Day 2952

My routine seldom varies. Sometimes I'm amazed that doing simple, often mindless things can take so long. It takes far too long to make the bed in the morning. I can make my smoothie fairly quickly now, but it take me forever to drink two eggs, a scoop of oatmeal, a large mixing bowl full of fresh fruit, a banana, a little vanilla ice cream, some half and half, assorted seasonings, and a cup full of ice cubes. My recipe makes a quart.

Walking Dash takes much longer than eating breakfast. We walk several miles each morning at a snail's pace. Dash can't move very fast anymore, but he still enjoys smelling things and being outdoors. I don't even turn on the computer until we've returned from our walk and I've finished doing the dishes. There is no hurry. I know I'll have plenty of time to finish any assignment I might have. It take me longer to find the dog poop in the yard than it takes to finish my writing assignments these days.

Today I finished my second article. It's hard to believe that I used to routinely write 4000 word annual reports when today's assignments rarely top 400 words. The assignments are still moderately interesting and I'm happy for any work I get. It took me less than two hours to finish today's job. There's a good chance it will be the last thing I write this week.

When I was working today I discovered a strange file on my computer. I thought I might have a virus,  so I quarantined the file and started doing some research on Google. It turned out that the file was something Apple installed the last time I upgraded the operating systems. Apple installs hundreds of weird files on your computer and they never bother to explain what they do. A lot of them report back to Apple, because about every ten minutes Little Snitch informs me that my computer is contacting an Apple server. If you think you still have any privacy at all, you're living in a dream world. Apple, Google, and Facebook know everything. Probably Microsoft knows a lot too, but I wouldn't know. I've never used Windows.

I noticed this morning that there a brand new channel on my TV right between Fox and MSNBC. It's called Newsy. Something was really different about this channel. There were no pundits and very few opinions. There were just little snippets about various events in a seemingly random order. The channel is billed as news for millennials. Surprisingly, many of these short segments were actually quite interesting. If this is really the way millennials like to get their news, Fox, MSNBC, and the broadcast networks might as well pack up their tents and go home. Maybe I have the attention span of a millennial, because I actually liked this odd format.

My foot didn't hurt as much today. This gave me an excuse to postpone making a doctor's appointment a little longer. I hate making a big deal over something that might be completely normal for someone my age. On the other hand, I'd hate to ignore a broken bone in my foot. I'll procrastinate a little longer and see what happens. I have no such reservations about making an appointment for Dash. We're going to the vet tomorrow morning to check out a minor eye infection and get his nails trimmed.

Chloe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2663

It's fascinating how the same wildflowers reappear year after year. There are hundreds of varieties in the park and I've learned the names of many of them over the years. Nobody waters or tends to these flowers, but they seem to do just fine. In fact, they seem indestructible. We've had unusually wet years and unusually dry years and the wildflowers just keep blooming every Spring. Many of these flowers are actually considered weeds, but they are still quite spectacular in April. I see something new almost every day now and it makes my walks with Dash more interesting.

I saw my first Spider Milkweed plant this morning. Some people call these Antelope Horn Milkweed and they are supposed to attract Monarch Butterflies. This morning they seemed to be attracting a lot of bees.

Dot woke us up last night trying to re-position herself. When I tried to lift her up so she could move, it caused her to pee. I had to turn the light on to see what was going on. This woke Janet up and we tried to get her harness on so we could take her outside. At this point she decided to poop as well. While Dot was outside I changed all her bedding and ran a load of wash. By the time I got back to bed, I'd been up almost an hour. Luckily, it was early Sunday morning. We all slept in until almost nine AM. I wish they made large puppy training pads that would cover her entire bed. That would make cleanup a lot easier. Huge absorbent pads would probably be too expensive though, especially at the rate we go through them. I buy them by the case now.

I finally made it back to the gym this afternoon. Although I've been following exactly the same routine for several years now, I've been noticing that I'm not burning quite as many calories as I used to. I feel just as tired when I am finished, but I must be slowing down. The fitness tracker doesn't lie. I must be slowing down at everything I do. It takes longer to mow the lawn now and it's even tiring to make the bed. Don't laugh. Getting a fitted sheet on our low platform bed takes more effort than you might think.

On slow days like this I drive myself nuts trying to figure out how to get all the office computers on the same page. Some are new with the latest operating systems. Others are ancient. One of the biggest drawbacks to upgrading everything is my accounting software. It's so old now that I'm not sure that a modern replacement would be able to import my files. The old software works just fine, since the rules of accounting haven't changed much over the years. It would be nice to be able to keep all the computers in sync though. I still haven't come up with a good solution.

I had to renew Dot's Tramadol today. It's always harder to get controlled substances like Tramadol and Phenobarbital renewed. The pharmacist always has to get an OK from the vet, even if the dogs have been taking the pills forever. I guess this makes sense. You don't want to be taking pills like these for the wrong reasons. I think we're going to have to increase Dot's pain medication soon. It's complicated. Do we discontinue the Tramadol and just give her more Gabapentin? Do we increase the dosage of both meds? Or do we try something new entirely. Luckily, Dot's oncologist is very knowledgable about pain management. We'll be talking to her later this month.

My anti-virus software says I've got a virus. I did some research on Google and discovered that quite a few people think my anti-virus software is worthless and that the file that was identified as a virus is really just a normal component of the Apple operating system. Who are you going to believe? If even my anti-virus software is full of fake news, the world is hopeless.

Livy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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