would want to stay inside, but cold weather invigorates her. She actually seemed eager to walk this morning. I wish she'd been a little more eager to get out of the house when she woke up. We had another accident on the way to the back door and more rugs that needed to go in the washer.

I paid some bills and did a little bookkeeping this afternoon. I'm starting to hate automatic payments, I tend to forget about them and when I eventually do remember to enter them into the ledger, it is always disappointing to realize that I have less money in the bank than I thought I did. Merchants seem to love automatic payments and subscriptions that auto-renew. I prefer to decide who to pay first myself, but there are a few things like health insurance that I'd hate to see expire because of my forgetfulness. I imagine that the older I get, the more I'm going to depend on automatic payments. I'm only mildly forgetful, but there are times when Dot seems to forget what planet she's on. Her vet thinks we ought to try giving her SAMe because there is some evidence that it is effective in slowing down canine dementia. Maybe Dot and I both ought to start taking SAMe.

I went to the vegan store to pick up something for dinner and was disappointed to see that they are already starting to raise their prices. The place has been open less than a year. You'd think they'd wait a while longer before the inevitable price increases. Restaurants and grocery stores need to be careful about price increases. People are particular about what they pay for their food. I think a price increase led to the demise of my first breakfast restaurant. The customers revolted again the price increases, so the management rolled prices back, but lowered the quality of the ingredients to maintain profit margins. That only made matters worse. I still like the vegan meals, but it kind of weird that a plate of vegetables costs more than a big juicy bacon cheeseburger at Chili's.

I think I washed everything in the house today. Dot's incontinence is getting worse and I'm not sure if there's anything we can do. One of our vets recommends adding Phenylpropanolamine to the Incurin she is already taking. Other vets say that Phenylpropanolamine can cause a dog to have strokes, just like the drug does with humans. I hate dealing with pharmaceuticals. All too often the side effects are worse than the cure.

Tomorrow we start all over again. In a lot of ways my life is starting to seem resemble that movie Ground Hog Day. I need to remember to take things on day at a time and always enjoy the good moments even though they might be fleeting.

Hunter is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1850

There is little incentive to go outside when it is eighteen degrees. You tend to stay in bed longer, linger over breakfast, and look for things to do around the house in hopes that it might get a little warmer. I can't put off walking the dogs forever though, so eventually we all suited up and pretended we lived up North. At least it wasn't as windy today as yesterday. I think Dot and Dash appreciated their sweaters this morning. Even they have their limits.

I still haven't made my travel arrangements for the SMAP launch at Vandenberg Air Force Base. I keep thinking that the minute I finalize everything they will change the launch date and I will have to start all over again. I can't delay things much longer though. Planes often fill up fast and hotels in small towns sometimes fill up even faster. Tomorrow sounds like a good day to get organized. I'll do this tomorrow. Actually, I watched a live broadcast about the satellite on NASA TV this morning. This thing is much more complex than I thought. A huge 20 foot microwave antenna mounted to a long mechanical arm rotates around the satellite at precisely 14.6 rpm. The radar beam from this rotating antenna is aimed at the earth, creating a circle over 600 miles wide as the antenna turns, allowing the entire earth to be scanned for soil moisture in just three days. When you look at the computer animations of this Rube Goldberg contraption in action, your first reaction is "This couldn't possible work." Of course I didn't think the Mars landers could possible work either. I continue to be amazed at what people can do when they put their minds to it. This is why I'm not a rocket scientist. I still have trouble getting my office WiFi network to work.

Dot had a really good day at her physical therapy session. Janet went along with us today, because she'd never seen Dot doing her workout routine in the underwater treadmill. Dot didn't disappoint. She was strong on the treadmill and very relaxed during her acupuncture session. It's hard to believe we've been doing this for over a year and a half now. It still seems like we started just a few weeks ago.

Work as a bit slow today, so I used the time to pay bills and catch up with my bookkeeping. If I'd remembered, I should have sent my January invoices out today as well, but it's hard to remember everything. I do remember that the appliance repairman promised to come back and fix our washing machine tomorrow. I hope he remembers too! I also remembered to take the trash out to the curb for tomorrow morning's trash collection. That's about it. I bet there were a dozen things I forgot.

Jordan is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1785

All day rain. Those three little words can really throw a wrench in the works at our house. Both dogs hate the rain and stubbornly refuse to go out side and pee when it's wet. They seem to think that I control the rain, somewhat like a light switch. They both wait at the door for me to turn it off. When the rain continues, they get mad and start barking. I think they're  convinced that the wet weather is all my fault. Eventually, when their bladders are about to burst, they will go outside and take a quick pee in the rain, but it is an uphill battle every step of the way. At least I got them out around daybreak for a short walk before the weather got nasty. Once the rain started, it was a lost cause.

With restless dogs and no place to go, I quickly get cabin fever on rainy days. My workload was light today, so I basically divided my time between trying to take Dot outside at regular intervals so she wouldn't pee in the house and doing a little bookkeeping. As much as I hate bookkeeping, it was still easier to balance my checkbook than it was to get Dot to pee in the rain. Even though her incontinence is much better than it was several months ago, she still needs to go outside every few hours to avoid accidents. So far, so good, but I sure hope it doesn't continue raining tomorrow.

I'm glad I voted early. I doubt that there would have been long lines at the polling places with all the rain, but getting out in traffic would have been a mess. I was happy to just stay home today. Even when cabin fever has me pacing around the house, I still have little desire to drive in the rain. Even though the rain probably decreased voter turnout, I doubt that it changed the outcome of any races. Elections are seldom even close in Texas.

It's time to make Thanksgiving dinner reservations. Last year we waited too long and had trouble finding a restaurant that could seat us anywhere near lunchtime. We haven't cooked a Thanksgiving dinner at home in years. It's easier and a lot more fun to try an interesting new restaurant. When my parents were alive, I vaguely remember large family Thanksgiving dinners, but these were not always pleasant events. I like this way better. It would be nice to find a place where the dogs could come along too, but you can't have everything.

If it continues raining tomorrow I might cook an elaborate breakfast. It's a good way to kill time and the smell of food in the kitchen keeps the dogs occupied. We'll still need to work in a walk sometime, but hopefully there will be a break in the weather. It never did stop raining today. I hear rain pounding on the roof right now, but thankfully there are no leaks. No leaks is good!

Ginger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1737

Dash went to the vet to get his blood tested today. Unfortunately, we will need to repeat the whole process next week. Dash's blood sample contained lipids, which meant the thyroid test he was having would show inaccurate results. Dash needs to fast for at least 12 hours next time so the lab can get a better sample. When I have problems with lipids, the doctors refer to it as bad cholesterol. When a dog has problems with lipids they just call it fat in the blood. I guess it's more or less the same thing.

Ever since my doctor convinced me to start taking Foltanx to improve cognition and prevent memory loss, I have been having very active dreams. I haven't noticed any difference whatsoever during the day, but my dreams are much more complex now. This isn't exactly what I wanted. I think my cognitive abilities are just fine. I make my living using them. The only reason I went along with the doctor and started taking the drug, which is basically just an expensive multi-vitamin containing Folate, Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12, was that I'd read it was effective at combating some forms of neuropathy that cause numbness in your extremities. I still feel numbness in my feet occasionally, so I really don't know if this stuff works at all. There are lots of reasons for weird dreams, including waking up five times each night to see if Dot has peed in the bed. Maybe this is just one more junk pill that does nothing.

The trouble with meds is that you have to trust the person who prescribed them for you. Unfortunately, doctors don't agree on much and some of them are nuts. Pick just about any drug and you'll find ten different opinions about it. It's frustrating to say the least. Is Niacin a great way to lower bad cholesterol, or will it just increase your chances of getting diabetes? Why am I taking Carvedilol to slow my heart down when it's ticking pretty slow already? Some doctors think Statins can cause memory loss. Other doctors think Statins actually help with brain function and are prescribing them for Alzheimer's patients. I just wish everyone could get on the same page.

A paid some bills today and did a little bookkeeping. As usual, I made a few incorrect entries in Quickbooks Pro and couldn't get everything to balance. I wish there was some equivalent of spell-check in Quickbooks that would warn me about entering payments incorrectly. Sometimes it takes me fifteen minutes just to find a fifty cent error.

Dot seemed tired today. Maybe it was just a reaction to the rabies shot she had yesterday. We all went to training class this evening, but Dot mostly sat on the sidelines and watched Dash and I go through our paces. I think Dot still enjoyed being included in the activities. She seemed happy just sitting in the grass and watching the other dogs. Dash did pretty well, but I think he would have preferred to sit in the grass as well.

Princess is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1379

I thought I'd catch up on my bookkeeping today. I was sure that this little task would only take about thirty minutes, but it took hours. Oops! I had mistakenly entered a few items incorrectly in Quickbooks this month and I couldn't remember what they were. Eventually, I discovered my mistakes and got everything to balance again, but the whole process was a lot harder than it should have been. I sure hope that this isn't how Alzheimer's begins.

I have a new theory about how Dash injured his leg yesterday. I watched him closely on our morning walk to see if there was still any sign of a limp. The thing that struck me was how hard Dash scratches the ground after he lifts his leg and pees. A lot of male dogs scratch the ground with their rear legs. Dash does this ritual with all four legs. Dot and I have to make sure we're out of the way, or we'll get sprayed with dirt and grass. Sometimes he hits a hard patch of ground and one of his legs gets momentarily stuck. Watching him in action this morning, it seemed like he could have easily strained or sprained a muscle yesterday. Just a theory anyway.

My phone is starting to ask me to update to IOS 7. I don't really want to upgrade, since I'm perfectly happy with IOS 6. I'm probably out of luck though. I noticed this morning that IOS 7 had already downloaded itself through the cloud to my phone and is just waiting for me to install it. Sooner or later, I'll click on the wrong thing by mistake and IOS 7 will start installing itself whether I like it or not. That's kind of the way Apple is these days. You get accustomed to doing things Apple's way, or else.

The members of this business networking group I've started going to on Wednesday mornings encourage you to wear "Business attire" to meetings. For me, that would be a bathrobe, but to fit in, I've started digging my old suits and dress slacks out of the closet. Since I've lost so much weight this year, almost none of these clothes fit anymore. They're all too big. After a lifetime of seeing my clothes gradually become too small, I never anticipated something like this happening. I guess I could take some of the nicer clothes to the tailor and get them altered, but I'm not sure if there would be any point to this. As soon as I got the suits taken in, I'd start gaining weight again.

Scout is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1128

I spent most of the day doing my bookkeeping and paying a bunch of bills. This took a long time, mostly because I'd been postponing the loathsome task for so long. The older I get, the more depressing dealing with financial matters becomes. When I was younger, it was easy to pay my bills. I didn't have many bills in the first place and I was lucky enough to work in an industry that was obsessed with youth. Bright, young people can do exceptionally well in advertising. It wasn't until much later that I realized in that quintessential race between the tortoise and the hare, I was the hare. All the tortoises eventually caught up with me and now they appear to be in the lead. I can no longer glibly tell people that the answer to all spending problems is simply to get a job that pays better. I must embrace frugality. And I hate being frugal.

The bills still get paid. Some months I make a little more than I spend. Other months I spend a little more than I make. It all seems to even out by the end of the year. I know I should be happy with this. In many ways I have what the working world wants. I don't have a boss. I don't have any debts. I don't have many responsibilities. Life is good. I walk my dogs. I write a little. I enjoy my bacon. Why do I even care that there's not going to be a Lamborghini in my future?

Klout sent me a gift card to Chili's today. I wonder if Chili's serves breakfast? That would be cool if Klout started sending me gift cards to breakfast restaurants. This gift card was certainly a better perk than the package of Zatarain's pasta I got last month. I still haven't figured Klout out. I enjoy getting little surprises in the mail, so the whole perks concept works for me. I just don't know what the companies sending me stuff get out of the deal.

It was too warm to cancel dog training class tonight. But it was too cold to actually enjoy it. I was surprised at how well Dash did this evening, considering how much he hates the cold. He still barked a lot and irritated some of the older people, but he did all his exercises perfectly. I was proud of my boy tonight.

I think I'm going to call that company that does sprayed on foam roofs and have them give me an estimate. It's been a wet Winter and I'm really getting tired of sweeping the water off the roof on an almost daily basis. There was still ice on the roof this morning and I had to break it into little chunks with my broom handle. When I slipped on the ice, I thought it might be a good idea to call the roofing company.

Shelby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 678

It was a fantastic day for photography. I didn't even realize how special the day was until I took the dogs on their morning walk. We were immediately enveloped in a thick fog. The trouble with foggy mornings is that usually the fog burns off long before I can grab a camera. After about fifteen minutes, I could tell that this fog was burning off very slowly. Even though the dogs were in no hurry and wanted to smell every dew laden bush, it looked like I might be able to still have time to take a few pictures after I got them home again. I love weather like this. The light is soft and even. The ground is usually covered with dew. Most importantly, on days like this, the fog lifts very gradually, revealing different objects in the background over time. A foggy day is different from a rainy day, because when the fog lifts, the sky is usually perfectly clear.

When I got the dogs back to the house, I grabbed my camera gear and headed back to the lake. I got quite a few nice shots of sailboats in the mist as the fog lifted. As an added bonus, there were lots of spiderwebs near the shore, covered with tiny pearls of dew. For about an hour, everything around me looked like a picture postcard, and then the sun appeared through the mist and it was all over.

Getting some decent photos for a change put me in a good mood, so when I got home, I made a big pot of coffee, diced some bell peppers, mixed in some salsa and hot sausage, added a few eggs and made breakfast burritos. By the time I finished breakfast, it was noon.

I spent the rest of the day doing some much needed bookkeeping. I balanced my checkbook, paid a bunch of bills and took them down to the post office. I didn't open Dreamweaver at all today. Even though there is still a little unfinished web business on my desk, I think it can wait until tomorrow.

The vet called today to confirm Dash's dental appointment tomorrow. Oops. I had to explain to them that it was actually Dot who was having her teeth cleaned tomorrow. They had gotten the two dogs mixed up in their appointment book. Everybody gets things mixed up these days. Avid sent me the wrong Media Composer software. The Land Rover dealer skipped some essential items during my service check. Sometimes I wonder how many things I forget when dealing with my own clients. Probably quite a few.

Ellis is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day