Day 2893

When I was younger I thought I would never live in a cluttered house filled with decades of forgotten and unnecessary things. That was something my parents did. How times have changed. Now, our house suspiciously resembles every older person's home I can remember. There is too much furniture. There are too many things hanging on the walls. And the closets are filled with too many failed attempts to declutter.

Tonight, Janet wanted to make holiday dog biscuits, but we couldn't find the bone shaped cookie cutters. We wouldn't have thrown these things away because we've used them too many times. Where were they though? We couldn't find them in the kitchen. They weren't in the utility room. I even got a step ladder and looked in the ceiling level cabinets above the clothes closets. These hard to reach cabinets have become a temporary purgatory for things we no longer need, but can't bring ourselves to throw away. It would have been far easier to go to a store and buy new cookie cutters, but that would be admitting that you've totally lost control of your house. I was unable to find the cookie cutters, but eventually Janet found three of them at the bottom of a drawer filled with cloth dinner napkins we never use.

After finishing the grocery shopping, I went up on the roof and was pleased to see that everything was dry. It looked like this would be a good day to continue my repairs. I hauled a bucket of the silicon elastomer up on the roof with a rope and immediately spilled some of the messy stuff on my shoe. I've learned to wear worn out clothes that I can dispose of if necessary, but I still try my best to get the coating material on the roof instead of spilling the stuff on me. It was nice that it was warm today, but it would have been even nicer if it weren't so windy. Applying a glue like substance with a paint roller on a windy day is just asking for trouble. I used about two gallons of the elastomer this afternoon and repaired a lot of bad spots. I also ruined a pair of pants and had to clean my hands with nail polish remover when I was done. I really wonder if I am ever going to finish this job.

Dash refused to walk again this afternoon. I don't know what motivates this dog. All week long he has been eager to take a walk around 3 PM. We followed the exact same routine as we do on weekdays, but was just wasn't interested. It is so difficult to get all his protective gear on that I thought I'd leave him suited up in case he got interested in walking later. This was a mistake. The knee brace is good for walks, but hampers his movement around the house. Instead of being sensible and taking a nap on a rug, Dash immediately tried to hop on the bed and fell over. I took everything off and made sure he was OK and then just gave up for the day. Dash didn't get an afternoon walk.

I saw lots of Christmas trees strapped to car roofs when I was out today. It still seems early to me, but I guess I'll need to start thinking about putting ours up soon. So much can change in a year. Last Christmas Dot was still with us, Janet hadn't been diagnosed with cancer yet, and I could still pretend I had a viable business. Somehow we survived. As the year draws to a close, there is a lot to be thankful for and a lot to be apprehensive about as well. This year has been a roller coaster. I'm hoping that next Christmas I can look back at a fairly uneventful year.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1780

I had to go down to the UPS depot to pick up a package this morning and was amazed at how quiet and efficient the place seemed. The last time I was here, it was total chaos. "Wow, this is a lot different than Christmas," I told the clerk behind the counter. "Oh, we got rid of our bad boss," he responded. "Everything is fine now." Sounds about right to me. It doesn't matter what you do for a living. Having a bad boss can make a shambles of everything.

Evidently the manager wanted to get a performance bonus for keeping costs under control and refused to hire extra help during the busy holiday season. The resulting poor service caused such a customer backlash that the company fired the manager instead of giving her a bonus. I remember that I was one of the customers who complained about poor service last Winter. It's nice to know that every once in a while, companies actually listen to their customers.

Dot had a great day at her physical therapy session. I still can't figure out why she is strong and energetic on some days and weak and tired at other times. Our days are remarkable consistent. She eats the same food, sleeps the same amount of time, and walks the same trails day after day. You'd think the therapy sessions would be the same as well. Maybe she's just in a better mood on certain days. That's definitely the case with me. When I'm in a good mood, I can get twice as much done.

I was surprised when we got rained on during our afternoon walk. October has been so dry that I've almost forgotten about rain. It was cloudy when we left on our walk, but I didn't even bother to check the weather radar. It just didn't seem like a rainy day. Although we all got soaked, there was no thunder and lightening, so the dogs didn't panic. I dried everybody off with large bath towels when we got home and then everything was back to normal.

Dot's vets and nurses were just as surprised as me that tomorrow is Halloween. Where has this year gone? I can't remember a year where the time has zipped by so fast. If I remember anything at all about this year, it will be all the doctor's appointments and medical emergencies. I started my Hepatitis C treatment in January, Dash was diagnosed with cancer in February, and then Dot got sick and was diagnosed with cancer in July. Now that the year is winding to a close, I am very thankful that each of these stories had a happy ending.

I've already taken the trash out to the curb for Friday morning pick-up and am looking forward to having a delicious breakfast at my favorite restaurant. Friday's are almost always good days.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1650

I don't know why I even bothered to water the lawn yesterday. It rained most of the day today. I don't think I'll ever learn how to predict the weather here in Texas. At any rate, the grass will be fine for a while. Since Dash still refuses to poop in the yard, he got wet on his morning walk. Dot was smarter and quickly did her business in the back yard, so she got to stay home where it was dry.

Hoping that the rain would be over soon, I turned on the computer and updated my animal rescue websites after breakfast. I usually do this during the week, but I certainly didn't have anything better to do this morning. It was still raining after I finished, so I reluctantly took the car out in the rain and did my Sunday errands anyway.

It was a good day to go to the gym. I had time to kill and calories to burn. I guess I was the only one who saw the gym as a refuge from the rain. There were only four other people in the entire cavernous building. I shot five baskets in a row from the free throw line today. This wouldn't be a big deal for many people, but I don't think I've done this before. Shooting baskets is interesting to me. It's all hand/eye coordination. You'd think that after a while it would become easy to replicate your actions and every shot from the free throw line would go in the basket. It doesn't seem to work that way though.

I still haven't watched anything using the Roku Streaming Stick I installed on the TV a few weeks ago. I don't watch very much using Hulu Plus either. I think I just get these things because I like to have options. I don't trust the cable companies, but my viewing needs are really pretty simple. I like to watch things I've already seen. I watch British comedies on PBS over and over again. I watch old Perry Mason and Twilight Zone episodes over and over again. And I watch all the science fiction shows like Torchwood and Dr. Who on the BBC.  I didn't watch anythng at all tonight. I just took a nap with the dogs.

We're already starting to get junk mail with ads for Fourth of July sales. Is is that time of year already?  I can't believe how fast this year has gone by. It doesn't seem like much has happened, but actually it's been a pretty eventful year. Dash has survived his arduous cancer treatments and appears to be a healthy dog again. I am finally free of the Hepatitis C virus. I have applied for social security. And Janet and I are finally starting to think about retirement. I still take things one day at a time, but the days are zooming by pretty darn fast.

Kirby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day