Day 1660

One of my photographer friends said that people are crawling under cars in his office parking lot, sawing off the catalytic converters and stealing them. Has it come to this? I knew we were getting close to living in a Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome world, but I didn't think we were that close. Every time I hear stories like this, I want to move to a little town that's been frozen in time somewhere around 1955. Now where would that be? I doubt that places like this even exist anymore.

I knew the power company was raising electricity rates, but I really didn't expect my electric bill to go up by 30% in a single month. The temperature has been fairly constant for the past several months, so it wasn't a heat wave that caused the bill to go up so much. It was a greedy power company. I just wonder where this is going to end? Gas prices are up. Meat and dairy products are up. The cable bill has gone through the roof, and now the power company is climbing on the bandwagon.  I keep hearing that inflation is low, but I don't believe it. Inflation is quite high in my world. Prices keep going up and wages keep going down. It's not a good combination.

At least the dogs are happy. If I can get them out on their morning walk around 7 AM, there's usually a nice breeze and the walk is enjoyable for all. We're still able to walk several miles early in the morning, although it's an entirely different story in the evening. During the day, the dogs are content to stay inside with me where the air conditioner is cranked up. They sleep while I work, although today I did a little bit of sleeping as well. Yes, it was another slow day. We got lucky at training class this evening. Instead of a typical hot and muggy July evening, we had a pleasant breeze instead. It felt like a cold front was blowing through town and it probably was, since it is supposed to rain later tonight.

One of my doctors wants me to postpone the prescription changes another doctor made last week. I hate dueling doctors. I never know who to believe and usually end up believing nobody. I see a third doctor about something entirely different next Monday. Maybe this one will be the tie breaker. I'd just as soon ignore all these doctors, but I saw what happened to my Dad when he got older. It wasn't pretty. If any one of these guys can save me from that fate, I'll be happy to go along with the program.

Since Friday is a holiday, I'm wondering whether to make tomorrow my restaurant breakfast day. So many decisions.

Bud is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 949

On most Saturdays, I do what thousands of other men do. I go to Home Depot. I don't have a shopping list or a plan. I just wander aimlessly up and down the aisles, looking for things that might be useful. I always manage to come home with something, but some of my essential supplies don't get used for months or even years. The problem is that after running Saturday errands, the last thing I want to do is start a home improvement project. The various nuts and bolts and cans of paint get put in drawers, or on top of shelves and are eventually forgotten about. Typically, when I get one of those rare urges to fix something, I can't remember where I put my supplies and have to go to Home Depot all over again and buy the stuff again. This isn't the best plan in the world, but I do feel ready to repair at a moment's notice.

It turned out there weren't any Dalmatians to photograph today after all, because the new guy was already on his way to his forever home in Houston. It's great the dogs are finding homes so quickly. It wasn't always this way. When I took our two dogs on their afternoon walk, they didn't want to go far. It was just too hot. I think my hopes for a mild Summer have been dashed. It's just another blistering hot Texas Summer like last year and the year before.

All day, the television news was filled with the unfolding story of the theater shootings in Colorado. It's such a shame that you can't even go to the movies anymore. I used to love going to the movies when I was a kid and nobody ever worried about our safety. They didn't have to, because it actually was safe. Times have certainly changed. When I was growing up, there wasn't a murder in my hometown for fifteen straight years. Now, in most big cities, there's probably a shooting every fifteen minutes. I wonder when someone is going to look at the big picture and see the obvious. If you spend your time playing violent video games from the time you are five to the time you're twenty four, it is going to color your perspective on things. It just is.

I went to the pet store this afternoon to get some more rawhide sticks for the dogs to chew.  These sticks look like fat little pencils and are made of shredded rawhide, so they will digest easily. Dot and Dash love them. The guy at the store told me that they no longer carried the sticks, because they were trying to eliminate products that were not made in America from their inventory. This seems like a good thing, but I still think the sticks are harmless. The pet store guy tried to sell me some raw butcher bones instead, saying it would be good for their teeth. I'm not so sure. We gave our first Dalmatian those cow hooves that pet stores used to sell and they almost ruined his teeth. They were too hard. Butcher bones seem just as hard and they're messy too. Our dogs would carry them right back to the bed and ruin the bedspread.

Why do I mention this? I guess because it's so hard to know what's right anymore. Everything from choosing healthy dog treats to raising kids so they will become responsible adults has become a lot more difficult.

Katie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 889

I know I complain about the trials and tribulations of running a small business. I shouldn't. Actually, I have it pretty good, because I don't have to deal with the general public. I can't imagine anything worse than dealing with the general public in a big city. I was picking up something this afternoon at the little neighborhood jeweler where I take some of my watches for repair and was surprised that I didn't have to ring the buzzer to get in like I normally do. I asked the jeweler why his door was unlocked and he said the fire department made him do it because it was against fire codes to lock a retail building during business hours. The jeweler was mad and said that the rule just wasn't fair. He said that every time he left his door unlocked, he was robbed at gun point. I feel sorry for the jeweler and hundreds of small retail businesses just like his. This is what our city has become. Dallas isn't as bad as Detroit, but that's kind of like saying it's not as bad as Beirut or Baghdad.

I'm glad my customers are in Germany. I'm glad that they are in New York and other places far away. The folks I deal with may irritate me from time to time, but I don't worry that they are going to hurt me. Maybe doing your work over the Internet is a good thing. The Internet is a very effective filter. I like to filter out the bad in life. I can't really get rid of it, but I certainly don't want to deal with it on a day to day basis. I wish there was an industrial strength Dyson Vacuum Cleaner thingy for sweeping up the bad in life and getting rid of it permanently. I'd buy one.

I can't remember being nearly this busy last May.  Every day has been a continual stream of small tasks that need to be completed quickly. I feel like one of those hamsters running continually inside the little spinning wheel in their cage. I get a lot of things done every day, but somehow when I wake up the next morning, there is always more to do. This perpetual busyness would be great if I truly loved what I did everyday. Not very likely! Most days I'd much rather just curl up with a good book.

No rest for the weary, I guess. I bought some more industrial shelving for the storage warehouse today, but didn't have time to assemble it. I've noticed that the power steering fluid leak in my car is getting worse, so I'm going to have to schedule another expensive repair at the Land Rover dealer sooner than I expected. I don't know why the buyers are asking so many questions about the rent property. I didn't know the answers when I bought the place. I didn't know the answers when I lived there. And I still don't know the answers today.

Rosco is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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