Day 3492

Occasionally I look back at old posts to see if anything has changed. I'd almost forgotten that on this day in 2014 Dot became very sick and had to go to the emergency vet. A few days later we learned that she had a golf ball sized tumor in her intestines and needed emergency surgery. The tumor turned out to be cancerous and we spent the rest of the year nursing her back to health. Dash was still recovering from cancer at that point as well. I guess things have changed a bit.

I don't miss all the medical emergencies, but I do miss the dogs. Life is very quiet now. I'm getting plenty of sleep these days but it's harder to find a reason to get up in the mornings. Keeping the dogs healthy and happy gave me a purpose, but it also wore me out. Maybe I'll discover a new purpose, but it may take a while. I'm in no hurry at this point.

Hot summer days have always had a slow monotony to them. When you wake up hot, all you really want to do is get through the day. This year I seem to be able to get through the day without really doing anything. Making the bed and fixing and drinking a rather large and somewhat complex fruit smoothie usually takes me to 10 AM. After checking my e-mail I take my first walk of the day. In theory I walk early to avoid the heat of the day. The problem is that I'm so slow that I'm never early. Usually by the time I've finished my three mile morning trek, it is almost noon.

I try to do a few chores during the middle of the day. Usually this just amounts to paying bills, doing laundry, picking up prescriptions, and going to the post office. Every once in a while I vacuum or go up on the roof, but not very often. Today I wrote a letter to my sister because I knew I had to go to the post office anyway. My second walk of the day is always shorter than the first. By the time 4 PM arrives I realize that there is no point in killing yourself.

I was a little disappointed with today's auction results, but at least my lot sold. I think I'm done with auctions for a while. I wish I could stay interested in downsizing because I've got a long way to go. Unfortunately, acquiring things is much more interesting to me than disposing of them. Some people seem to find real joy in lightening their load, but I'll probably always remain a pack rat at heart. It would be nice to clean out my office and start fresh, but when I look around it seems impossible. Probably the best I can do is just try to restrain myself from buying new useless stuff I don't really need.

Maybe I should go to Adult Space Camp after all. Some of the activities make me nervous, but that could be exactly what I need. It would certainly give me something interesting to write about. New experiences are easy to write about. It's much harder to write about nothing. I think I proved that again today.

Riley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3448

Janet and I picked up Xander at the vet today and took him back to the rescue kennel. He wasn't very enthusiastic about wearing a cone, but it couldn't be helped. We took the cone off briefly to take a picture, but he's going to have to wear it for a while. Xander has just been neutered. I think this was the largest dog I've ever had in my car. It was hard to believe he was only one year old. He's a good looking boy who is very strong. I'm glad there weren't any squirrels nearby.

While we were at the kennel, we spent some quality time with each of the other dogs in the program. They are all getting to know us now. Some like to chase a ball. Others are like velcro and follow you everywhere. A few seem very receptive to training and we've already taught them to sit and stay. We even taught one dog to roll over. Nobody is shy anymore. They all look forward to seeing us.

I'm glad the kennel has large air conditioned play rooms. It was too hot to be outside for very long. The dogs would go outside to pee, but quickly returned to the cooler inside rooms to play and beg for treats. The dogs were a lot smarter than I was today, since I continued to ignore the weather and took my regular walks anyway. When I returned this morning, I was drenched in sweat and had to change my clothes. Even my hat was wet today. The weird thing is that summer is just getting started. There are going to be many days where the temperature is much hotter than this.

I did manage to go to the bank and take a few letters to the post office, but most of the day was consumed with walking in the park and visiting the rescue Dalmatians. I still find it strange that doing so little can take up the entire day. I guess this is what retirement is all about. Whatever you are doing expands to fill the time you have available.

I got a check from one of the auction houses today. I think this means that all the auctions are over. Everything sold with the exception of one piece of art that I'll need to get returned. The whole process was surprisingly easy and I don't miss anything. It was time to say goodbye to these things. I wish old electronic gear was as easy to sell as artwork and antiques. There's not much of a market for old, obsolete gear. Even the vintage guitars are taking a long time to sell. I have a feeling that not as many kids want to be rock stars anymore. Maybe they want to be DJ's or rappers, but not many seem to want to form a band like The Eagles or Pink Floyd.

The next thing on my list is to get the car serviced and buy new tires. NASA still hasn't set a firm launch date for the Falcon Heavy mission, but it can't be that far away. I'm still thinking that it makes more sense to drive. I have no schedule and can take as long as I want to make the trip. I can't say that I enjoy driving, but I don't really enjoy flying either. We'll see how this goes. I definitely would like to become a space blogger and get invited to more launches like this in the future.

There's nothing exotic planned for tomorrow. I'll drink my smoothie, take my walk, and probably turn off the TV in disgust after watching the morning news. I'm never happy with the weather. It won't take many more hot days before I'll be begging for rain.

Freckles is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3408

Every time we get a heavy rain my first thought is that this was the worse storm ever. I felt this way last night when the rain was pounding down, but when I took my walk today I had to acknowledge that I've seen higher water levels at the lake before. I think my tolerance for bad weather isn't what it used to be. The rain was pretty bad though. Especially since one of my pumps on the roof wasn't working. I'm really glad that I wasn't traveling. I saw on the news this morning that one of the parking garages at the airport had flooded and lots of cars were completely underwater. This was the same garage where I parked when I went to Houston recently. A lot of travelers are going to be really surprised when they return home.

I was surprised that I even got a chance to walk today. Basically, it rained all day. I saw a little break in the clouds around noon and took advantage of it. I almost finished my three mile trek, but the rain started again when I was about 100 yards from home. I got wet, but it didn't matter. The next thing on my list was taking a shower.

I was almost certain that the roof would leak again last night, but the living room is still dry. So far, so good. Maybe judicious use of the two sump pumps is helping. The second pump started working again this afternoon, so I didn't have to go up on the roof and fix it. I don't know why these things are so balky. Sometimes they become clogged with leaves. There might be a bad electrical connection too. All the extension cords are underwater when it rains.

My contact at the auction house wants to re-offer some of the art that didn't sell recently with a lower reserve. Sounds good to me. The only other alternative is to take the art back and wait until the artist dies. A lot of art spikes in value after the artist dies. This plan probably won't work though, since the artist is younger than I am.

I found out today that the training class where we used to take the dogs on Wednesday evening had made a donation in Dot and Dash's memory to Dalmatian Rescue. This was so nice. Dot and Dash hadn't gone to class since they became sick several years ago and I was surprised that anyone still remembered them. I've still got some dusty ribbons that Dash won sitting on my desk. I continue to be amazed that he won ribbons for obedience when he was young, because as he became older and more stubborn he wouldn't even come when you called. Both dogs enjoyed the class. They probably thought the exercises were silly, but the weekly class was their chance to make friends and socialize with other dogs.

I hope that the weather improves tomorrow. Rainy days give me a bad case of cabin fever. It's not that dry days are all that exciting, but at least I'm not fretting about water leaks. I'll see if I can do something useful when the skies clear again. The back yard could certainly use some work.

Sadie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3401

Weather reports can be frustrating. Ever since I woke up this morning I've been waiting for the monster storm with baseball sized hail that was headed our way. Janet changed her plans and stayed home because her previous car was damaged during a hailstorm. I took my morning walk in a slow drizzle because I was convinced that the weather was going to get worse as the day progressed. The rain never arrived. Actually, the sun is shining right now. Go figure.

There is still rain in the forecast. Now it is supposed to arrive around midnight. We'll see what happens. Texas weather is often totally unpredictable. I just hope that the storm moves through town and is well to the East by morning. We need to pick up Dash at the cancer center early tomorrow morning and drive him to our cremation appointment. I definitely don't want to do this during a hailstorm.

It's been easier than I thought to keep taking 10,000 steps a day. There's always plenty of time to walk when there's nothing else to do. I don't think there's any danger of turning into Forest Gump or anything, but I might start taking much longer daily walks. Why not? Walking alone in the woods is a great way to collect your thoughts. There are people who think I need to find a hobby. Actually, daydreaming is a pretty good hobby.

More of my art sold at auction this weekend. These secondary auctions aren't nearly as exciting as the  big ones in New York last Fall, but at least things are selling. So far, I've only had one piece that didn't get any bids at all. I've replaced most of the art that used to hang on our walls with pictures of the dogs. These pictures make me happier anyway. It's been a long time since I was an avid art collector. I'd rather look at pictures of Spot, Petey, Greta, Dot and Dash.

When we were cleaning today we found a humongous pile of dead ants under the microwave. I wonder how many years it took for that pile to accumulate? When the house settled, it left a small crack near a window frame in the kitchen. Ants came through this hole every Spring. I always sprayed, but apparently the ants were tough. Most of them kept going until they reached the microwave.

One of Dash's vets sent us a lovely bouquet of fresh flowers. They smell wonderful and remind me that we always used to keep fresh flower in the house. That didn't last for long. As we both got busier with work, the flowers would often be dead for weeks before we even noticed. I think Spot ate some flowers too. That episode put an end to the flowers. It just became too much trouble to keep track of which plants were safe for dogs and which were dangerous. With Dalmatians it's better to assume that everything is unsafe unless the dogs are being supervised.

Now that I'm getting more sleep, I thought that my resting heart rate would go down. Surprisingly, the opposite has happened. Fitbit is full of mysteries. It tells you just enough to get you wondering, but not enough to do anything really useful. I probably was just as healthy before I started counting my steps.

Bella is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3390

Lots of rain today. I picked a terrible time to go grocery shopping. It was overcast when I entered the store. When I was ready to leave, it was raining so hard I could hardly see my car. I got soaked taking the groceries to the car and the inside of the car got soaked when I was loading them inside. Driving home was a nightmare. The windshield wipers couldn't keep up with the rain and big trucks would send rooster tails of water cascading over your car whenever they passed you. Weather changes rapidly in Texas. If I had just waited two hours, I could have avoided the whole mess.

Luckily, the rain didn't start until about 10 AM so I was still able to give Dash his morning walk. He seemed a little stronger than yesterday, but he was still exhausted by the time we returned home. If we're lucky, Janet is still able to give Dash his morning meds before we leave for our walk, but our schedule has definitely changed. When Dash was younger he wanted breakfast as soon as he woke up. Lately, he won't touch his food until noon. He has trouble picking food out of his bowl, so we have to hand feed him now. At least he's still eating most of the time.

The art I had up for auction today failed to sell. There were no bids at all. I was definitely disappointed. I knew this work wouldn't do as well as some of the things I auctioned last Fall, but I did think it would sell. I always thought it was a lovely piece. Who knows what will happen now. Maybe it will wind up on my wall again.

Whenever we have a hard rain, I get worried about the roof leak. I don't trust the roof at all. I moved the furniture out of the way and got the buckets ready, but so far no water had come through the ceiling. One of the pumps seems to be clogged. Only a small amount of water was coming through the hose. The pumps clog easily at this time of year. The Oak and Elm trees are starting to bud and this means catkins are falling from the trees and littering the roof. These small cylindrical flower clusters are how Oak and many other trees pollinate and they are the perfect size to clog sump pumps.    The sticky yellow pollen also makes a mess of your car during the spring. You can add catkins to the list of things I hate.

Janet had an event to attend this evening, so it was up to me to get Dash to eat his dinner. I got him to take his evening meds by rolling the pills in little strips of ham, but we didn't do so well with dinner. He wouldn't touch his regular meal. This mix of chicken, rice and vegetables is healthy, well balanced, and quite tasty. I'd eat it myself. The only thing I could get Dash to eat tonight were two small ground beef patties. This isn't really enough, but maybe Janet will have better luck when she gets home. Our refrigerator is so full of things we use to try and keep Dash eating that there is hardly room for our own food anymore.

I think the rain is supposed to continue tomorrow. Maybe the forecast will change overnight. I've had enough of this rain. I"d like to walk Dash in the morning and then go to the gym. I'm not looking forward to driving in a downpour again.

Sam is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3389

I got up early this morning so I could walk Dash while it was still nice and cool outside. This seemed to help. Dash was still shaky on his feet and very slow, but he wasn't panting. Lately, each of his walks seems like it might be the last. Dash seems more confused and less coordinated with each passing day. I still think the walks are important because he seems to be at his best when he's outside smelling things. The smells seem to reconnect him with reality. There's a fine line between doing something that's beneficial and doing something that might cause further harm. Since Dash really seems to enjoy these walks even though they make him tired, we'll continue for a while, taking things as slowly as we can.

When I saw that Dash had settled in for his morning nap, I went out for breakfast. I'm starting to feel nervous about leaving him now. Usually he sleeps for a very long time after his morning walk, but you never know. There's always a chance that he'll wake up and be unable to stand up. There's always a chance that he'll poop on the floor too, but that's not a big deal anymore. I wasn't gone long this morning, but it was clear that Dash did get up while I was gone. He was in a different room when I returned.

I returned to the cool restaurant for Shrimp and Grits. The place is noisy and crowded, but the Shrimp and Grits are a winner. I'm not sure if this place is going to stay cool much longer. Old people have discovered the place. There were a lot of grandparents eating breakfast with their grandchildren today.

I have more art coming up for auction tomorrow in New York. There is a period of time before the auction starts where people can bid online. So far I have received no bids. There appears to be very little interest at all. Oh, well. Maybe things will improve at the live auction. Auctions are kind of nerve wracking. There are no guarantees and anything can happen. I think this is a great piece, but someone has to agree with me for it to sell.

I think I chipped a tooth. This sucks, because I was just at the dentist a few days ago. I'm tempted to ignore this because the damage seems very minor. The last time I ignored a chipped tooth though, I needed to get a crown. A crown is expensive and they don't feel natural to me. I don't want another crown

Dash has been very lethargic today. Janet says he's been lethargic for a very long time, but I've read so much about the Covenia controversy in the past several days that I can't help but wonder if the drug has something to do with it. Fatigue and lethargy are one of the most common side effects of taking this drug. Dash was already weak. Maybe the Covenia made him a little weaker. On a positive note, Dash's oral infection is already getting better. On the other hand, it's hard to ignore all those articles from people saying that Covenia killed their dog or cat.

We're supposed to have thunderstorms tomorrow. I'm not looking forward to that. I'd much rather have clear skies and a dog who felt like eating and walking again.

Angel is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3380

The smallest change in Dash's routine can cause havoc. We definitely shouldn't have changed his diet. He had another bad case of diarrhea last night. I think the canned food we fed him was too rich, because the last time we tried this brand the same thing happened. Our options are getting smaller. Dash is getting extremely picky about food again and we've got to keep him eating.

Things are better today, but I feel like I've gotten no sleep for the past 48 hours. Life is beginning to seem like a perpetual boot camp. We were initially happy when Dash chose to sleep on the floor last night but it turned out to be a bad choice. He slipped off his dog bed which was protected and ended up pooping all over the carpet. It's a lot harder to clean the carpet than small things you can take outside and hose down. One of the things we hosed down last night was Dash. He was covered with poop.

Maybe I got a little sleep last night. It's hard to tell. There was lots of laundry to do and a liberal amount of Nature's Miracle was used to sanitize the carpet. Dash got another bath this afternoon and the carpet is drying out. Dash is eating the food he rejected a few days ago and we had a nice walk. Basically, all is well. I'm still tired though. Very tired.

One of Dash's vets recommended clindamycin as an antibiotic to treat his gum infection. I guess I failed to tell him about Dash's diarrhea problems. Clindamycin has an FDA black box warning saying that it can cause severe diarrhea and even colon damage. Hmm. Might not be the best drug to take at this time. There's got to be another alternative without all the side effects. For the time being we'll continue the oral rinse we use every evening. I'm not sure it works, but it's better than nothing.

I went up on the roof today and was pleased to discover that the warmer weather is causing the standing water to evaporate faster. It was fairly easy to clear away the remaining standing water from our recent rains. The only problem with Spring is that pollen from the trees mixes with the water and creates an ugly brown mess. The sticky brown water stains the elastomer coating, making it harder to find potential tears that could cause a leak. Nothing is easy these days.

I've got another auction coming up in early April. I was all excited about the first series of auctions in New York last year, but now I just wish the whole process was over. I can't decide whether to put a reserve on this lot. I don't want this stuff to sell for nothing, but I don't want it back either. The auction house has been encouraging me to tell my friends about the auction. Not very likely. It's been years since I've had any art buyer friends.

Dash has been sleeping like a baby all evening. This probably means he'll be awake later tonight when I'm trying to sleep. I'll be happy to take you outside to pee little buddy, but I'm not looking forward to cleaning up diarrhea again.

Chloe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3330

I spent the day trying to come up with a plan B for Dash. The dog can barely move, but he certainly hasn't given up. I've seen dogs go downhill very quickly when they become immobile so Janet and I were determined to give him some options. Dogs can become depressed as easily as humans. As long as we can keep Dash happy and engaged, I think he's still got some quality time.

The first step was making sure that his new Help 'Em Up Harness was adjusted correctly. It's surprisingly difficult to get all the adjustable straps the correct length when your dog keeps wanting to lie down. A properly fitted harness can make a big difference. After he'd had a long nap I started practicing walking Dash around the house with the harness. It took a while, but Dash eventually started to get the hang of things. With just the right amount of support, he began moving his rear legs again.

Janet found some extra light weight boots and after another nap, we thought we'd try a short walk. We didn't walk far, but things went better than I expected. Dash loves smelling things in the park and I could tell he was eager to walk. You have to move slowly and carefully, always making sure that his rear legs are moving along with the font ones. Dash's rear legs also have a tendency to become crisscrossed. The lightweight boots seemed to make it a little easier for Dash to move, but we'll have to replace them after almost every walk. One of the boots had a hole in the toe after a single walk. Dash's paws didn't bleed though, so this just might work.

I'm still considering water therapy, but given a choice, I'm sure that Dash would much rather smell things in the park. Dash hates water and doesn't like riding in the car, so if we can figure out how to keep him walking, he's going to be a happier dog. Knowing when to quit is critical. It's important to keep Dash moving, but it is equally important that he doesn't become exhausted. We'll have good days and bad days, but considering that yesterday I thought that he might never walk again, today was pretty good.

My first batch of auctions has concluded. I received my final payment today. One thing I learned is that it is impossible to predict what is going to be popular fifty years in the future. I never bought art as an investment. I just bought things that made me happy. A lot of these things ended up being practically worthless, but a few pieces became desirable. Back in the day, I never would have guessed what the people of 2019 would be wanting. I wish I'd bought more art back in the 1970's, but of course I had no money back then. That's always the way it works.

Thanks to my Facebook friends for suggesting a decongestant that doesn't make me feel horrible. The runny nose hasn't stopped entirely, but it is much better. For the record, Allegra seems to work a lot better than Sudafed.

Zorro is today's 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 3212

I woke up this morning thinking that Hurricane Michael was going to be the only calamity today. Then the stock market dropped 800 points. So far, the hurricane seems to have done less damage than everybody expected. I'm kind of worried that today's big market sell off is just the first sign of more damage ahead. I can avoid hurricanes by choosing not to live near the coast. I'm not sure I can avoid financial disaster though. I don't think I'll live long enough to recover from another crash like we had in 2008.

Is a little stability too much to ask? The weather seems to be becoming more volatile. Politics has become way too volatile for my taste. The financial markets have always been volatile. Even my own house seems volatile, with something breaking or falling apart almost every week. I would love to see stability return. Persistent chaos is wearing me out.

Dash woke me up three times last night. The first time I took him outside, he did nothing. The second time, he eventually peed after smelling every bush in the yard. The third time, he pooped on the porch and then turned around and stepped in his mess on his way back inside. By the time I'd finished cleaning his feet and the porch, I was wide awake again. Eventually, I returned to bed, only to discover that Dash had already stolen my place.

I made arrangements this morning to take my remaining art to the auction house. Luckily, this auction house is located right here in town, so I won't need to pack or ship anything. One photo I was consigning had been on the wall for so long that I had ended up building a bookshelf around it. I had to disassemble part of the bookshelf so I could reach behind the frame and remove it from the hook on the wall. It was a lot more work than I anticipated. I certainly hope the auction house accepts everything tomorrow. The walls are starting to look pretty bare, but I'm not in the mood to deal with this stuff again.

It's time to pick up a new supply of Phenobarbital for Dash. I wish he didn't have to take so many meds. He'd probably feel more normal without the Phenobarbital, but he'd almost certainly start having epileptic seizures again within a week or two. I'd like to stop taking some of my own meds as well. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, these medications actually do work. Dash and I both need to keep our blood pressure under control. I need to watch my cholesterol. Dash lost his thyroid to cancer, so he needs thyroid medication. The list is long. Taking meds has become a complex ritual, but these pills are probably why we're both alive today.

The weather was beautiful this morning. It was a little chilly and I had to wear a light jacket on our morning walk for the first time this Fall. I think I heard the furnace come on last night as well. Although everything looks fine now, I need to remember that winter is coming.

Neo 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

Watch of the Day

Day 3206

It was a good day. It could have been a great day, but I'll settle for good. I was expecting the worst when we took Dash to the vet this morning, especially since his condition has been declining for several months. Surprisingly, his lab work looked better than at his last exam and the doctors could find no evidence of a blood clot on his echocardiogram. This was great news, but it was tempered a bit by the admission that the clot might have been missed this time, since Dash was squirming a lot when they did the test.

I'm hoping that the clot actually did disappear again. It disappeared once before. The vets at the cancer center are very good and they seldom make mistakes in their diagnosis. Even if the blood clot problem has been resolved, Dash still isn't out of the woods. He has an enlarged heart with a leaking mitral valve. The vestibular disease isn't going away either. When we described Dash's current symptoms, the doctor was initially worried about kidney failure. His blood work turned out relatively normal fortunately, so we won't have to add that worry to our list. Everything we learned this morning was good, but I still wish that the results had been better.

I was a little disappointed with the auction results as well. My art sold for a good price, but it didn't live up to the auction house estimates. They were so excited to acquire these items back in June that I became convinced that the sky was the limit. I shouldn't have set my expectations so high. Truthfully, my lot did just as well as other works by the same artist, but we definitely didn't set any records today. It's weird. Once you start watching auctions, you start thinking that whatever you are selling will set a new record. It doesn't work that way. A lot of things don't sell at all.

There is still one auction to go, but this was the big one. It's time to move one. I guess I am actually really lucky. With all the trouble I've had with my roof over the years, it would have been so easy for the art to be ruined by water. The roof would have just had to start leaking in a slightly different place.

Actually, the roofers did call today. They left me a message while we were at the vet with Dash saying they were in the neighborhood. By the time I was able to call them back, they were gone. It's back to playing phone tag again.

My heart rate is subsiding again. I don't know why, but I'll take it as a good sign. I can't believe I'm already thinking about where to go for breakfast tomorrow. These weeks go by so fast now. I've taken the trash out to the curb. Dash has finished his dinner and is resting calmly. Oh, I almost forgot. I sold some art today.

Jersey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3205

I should have mowed the grass earlier. The heavy rains that caused the roof leak also caused the grass in the front yard to grow amazingly fast. It was almost a foot tall on some places. Technically, grass this tall is really a weed, but hey it's green. It's amazing how much harder to do manual work like this when you're 70. Mowing the grass seemed a lot easier when I was 40.

I called the roofer today, but I didn't get a response. That wasn't surprising. It usually takes at least five calls before anything happens at all. Dealing with this new leak isn't going to be easy. There was a general understanding that the repairs the guys made late this Summer would be the last. I actually thought the crew did a good job, so I was quite surprised when the roof started leaking again. I need to be persistent though. The roof really shouldn't be leaking at this point.

My contact at the auction house called me this evening while I was out walking Dash. I hope it wasn't anything important, because the auction is tomorrow. I'm pretty sure they just wanted me to confirm the reserve price. This price fluctuates, depending on whether there are advance bids. The auction starts while we're at the vet with Dash tomorrow, but my lot doesn't go under the hammer until the afternoon. I'll nervously watch what happens online.

I'm also a bit nervous about Dash's exam at the cancer center tomorrow morning. It's been two months since Dash has had a major exam and he's definitely gone downhill since then. Actually, Dash's appetite has improved since our last visit, but almost everything else has gone downhill. Dash has real trouble walking now and his incontinence has gotten worse. His teeth are terrible and I'm really looking for a way to prevent him from getting periodontal disease. We briefly tried an antiseptic rinse that Janet uses, but our other vet said it probably wasn't safe since the the ingredients included an artificial flavoring that wasn't safe for dogs.

I need to learn more about weather. For the past three mornings, when I've taken Dash out to pee at 5 AM, the sky has been crystal clear. I've noticed the sky because Orion is rising in the East. This is my favorite constellation and one of the few things you can reliably see through all the light pollution in Dallas. The weird thing is that when I go outside again an hour or two later, the sky has become completely overcast. Where did all these clouds come from so quickly?

I hope the auction goes well tomorrow. Like I've said before, this is my Antiques Roadshow moment. I may get really lucky and then again, maybe I won't. Auction results still seems kind of random to me and it's hard to anticipate what buyers are thinking. It's kind of the end of an era. I definitely won't be buying any more art after this is all over.

Hobbs is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3197

I spent an enormous amount of time trying to avoid doing anything of consequence today. I wrote a futile letter to the roofer, telling him about the new leak. I used up half my ink trying to unclog the large printer again. I succeeded, but I still don't have anything to print. I tried to revive the batteries on an old DSLR that has sat unused for months. I used to use this camera all the time, but it seems so heavy now. I asked the vintage guitar shop if any of my guitars had sold. Nope, they haven't. On days like these, I usually mow the grass or go up on the roof. The yard is still soggy from recent rains, so that was a good excuse not to mow. It's supposed to rain again tomorrow, so that was an even better excuse not to go up on the roof.

Even though it was a slow day, there were still a few essential tasks. I picked up some more Allopurinol for Dash and some more Metformin for myself. Sometimes it seems like all I do is go to the post office and the pharmacy. I guess I'll have to add going to the dentist to this meager list soon. I got a call today reminding me that it's time for a checkup again. Has it been six months already? Jeez. Time flies when you're doing nothing.

The October auctions are getting closer and closer. I'll have to admit that I'm drawn to this whole process like a moth to a flame. The contemporary art world is a little rich for my blood, but it is very interesting. I've only seen it from the outside before. This will be the only time I get to participate in an event like this. I never had that much art to begin with. When the hammer falls it will be gone.

I wish I was more optimistic. I keep thinking that no one will bid on my art even though one piece is considered "significant." I feel equally nervous about buying stocks although I've been an investor for decades. When my broker makes a recommendation, I can always come up with five reasons why the company will fail. I don't think I'm being negative. In my world, I'm just being realistic. Maybe this is why I've always liked dystopian science fiction. The end is always near. Today's political turmoil doesn't surprise me at all.

Dash fell down in the grass when I took him out to pee this morning. He's so shaky now. I helped him up and he limped back into the house. An hour later, he seemed fine and we took our regular walk. I can't pretend that things are getting better though. They're not. Old age is sad. I've lost too many dogs already. Friends who have been healthy as long as I've known them have cancer now. Too many of my contemporaries have passed away. I have good doctors, very few vices, and a healthy diet. I'm not sure it makes much difference though. When your time is up, it's up.

If tomorrow is a repeat of today, that's OK with me. Not a lot happened, but I wasn't expecting much. Dash was shaky this morning, but he rallied again and ended the day well. At least I made an effort to deal with the roof. Who knows if the roofer will call me back, but the roof is not leaking now. Dinner was delicious tonight. That's always something.

Rosie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3190

The art conservator threw me a curve today. The restored lithograph actually looked very nice, but as I was leaving the studio, the conservator told me to be sure to store the art horizontally until I had it framed again. Where? The print is very large and I knew immediately that it wasn't going to fit anywhere in the house. It wouldn't fit under the bed, since there is a support post right in the middle. I tried, but the print was way too large to fit under the bottom half of the bed. The closets aren't deep enough and I couldn't even put the thing under a large rug on the living room floor. The bricks on the floor absorb moisture, so floor storage wasn't really an option anyway. This sucks. The conservator specifically warned me against taking art back to the storage warehouse. "You're asking for trouble," she said. I guess I could re-frame the picture and hang it back on the wall, but I've already replaced the art I sent to the auction houses with pictures of dogs I took myself. I think I like the dog pictures better anyway.

I took a better camera on our morning walk and managed to get a decent picture of a Great Egret and a Coot together. It was hardly worth bringing the camera unfortunately. Dash wouldn't stay still and most of the pictures I took while moving were out of focus. I have to concentrate on Dash to keep him from falling. We walk on a very short leash now and his harness has a big handle on top that I can grab to keep him from falling. I walk directly alongside of Dash so I can easily lift him up or steady him without knocking him over. I've practiced this technique with Dot and other older dogs. It works pretty well, but walks aren't very relaxing.

I listened to a show on RadioLab recently about how efforts to save the Kirtland’s warbler inadvertently burned down a Michigan forest and killed a young wildlife technician. The efforts to save the bird from extinction were eventually successful, but now cost almost a million dollars a year. The locals now hate the bird, but birders fly in from all over the world just to catch a glimpse of it. I think the show was called Weighing Good Intentions and it was mostly about unintended consequences. I wonder if people realize that there are unintended consequences to almost everything we do. Whenever I turn on the TV these days, my first reaction is "this isn't going to end well." There are very few winners here and a few years from now, there are going to be a lot of unintended consequences. I think everyone is acting badly. Maybe I should just quit watching TV while I have my morning smoothie. It might be better to take up knitting instead.

I received a printed copy of one of the auction catalogs in the mail today. My art looked pretty, but I'm still nervous about the auctions. I'm sure there are unintended consequences to unwinding a lifetime of collecting things. I think I'm doing the right thing, but like most things in life, I won't find out what it all means until much later.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3179

I enjoyed breakfast this morning. There was real china, heavy flatware, and waiters in white coats. The place was quiet and relaxing. Although the menu was limited, my egg sandwich was delicious. Eating in a nice hotel wasn't a bad idea. I'll probably go back.

I was surprised to see how high the lake levels were this morning because we didn't get any rain yesterday. It must have rained heavily to the north of us. Whenever there are heavy rains, huge amounts of trash and litter flow into the lake from the creeks that feed it. The water definitely looked ugly this morning. When the water recedes, this litter will be left on the shoreline. Eventually, people from the Parks and Recreation Department will pick it up. It's a shame that nobody in Dallas seems to be able to throw their trash in a can, but I'm sure other cities are even worse.

I'm glad there was time to take Dash on a nice walk this morning because it was our turn to get rained on today. As the day progressed, the sky got darker and darker. It's raining right now and that means there will be no evening walk. People always say we need the rain, but I don't know why. It hasn't been a particularly dry year. I don't like rain, but I'm slowly learning to respect it. Whenever I see all the forest fires out West and the hurricanes and floods to the East, I realize that Dallas is in kind of a sweet spot. We've managed to avoid weather extremes for quite a while.

I feel sorry for Elon Musk. He's getting crucified for making a casual comment about taking his company private and then smoking pot on TV. Musk is the Thomas Edison of our generation. I think people ought to cut him some slack. Steve Jobs got treated the same way for quite a while. It's weird. If you're a businessman or a politician, you're expected to follow conventional rules. If you're a musician, anything goes.

We've discontinued the probiotic Dash was taking and his poop is slowly becoming firmer. This is counterintuitive but what do I know. The disappointing thing about veterinary and human medicine is that everything is so compartmentalized. Nobody seems all that good at evaluating the big picture. It seems obvious that health is a combination of lifestyle, diet, heredity, and medications. Doctors always focus on the pills though. Somehow, I feel that Dash would be doing better if he were eating exactly the right thing. I'd probably being doing better if I were eating exactly the right thing as well. I don't have any answers, but I do think that nutrition should be just as important as pharmacology in medical school.

I saw the auction catalog for one of the Fall auctions today. It was weird to see my picture right up there with some pretty well known art. I'm no art historian, but I recognized some of the other images up for auction immediately. I'm hoping that this might be is my Antiques Roadshow moment. I don't want to get my hopes up though. Auctions are weird and unpredictable. Nobody might bid at all. I have art in two different auctions and both are in October. Lets hope they do well.

Janet wants to take pictures of some new rescue dogs this weekend. If the weather improves, that's what we'll do. I still am unwilling to leave Dash alone in a storm, but I'm actually looking forward to taking photos again. Life is so slow, that I look forward to doing almost anything.

Bailey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3168

Things got off to a slow start today. When we woke up there was poop everywhere. Dash woke me up around 2 AM when he needed to go out and pee. Jeez. Why didn't he wake me up again when he needed to do this? This morning, Dash was sleeping beside me on the bed. Nothing seemed wrong at all. This brown trail leading to the back door was particularly hard to clean up. When the liquid mess dried it seemed to turn to concrete. To make matters worse, some of the poop had gone down one of the furnace floor vents. Yuck. We didn't notice until we cleaned up everything on the bricks and still smelled poop.

Sadly, this is just the new normal. Dash can't help himself. I can tell he tries because he is always heading toward the back door when the explosion happens. Senility and incontinence are a bad combination. By the time Dash remembers he needs to poop, it is almost always too late.

The city finally mowed the meadow behind our house today. If they'd been one day earlier, we might have avoided yesterday's unfortunate encounter with the bees. Dash and I took a different route on our morning walk, but we'll return to our regular route tomorrow. There's no point in being superstitious. The bees are everywhere. Dash has actually been stung at several other locations in the park, so it's just luck when we manage to avoid the bees. I just hope we never encounter a snake.

By the time I'd finished cleaning the house, I almost didn't feel like having breakfast. The smell of poop does that to me. I persevered though, because without a decent breakfast I knew I'd just snack on crackers all day. I wish I still got excited about food. As other activities have gradually faded, a really good meal had always been one of my few remaining pleasures.

After breakfast, I picked up some more Phenobarbital for Dash at the vet. There aren't many reasons to leave the house anymore. Even though I did nothing of consequence, the day still seemed busy. In addition to cleaning the floors and furnace vents, I also had to wash the comforter on the bed. Unfortunately, Dash doesn't do a very good job of wiping his butt.

I called the auction house this afternoon to make sure they got the information they requested this weekend. Their e-mail said "please confirm by Monday, August 27" and I didn't want to do anything wrong. The two auctions in October are starting to make me nervous. Everyone seems excited and optimistic, but what if nobody bids?

I have about a week to decide whether I want to apply for the NASA trip. I looked up airfares and hotel rates in Pasadena today. Why are flights to Burbank so much more expensive than flights to LAX? The Burbank airport is much closer to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. At first glance, it looks like a three day trip will be fairly expensive. One good thing is that unlike launches, the date for a spacecraft landing is fixed. The InSight lander will reach Mars on November 26. At least I could save some money on a plan-ahead airfare. I'm getting ahead of myself though. There's no guarantee that NASA would even accept my application and even less of a guarantee that Dash will be healthy enough for me to leave for a few days.

At least the market was good today. If I'm going to have a future as a space launch groupie, this bull run is going to have to continue for a while.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day