Day 4548

We went back and visited the rescue Dalmatians today. Rocket was at the vet beginning his heartworm treatment, but Charlie, Oliver, Willie, and JoJo were all glad to see us. Each of these boys has their own distinct personality and favorite toys. Charlie knows the most commands and always wants to have a toy in his mouth. He likes to race around with a rope octipus thrashing it from side to side. Oliver is the best at retrieving things and will always bring a ball or toy back to you so you can throw it again. There is a large ball that makes funny noises that Willie likes to play with, but he mostly likes to just sit next to you and be petted. JoJo doesn't like being inside and always takes his favorite red ball to the outside play yard. Even though it was hot today, he still prefered being outside. They all like the treats we bring and some can catch them from a considerable distance. We had a good time today. These visits are good for the dogs and good for us as well.

It looks like I'm going to have to buy another expensive battery. Now the battery in the UPS backup system for the television and fiber optic network has gone bad. Everything still works, but the network would go down immediately during a power outage. The batteries for these systems are basically lead/acid motorcycle batteries. They're cheaper than a car battery, but a lot more expensive than a flashlight battery. I wonder if people who own electric cars realize how much of a problem batteries are? Most of these cars are still pretty new. Wait until they are ten years old and all start needing new batteries.

Since I knew that we would be visiting the Dalmatians today, I didn't think there would be time to go to the gym. I took my long walk right after breakfast when the temperature was still cool. In theory this was a good plan since it was quite nice outside when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk. It warms up quickly when the sun is out though, and I walk pretty slow. By the time I returned home from my two hour walk, I was thinking that I'd better start going to the gym every day. I don't handle the heat well, and it is definitely Summer now.

I didn't catch the rat last night. In fact, I haven't even seen it since I put the Havahart trap out in the atrium.  Maybe this rat doesn't like cheese. I'll leave the trap out for about a week and if I don't catch it by then I'll have to come up with a plan B.  If the atrium didn't seem like part of the house it would be a lot easier to just ignore it. There are a ton of rats in the park and I'm sure that this one isn't the only one in our yard. I'm convinced that there are lots of critters in our yard at night that we don't even know about. Luckily I don't see snakes very often. There are quite a few possums and raccoons though. There are coyotes nearby, but we've never seen one in the yard. Live and let live is the best policy for all of these animals, but I definitely don't want a rat in the house.

I'll be glad when the new dishwasher is installed. I'm getting tired of mopping up the leak every morning before I eat breakfast. It's not a bad leak. Just enough to remind me that there is a problem. I guess I could start washing dishes by hand for a while, but it is much easier to just mop up the water. One advantage of having brick floors is that it is really hard to damage them.

I don't really have any plans for tomorrow. Truthfully, I don't have any plans for the rest of the Summer. It's too bad that travel has gotten so expensive. There's a lot going on at Kennedy Space Center right now. I wouldn't mind going back to Titusville again.

Domino is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3973

Dalmatian Rescue has a puppy. We were excited to go meet Emma this afternoon because it's been a while since we've had a puppy in the program. I took my camera to take pictures for the website but it was only a formality. Emma has already been adopted. We must have a waiting list for puppies because they get adopted almost instantly. This four month old bundle of energy will be going to a great home. I'm glad we got a chance to meet her.

Colt is back at the kennel, but he is not well yet. The vet discovered that he has kidney problems and he is on a special diet now. We will be watching him carefully and hopefully his blood work will improve in the weeks ahead. Two of our own dogs eventually died of kidney failure so we know that any form of kidney disease is not something to be taken lightly. There is no cure for chronic kidney disease, but depending on the severity of the disease and how early you begin treatment, a dog can still live a comfortable life for quite a while. 

Charlie is healthy as a horse, but he could lose a few pounds. He's been at the kennel for so long that you can tell that he feels like this is his permanent home. I'm always surprised at how happy Charlie seems. He actually appears to like living at the kennel. Charlie is very smart and we enjoy teaching him new tricks. He'd probably already have a home by now if he wasn't so unpredictable. Let's just say that I wouldn't want to be sleeping in bed next to Charlie.

It was so muggy on our morning walk that we couldn't decide whether it had rained during the night or was about to rain later in the day. It's amazing how much the weather changes from day to day around here. You can never decide what to wear in the morning. The overcast skies cleared by the time Janet and I went to the kennel, but it remained a bad allergy day. I felt like I had pepper in my nose while we were walking this morning. Tomorrow I may have no allergy symptoms at all.

I've been watching how tropical storm ETA has been developing. It's moving away from Florida now and the latest forecast says that the storm may head for the Florida panhandle rather than doubling back to head toward Orlando. The weather actually looks pretty good for launch day now, but the forecast doesn't fill me with confidence. I don't think anyone really knows where this storm is going to go next. I don't think I have the temperament to live in a coastal area. The tornado warnings we get here are bad enough. Hurricanes are much harder to escape.

I walked into the bathroom adjoining the office this afternoon and saw a rather large lizard staring at me. How the hell to these animals get into the house? First it was a bird and now I have a lizard to deal with. I couldn't just open a window and let the lizard fly out. I had to catch it. Have you ever tried to catch a lizard? They can be pretty fast. I eventually trapped the lizard under a piece of Tupperware and was able to remove it from the house. I'm tired of dealing with invading critters, but I'm sure this lizard won't be the last thing I have to catch.

I may have to go buy a lightweight raincoat tomorrow. The tropical storm may have moved to the West, but it's probably still going to be raining when I arrive in Florida. I had a super light raincoat from my backpacking days, but I can't find it anywhere. All I remember about it was that it was blue and weighed almost nothing. I don't know why I even try to find things I haven't seen in forty years. I can't find stuff I bought last month.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2725

We thought we'd see if Dash would take a longer walk if we both walked him. That seemed to do the trick. Dash took a nice long walk without any hesitation. I'm not sure what this proves, but it isn't a very practical solution. It's rare that we have time to take a family walk. I know that Dash always preferred to walk with Dot. Hey buddy, I'd rather walk both dogs too, but that's not going to happen anymore. We're all going to have to adjust to Dot being gone. I wonder if Dash knows what happened? He saw us carry Dot out the door and she never returned. I wish I could tell him that everything is going to be OK.

Today I learned that the pressure washer is great for cleaning bricks and concrete, but it is terrible for removing spiderwebs. I tried to clean the windows on the back of the house this afternoon and ended up getting spiders all over me.  The webs were so sticky that I had trouble dislodging them with the water spray. Once again, nature wins. The water was powerful enough to penetrate the window frames and get inside the house, but the webs seemed impervious to damage. I also learned that it's not a good idea to use use the power washer nozzle to spray away a spider that landed on your leg. Ouch. It was just instinct, but I shouldn't have done that.

The windows eventually got cleaned, even though I had to resort to a bleach soaked wet rag to finish the job. The sad thing is that in two weeks, the spiders will all be back. They build web near the windows because it's a great place to catch bugs. Flying insects are attracted to the light from the windows at night and the industrious spiders ensnare them with their webs. Don't even get me started about the lizards. In a month from now, there will be lizards crawling on our windows at night as well.

I can live with most of these critters, but I draw the line at rats. I went to a pest control store and bought some attractant that is supposed to be much better than peanut butter or cheese as bait. I cleaned all the traps, moved them around to new locations, and baited them with the attractant gel. We'll see. I"d better have a rat in the morning.

I started doing a little research about viewing the eclipse this August. It became apparent very quickly that the big problem will be the weather. Once you've picked a location, you pretty much rule out all the other locations. I'm sure there will be people who decide to change locations at the last minute to increase their odds of clear skies, but all this is going to do is create monumental traffic jams. Based on prior history, there is about a 40% chance of cloudy weather at many of the best locations. Based on my own experience, you just can't predict the weather. We were supposed to have clear weather when my Dad and I traveled to see the Alaskan eclipse in 1963, but a cloud covered the sun at the last minute. When NASA invited me to Vandenberg Airforce Base to view a satellite launch a few years ago, everything was going perfectly until a few minutes before lift off. Once again, weather surprised us and the launch was scrubbed at the last minute. I guess if you want to see the eclipse, you've just got to pick a location and take your chances. Just like my experience with the spiders, mother nature is going to win this one too.

I got a lot done today. Hopefully, I will do the same tomorrow. I plan on going to the gym. Since the gym is indoors, there will be no rats or spiders to deal with. It's sad that it takes a rat to make the gym appealing to me, but if this gets me exercising, I guess it's a good thing.

Escher is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2064

I never thought I'd say this, but I actually like my dentist. I got my permanent crown today and I was impressed by the meticulous care the dentist took to make sure that it looked and felt exactly like the rest of my natural teeth. They took really good impressions a month ago and the new crown fits perfectly. The most surprising thing about today's visit, other than the fact that the chair I sat in was giving me a back massage, was the small Japanese woman who came in with a set of miniature brushes and painted the tooth with a special porcelain enamel so it would be an exact match with the adjacent teeth on either side. When she got the color blended just right they removed the crown and fired it in an oven for thirty minutes to fuse the enamel and make the color permanent. Dentistry has come a long way since the last time I had a crown put in. That was twenty years ago. I doubt that I'll wait twenty years between dental visits now. I probably don't have twenty years left.

It took a lot longer to fit and attach the crown than I had anticipated. I thought that they would just remove the temporary tooth, glue in the new crown and I'd be good to go in fifteen minutes. I was actually at the dentist's office almost two hours, but I have no complaints. I appreciate attention to detail and I was very impressed with everything they did. Now, all I have to do is have my teeth cleaned later this week and my dental journey is over for a while.

It used to take forever to get my monthly invoices posted and in the mail. It doesn't take long anymore, since my client roster has shrunk quite a bit. I got my August invoices in the mail today and the whole process, including a trip to the post office, took me less time than I spent at the dentist office. It's kind of sad that my once thriving business had come to this, but it's not easy to be an old man in a very young industry. The millennials that are in charge of ad agency creative departments now just aren't all that excited about hiring their grandfather. Most of them weren't even born yet in the heady Mad Men era where I learned my trade.

The temperatures continue to creep a little higher with each passing day. We've had a full week of unrelenting triple digit weather and it's been almost a month since we've seen any rain. The dogs don't like this at all. The mornings are bearable, but the thermometer seldom dips below eighty degrees anymore, even in the middle of the night. The possums and armadillos in the neighborhood must be hungry, because they are really tearing up the yard at night. Every morning, I have to replant some liriope that critters have dug up during the night.The Asian jasmine at the back of the yard is being covered by a thick layer of spider webs. I don't know what this is all about, but it happens every August. August is not kind to the yard.

Dash gets tested tomorrow to see whether his new blood pressure medicine is working. Hopefully, these new meds will keep his blood pressure under control. I definitely don't want him to have a stroke while he is barking at me for more bananas at breakfast. When I get Dash's blood pressure straightened out, I need to do something about my own. I switched from Benicar back to Zestril a few months ago because I became alarmed at all the 1-800-BAD-DRUG commercials I was seeing on TV directed at Benicar users. I may have to go back to Benicar though. The nagging cough I had while taking Zestril fifteen years ago has returned. It's really irritating. Bad drug or not, I prefer taking the Benicar.

We'll see if tomorrow brings any surprises. The only surprise I'd like at this point is a little rain.

J-Lo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1561

There are too many things to remember. Did I take my pills this morning? Have I watered the new grass? Did I make a test print to keep the large printer from clogging? Is it the right day for Dash's chemo pills? Have I answered all my e-mail? Have I folded the clothes in the dryer? Did I pay the utility bills? Are there any clean towels left? Are my camera batteries charged? Where are my reading glasses? Is there enough gas in the car? The list goes on and on. I would like to have a day, or a month, or even a year with nothing to remember at all. That's not going to happen though.

On busy work days, I forget a lot of routine things. On slower days, I try to catch up. I never remember everything though. Try as I may, there are still days when we're completely out of garbage bags, or the milk in the refrigerator has gone bad. It's easier to remember things that happen every day. I never forget breakfast and always make the bed in the morning. Things that only happen periodically are more problematic. I really have to keep my wits about me to avoid giving Dash his cancer medicine on the wrong day. Taking my own pills at the right time can be a problem as well. I write all important things down in an online calendar, but frequently forget to check the calendar. Clients that feed me work every day usually get great service, but clients who only need things every month or so occasionally get forgotten about.

I do best on simple days like today. Several clients asked me direct questions and I answered them on the spot. I got a request for an article and I wrote it immediately. Why not? I wasn't doing anything else at the time. I paid a small stack of bills, went to the post office, and took the dogs on a long walk. I did remember to water the new grass and even cooked an omelet using up some leftover sausage and spicy vegetables from the weekend. This seemed like plenty to do for one day.

Tomorrow will be busier, since it's another radiation treatment day for Dash. Wednesday used to be Dot's acupuncture and water therapy day, but I've moved that to Thursday, since it's about the only free day left. The HVAC guys are coming out Friday to rewire the connection to the air conditioner compressor in the back yard. The Summer Texas sun is murder on exposed wiring and the existing wiring doesn't look like it will last another season. I definitely don't want to have to deal with a broken AC this Summer. Too bad the HVAC guys couldn't fix the blinking LED can lights in the bathroom as well. It would be nice to kill two birds with one stone.

This afternoon, I noticed a squirrel digging up one of the new Liriope plants I planted this weekend. Why do these critters continue to torment me? On one of our recent walks, a large possum refused to give ground on the trail and the dogs got way too interested. I thought we were going to have an epic possum battle. Pretty soon it will be warm enough for the snakes to reappear. I think in my next life, I'll live in a downtown high-rise.

Petey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1301

I've already learned a few things by going to the gym. Most importantly, I've learned that I'm not in nearly as good shape as I thought I was. For years, I've been telling myself that I got all the exercise I needed by taking the dogs on long walks. Maybe this was true at some point, but the dogs are getting older now and don't walk as far or as fast as they used to. I still spend quite a bit of time walking the dogs, but a lot of this activity consists of Dot and Dash looking for new places to pee while I look for flowers to photograph. We may be on the trail for an hour, but when we return, we usually aren't even breathing hard.

I am winded when I leave the gym, and I guess that's as it should be. So far, my exercise strategy is to watch the people who come with their own personal trainers and just do the same things they do. I don't even attempt to copy the true fitness fanatics though. I saw someone today going full speed on a stair climbing machine for 45 minutes without stopping. My legs would have turned to jelly within fifteen minutes. I do think I'll be able to incorporate a trip to the gym into my regular routine though. I'm going to try to go a minimum of two days a week, and hopefully I'll find time for three.

One nice thing about the gym is that I never have to make an appointment. I can just go whenever I feel like it. Everything else in life seems to require elaborate planning, with appointments made weeks in advance. Haircuts require appointments. Doctors require appointments. I even had to make an appointment to get my oil changed. I used to just show up at the dealership with the Defender and enjoy a cup of coffee while they serviced my car. Evidently those days are long gone. I was able to make an appointment for tomorrow however. The oil change is two hours earlier than Dash's vet appointment. It's going to be a busy day.

Every time I get interested in one of the many new services AT&T offers, one of my existing services crashes or breaks and I'm thrown back into the land of reality. Today I kept getting notices on my computer that I had new voicemail messages waiting, but whenever I tried to access them, I was locked out. I tried to listen to the messages using both the phone and the computer, but neither of them would accept my password. By the time I finished dinner, the system was back to normal. As usual, all the messages were from telemarketers.

I didn't get around to working on the Sheetrock today. I had the time, but it never occurred to me because I didn't look up at the ceiling much today. I did find some more bees however. Just as I thought I was winning the battle with the critters outside, I spotted another hornet's nest on the back porch. Although I managed to get rid of the nest without getting stung, I'm sure this wasn't the last of the bees and hornets I'll be seeing this Summer.

I need to get to bed earlier. I'm a habitual night-owl, but this doesn't lend itself to early dog walks. I have no desire to rise with the sun, but it's becoming increasingly necessary to give the dogs a chance to enjoy themselves before the weather becomes unbearable. We got started at 8 AM this morning and it was already too late. Maybe 6:30 AM would be better. Janet says the weather is quite nice at that time of day. I wouldn't know anything about that.

Trevor is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 688

When I was washing the breakfast dishes this morning, a rather large lizard walked across the kitchen counter and headed straight toward the pile of plates I had just cleaned. I tried, and ultimately failed, to catch the lizard. It's still around the house somewhere. There was a time when this would have really bothered me and I would have spent the rest of the day trying to find the little reptile. I just don't care anymore. We live near a large wooded area and every time it gets cold, critters somehow manage to find a way inside. I guess a house lizard isn't so bad. At least it isn't a mouse or a rat.

As much as I hate going to the dentist, I think I'm going to have to go back again very soon. During my last visit, the dentist told me that one of my wisdom teeth was crowding the rest of my teeth so badly that it simply had to go. Oddly, it's the wisdom tooth on the other side of my mouth that is bothering me now. Nevertheless, I'm starting to agree with the dentist's assessment. Something has to be done. I'm dreading this, but I'll make an appointment to see an oral surgeon next week.

I had to go to a lighting store today to look for a halogen bulb to replace a burned out bulb in one of the living room lamps. While I was there, I noticed that LED bulbs were finally getting bright enough to be a viable replacement for the remaining incandescent lights in the house. There were lots of LED bulbs that claimed to be as bright as a seventy-five watt incandescent light bulb. There was even one large and very expensive LED that claimed to be as bright as a 150 watt bulb. These LED bulbs still have a way to go however. The big fifty dollar LED was rated at an output of 1200 lumens, while the little halogen bulb I needed for the living room lamp output a commanding 2800 lumens. Hmmm. $7.95 vs. $49.95. You can guess which bulb I went home with.

When I woke up this morning, I was convinced that this was going to be the day I got caught up with everything. Nope. It didn't happen. Just about the time I finished my daily watch article, I got a bunch of emergency web updates that needed attention. The big brown Panasonic box near my desk is still unopened.

Wolfgang is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 674

As we were walking towards a brushy area on our morning walk, the dogs and I encountered a woman with two dogs of her own who suggested we might ought to change course because she had just seen a Bobcat go into the brush. I've heard several neighbors tell me about Bobcats in the park, but I've never actually seen one. With two dogs who are always eager to chase anything, I didn't really want a close encounter with a Bobcat. We went around the brushy thicket instead of through it as we usually do. I suspect that that there really was a Bobcat in the brush, because as we were walking around the thicket, we encountered two rabbits who refused to move as we approached. Usually rabbits will quickly disappear into the vegetation whenever two Dalmatians approach. These bunnies didn't want to go anywhere near the thicket. They stayed perfectly still with their ears flattened as we passed them. I wish I could take the dogs to an "animals to avoid" class. First it was the coyotes. Then it was poisonous snakes. Now, I've got to add Bobcats to the list of critters to steer clear of.

When we returned home, I fixed myself a tasty omelet and watched the stock market act irrationally on TV while I ate breakfast. I could have watched the death of Muammar Gaddafi on another channel, but I'm really getting tired of hearing about strife and civil unrest. The market isn't very peaceful either, but I still find it interesting. Apple stock continues to drop after the company missed their quarterly numbers for the first time ever. Maybe it will drop low enough so I can eventually afford to buy it back again. Selling Apple earlier this year still has to be one of the dumbest investment decisions I've ever made.

Oh, well. I guess it's decisions like this that keep me working. I finished a writing assignment today and made my usual website updates. Towards the end of the day, I got a call from the Land Rover dealer saying my car was ready. Since I hadn't taken the dogs on their evening walk yet, I told them I'd pick the car up in the morning. Dinner had to be postponed a bit tonight because of an animal rescue meeting at 6 PM. I often don't go to these Thursday meetings because it's so hard to get out of the driveway during the evening rush hour. For some reason it seemed like I ought to go tonight though. By the time I got the trash out to the street for tomorrow's pickup, it was completely dark.

Just in case you were wondering, the furnace works great after it's inaugural run last night and the house is toasty warm.

Emily is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 588

Here's a little irony for you. I think I lost the translation job I've been telling you about as the result of a translation problem. When the company initially contacted me, they told me they needed the translation job completed by next Friday. I wrote back and said this was fine and that there would be no problem completing everything before August 5. This date, of course, is next Friday. Later in the day I got another e-mail saying that they awarded the job to another company. They explained that they needed everything done by July 29, which is actually this Friday. They thought when they said next Friday, I would understand this to mean the next Friday that appeared on the calendar, which happens to be this Friday. Confused yet? So am I.

I think I'm becoming addicted to Google+. It's easy to get distracted because I'm constantly logged into my Google account anyway. Since I already use Google documents, Google Maps, Google Calendar, Google Search and a raft of other Google products on a daily basis, the Google+ icon seems to always be waiting for me at the top of my browser menu. Every few minutes it tempts me with that little red box which tells me something new has appeared in my stream. Usually these new things are posts written by semi-famous Internet pundits who seem to have all day to sit around and share links and opinions with each other. These guys don't seem any wiser than the normal folks you'd hang out with at your local Starbucks, but since they're famous, ever word they utter seems to garner a million +1 recommendations. I find myself adding my own two cents to some of these threads, but I don't expect the Illuminati to add me to their own circles any time soon.

It's so hot outside that all the park critters are getting real lethargic. Dot almost caught a raccoon this afternoon while it was sleeping near the base of a tree. Last week, Dash almost caught a rabbit the same way. I definitely don't want the dogs to catch a raccoon, since these critters are notorious carriers of rabies and other diseases. The drought has become so bad that I see all kinds of animals in the back yard trying to drink out of the bird bath. I never thought I'd say this, since I complain about water on my roof so often, but I'd welcome a little rain at this point.

I'm invited to another of those networking breakfasts tomorrow morning. Maybe I'll wear a suit. I never wear a suit anymore. There just aren't many occasions to wear a suit anymore. Nobody seems to wear a suit to work, or even to church these days. Hey, I'm too old for weddings and too young for funerals. I think my suits are all going to get eaten by moths.

Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day