Day 4141

I almost forgot it was Monday today. I was getting ready to take my long walk when Janet reminded me that it was time to go see the rescue Dalmatians. I took my camera in case the new female in the program was at the kennel, but when we arrived we learned that she had already been adopted. Charlie and Cooper were glad to see us as always. We've been pretty good at teaching these active guys to "go out for a pass" and catch a toy football in midair. We need to try to teach them some manners. Maybe they would find a home quicker.

We had already taken Dawn on her short walk before we left for the kennel, but there was still time for me to take my long walk after we returned home. I knew I was going to be slow this afternoon because my foot was bothering me before I even left the house. It's kind of irritating that the only thing my foot doctor was able to recommend were new shoes and some topical pain cream. There is just no magic bullet when your cartilage begins to wear out. I'm going to keep walking though. I have a feeling that things would get worse rather quickly if I quit moving. I know other people with arthritis and the fact that I can still walk six miles a day is proof that I'm really not doing all that bad. It could definitely be a lot worse.

My package isn't in Indiana anymore. With any luck it might arrive later this week. I wonder why USPS surface mail is so much slower than FedEx Ground or UPS Ground? Most UPS Ground orders arrive in three or four days. I know why Amazon Prime is so quick. They have giant warehouses all over the country and most things we order on Amazon are already in the Dallas warehouse anyway. Maybe I should be glad that the post office is slow. It gives me something else to track every day.

I watched the Delta IV Heavy NROL-82 launch on the ULA live stream this afternoon. I've always wanted to see one of these launches in person because the Delta IV Heavy is huge. I was approved to see the last Delta IV Heavy launch in Florida but the trip didn't work out for a variety of reasons. Since these rockets are almost always used to launch giant school bus sized spy satellites you don't get a lot of access at a launch. It would still be great to see one lift off though. There are only three of these aging giants left, so I'd better get planning if I want to see one of the remaining ones fly.

Janet is having a wisdom tooth removed tomorrow, so I'll need to take her to and from the dentist. Whenever you have a wisdom tooth removed you kind of wish you'd taken care of this earlier in life. Wisdom tooth roots go on forever and it is not always easy to remove them. My dental surgeon told me that the hole where the tooth used to be would fill in over time. It never did. There is still an indentation in my jaw that is easy to feel at the gum line. Hopefully Janet's extraction will go smoothly. We've stocked up on tasty soups so she'll have something to eat while she recovers.

We're starting to think that Dawn used to just be fed once a day. She still eats the same amount of food, but her schedule has changed. She isn't as interested in breakfast anymore and wants to eat more at dinner. I guess this is OK, but it seems weird to have a dog that isn't interested in breakfast. We couldn't fix breakfast fast enough for all our other Dalmatians. To each his or her own I guess. As long as Dawn continues to eat a normal amount of healthy food, we're not going to worry about when she eats. 

I'll continue eating my own breakfast at the same time every morning. Hey, I'm not a dog, even though I act like one at times.

Brady is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3595

The Dalmatians are doing well. Jelly Bean and Soldier have been adopted. There is someone who is interested in Ginny and I think Darn is being looked at as well. Lord and Leftie are still painfully shy, but they are making progress. They both seem to gain confidence when they are together. Jasmine is almost finished with her heartworm treatment and Ginny is about ready to begin hers. Luckily, these two girls are the only dogs that are curently heartworm positive. Hank is eating well, but seems to be losing weight again. The bloody stools haven't returned, but we still can't figure out why this dog is so thin. All in all, this is a good report card, but kennel life is stressful. Each of these dogs will do even better when they find their forever homes. A Dalmatian isn't really happy until they can counter surf and sleep on your bed.

I am totally frustrated with the weather forecast. It was supposed to be clear today but ended up raining this afternoon. I hope my roof repairs had time to dry properly. The rain was just a light drizzle, but moisture is moisture. As long as the silicon has developed a skin on the top surface, I think it should continue to cure even if it gets wet. We'll see. I'll go inspect things as soon as the weather dries out again.

I finally received my new retainer. I thought the dentist was going to mail it to me last week, but it never arrived. I called to see if the retainer was finished and we stopped on our way home from the Dalmatian kennels so I could pick it up. Hopefully, this will keep my teeth from getting even further out of alignment. It seems weird that your teeth keep shifting slightly throughout your life, but that's just the way it is.

I had to take a shorter walk today so I'd have time to visit the Dalmatians. It's just as well I didn't complete the entire five miles. It was one of those foggy, damp days were you start out dry and end up wet, even though you aren't aware of rain falling. I wonder if the little circus in the park will come back next year. They've had terrible weather for two years in a row. I can't imagine that they've made much money this year. At least half of their performances have been rained out.

Roofer number four is going to come look at the house later this week. I don't expect their estimate to be much different than the first three roofers, but at least I'm doing something. Maybe they will suggest something new. An old house that has settled is full of problems. Cracks develop. Doors and windows stick. Plumbing starts to leak. All this seems minor compared to the roof though.

I don't know why I'm not sleeping well. Right after Dash died I started sleeping a lot better. Now I'm back to waking up several times a night. I don't have insomnia. I just wake up a lot. Life is full of little mysteries. As always, I'll go to sleep tonight watching an old episode of Perry Mason that I've seen many time before and hope for the best. It seems to be a lot easier to walk 20,000 steps than it is to sleep eight hours.

Abi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3583

I've got to go back to the dentist. They broke the impression of my teeth while they were making my new retainer, so I need to go back and get another set of impressions made. They're going to make two sets of impressions this time, in case they break something again. No wonder I hate to go to the dentist. Now, I've got to have that yucky putty like substance put in my mouth twice.

Ever since I lost my last website account, it's been bothering me that the client told me his website wasn't working correctly. The thing that bothered me most was that the client was right. I finally figured out why his site wouldn't scroll properly on some devices. I fixed the problem and uploaded the site for a final time. This little gesture wont get me the account back, but at least now I won't have to think about the whole thing any longer.

I guess a new cold front rolled through town last night because it was chilly when I woke up this morning. I had to turn on the furnace while I was eating breakfast. It was actually a nice day, but I wish it was a little warmer. I need the roof to dry out before the next rain arrives. I'm not sure my repairs will even work because the silicon coating doesn't tend to adhere to the roof very well. That's the main reason I've been having problems for several years. There aren't many alternatives unfortunately. Conventional patching materials won't stick to the silicon coating at all and the bids I've been getting to completely replace the roof are horrendously high.

As I continue to research conversion vans, the whole idea of living off the grid exploring observatories, launch sites, and dark sky areas is starting to seem a little less appealing. From what I've been reading, RV toilets are notoriously messy and prone to leaks. Cargo area air conditioners typically use too much electricity to to be powered by roof mounted solar cells. Fresh water tanks tend to develop a bad taste after a while. Grey and black water tanks can only be emptied at designated disposal stations. I could go on and on. It's all very complicated for a guy who prefers luxury hotels. A lot of van conversions just seem messy and poorly designed to me. I do like Airstream vans and trailers. Of course they would have to be the most expensive. I always seem to be attracted to the most expensive things. Too bad I can't afford them.

If I get approved to stay at McDonald Observatory for an extended length of time, I think I'll just rent a van for my first visit. Renting an RV is actually more expensive than staying in a nice hotel, but it is a lot less expensive than actually buying an RV. Renting a vehicle for several weeks is probably a good way of seeing if I actually like the whole experience. I already know that I like astronomy and looking at stars. I'm not so sure about living on a remote mountain in somewhat primitive conditions however.

I'm sure I've got plenty of time to think about all this. Opportunities to view rocket launches up close are few and far between. The whole process of getting clearance to stay at the observatory is fairly complicated too. It's hard to be patient when things take place slowly like this. At least it gives me the time to save for future adventures. I couldn't afford to go anywhere tomorrow anyway.

Lucky is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3581

The Dalmatians are all doing well. We spent some extra time with Sock today, trying to help him become more comfortable outside his kennel run. He's relaxed a lot since he initially entered the rescue program, but he still doesn't like to go outside like the other dogs. The large play areas at the kennel make him feel nervous and the only place he seems to feel safe and secure is in his own bed. We're making progress but it takes patience. Each time we visit we try to get him comfortable with being in a slightly larger space. Sock is a very sweet dog and over time he'll learn that nothing bad is going to happen to him again.

Jasmine and Jelly Bean were fearful like Sock in the beginning, but they are both playful and trusting now. What a transformation in less than a month. Now that Treasure's stitches are out, she's is back to her normal happy self and doesn't need to wear a cone anymore. Hank continues to slowly gain weight and Charlie is becoming much more predictable. Some of these dogs have had a hard life and we want them to be relaxed and well socialized before they go to their forever homes. The nice thing about dogs is they almost always respond well to being treated well. If only people were this way.

I wonder how long it's going to be before I'm able to get the roof patched. This is usually the rainy season and from now through the end of the year it's going to be difficult for the roof to dry out enough to apply the coating before it rains again. Two days isn't enough time, especially when the weather is turning cooler. The roof was almost dry enough yesterday, but I knew it was going to rain today. Sure enough, the rain arrived right on schedule. All I can do is keep the pumps running when it rains and try to keep things as dry as possible. I knew this was coming. That's why I kept begging for the silicon product all Summer.

I took a shorter walk this morning because I knew we were going to visit the Dalmatians. I thought I'd continue my walk when we returned home, but it was raining by then. When the rain subsided to a gentle sprinkle, I decided to walk anyway. There really isn't much difference between being rained on and getting sweaty on a hot day. I didn't really need to walk this afternoon, but there wasn't much else to do. I'm addicted to the Fitbit steps as well. Given a choice, I'd much prefer being active to watching Netflix movies.

Tomorrow I'm going back to the dentist. I've grown tired of wearing the two broken halves of my old retainer every night so I'm going to have the dentist make me a new one. The retainer is supposed to keep my upper wisdom teeth from continuing to grow downward after I had the lower ones removed. Is this flimsy piece of plastic effective? Who knows.

I wish I didn't wake up tired all the time. I get plenty of sleep now, but I still hate to get out of bed in the morning. Maybe tomorrow will be different. Nah. Who am I kidding.

Abby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3273

I sent out a few SOS messages about the roof this morning, but didn't receive much of a response. Eventually, the roofer did send me a short message saying that I was still on their list, but that they were way behind schedule. This wasn't very encouraging. I did some research on products that I could use to make emergency repairs and discovered that most of them weren't compatible with the elastomer coating. I'm not sure how much good a patch would do anyway, since water has already gotten under the coating. Some of the commonly available wet patch materials are not meant to be applied in cold weather anyway.

I renewed one of my domains that was going to expire at the end of the week. I don't use this domain, but it was easier to just renew it for another year than to make a decision about dropping it. Maybe I'll use the domain next year. Jeez. Who am I kidding. I'm never going to use this domain.

Pretty soon I'll need to make a similar decision about whether to renew my subscriptions for Pro Tools and Avid Media Composer. I don't use these products either, but it's nice having them around. At some point I need to start being realistic. It's very doubtful that I'm going to be asked to do any complicated video editing again. I'm retired. I don't need business software anymore.

Dash was not very steady on his feet today. He stumbled and fell several times and I had difficulty getting him upright again. He struggles whenever I try to lift him up which makes the whole process more difficult. I try to tell him that we need to work as a team, but he's not getting the picture. I wish Dash knew his limitations and would be more careful. That's not his style. He keeps trying to do all the things he used to do, but he's not very successful anymore.

I'm running out of time to buy Christmas gifts. Pretty soon I'm going to have to check the more expensive shipping option on Amazon. What did I do before Amazon? I can't imagine shopping at a mall anymore. Just finding a parking place at this time of year is a nightmare.

I still haven't called the dentist about getting a new retainer made. Teeth grow slowly don't they? I wonder how long I can postpone this chore. I might have to call my doctor and ask him to refer me for endoscopy. Is this more important than a retainer? My heartburn problems seem to be getting worse. I wonder if my recurring reflux problems are caused by the food I'm eating, or stress? My diet hasn't really changed, but my stress levels have. Dash's deteriorating health and the crumbling house are hard to ignore.

At least the weather is nice. I've got a little time before there is any rain on the horizon. I may drive over to a professional roofing supply company in a neighboring town tomorrow and see if they have some sort of miracle repair product I can use. I may need it. The real miracle would be if the roofers actually appeared on my doorstep before the next rain.

Princess is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3266

We went to a Christmas party this evening. It's exceedingly rare for me to go to any sort of party these days, especially a semi-formal one. This was the first time I'd worn a suit in well over a year. I'm always amazed that my old dress clothes still fit. I didn't know many people at this party, but Janet did. The food was delicious and I even had a glass of wine. Although I'm definitely not a party person anymore, I'll have to admit that I had a good time.

This was a very busy day. All the photo equipment we used during the Santa Paws events has been stored away. The heavy stuff is back at the storage warehouse and everything else is ready to gather dust in the office for another year. There were lots of other errands as well. I went to the bank, got groceries, picked up meds for Dash, and filled the car with gas. Not surprisingly, I thought it was Saturday for a while.

Dash got me up again last night. He seems to be sleeping longer this week. Getting up at 5 AM isn't nearly as bad as getting up at 3 AM. This morning, Dash managed to make it to the back door and pooped in the yard like a normal dog. There was no mess to clean up. I celebrated by going back to sleep for two more hours.

Getting enough sleep made a big difference today. Now, I consider anything over five hours a bonus. It would be nice if I was able to get a good night's sleep two nights in a row, but that hasn't happened in a while. We'll see what happens. So far today, Dash has been acting surprisingly normal.

I broke the Essix retainer I wear to bed yesterday, so it looks like I'll need to get my dentist to make me another one.  When I had an impacted wisdom tooth pulled several years ago, the dentist told me that I would need to wear the retainer to prevent the remaining upper wisdom tooth from growing downward. I was surprised at how long the thin plastic retainer lasted, but nothing lasts forever. I'm hoping that the dentist will tell me that I don't need the thing anymore, but that's not very likely. I'll probably be sitting in the chair getting impressions made sometime next week.

The weather has gotten cold again. The temperature bounces around so much now that I never know what to wear. Just looking out the window isn't enough anymore. Neither is remembering what the weather was like yesterday. If I dressed like I did yesterday I would have frozen today. Luckily, I have a coat for every occasion.

I don't have any plans for tomorrow. Truthfully, I don't have any plans for the rest of the year. I just hope Dash stays healthy, I stay warm, and nothing gives me heartburn.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3148

It was a busy morning. I walked Dash earlier than usual because I needed to drive Janet to the dentist for dental surgery. It's surprising how nice our mornings have been lately, considering how hot it gets later in the day. Dash still hadn't touched his breakfast by the time Janet and I left the house, but I was confident he would eat later. This is his new schedule. He gets up, takes his morning pills in little bites of steak and then we walk. When we return, Dash goes back to sleep. Usually, a little before noon, he wanders out to the kitchen and eats his breakfast. It seems odd to have a Dalmatian that wakes up uninterested in food, but I'm willing to go with the flow these days. As long as Dash continues eating, we're good.

Janet's dental procedure didn't take that long. As soon as I took a shower and washed the breakfast dishes, it was time to pick her up again. It was easy to see why the dentist didn't want Janet driving today. They must have given her some pretty powerful drugs. Dash was happy when Janet returned. He had someone to nap with for the rest of the day.

The guitar store confirmed that one of my guitars did sell recently. Yay. One down, two to go. The store put the guitar on layaway for the buyer, so I won't get a check until the guy finishes paying for it. That's OK. I'm kind of surprised that the whole concept of layaway still exists. My parents used to buy things on layaway when I was a kid, and it still seems like a frugal, rather sensible way to make a purchase. Layaway has definitely fallen out of fashion. People don't like dealing with delayed gratification these days. They'd rather just put something on a charge card and worry about coming up with the money later.

I think the SAMe pills we've been giving Dash are working. He's still weak, but he seems a bit more engaged and interested in life these days. He really likes his morning walks now. I'm not sure who discovered that SAMe helps with cognitive dysfunction in dogs. This stuff seems to be good for everything. I'll admit I'm a bit skeptical of a drug that supposedly helps with everything from depression and hepatitis to joint pain and degenerative myelopathy. How can a single drug help with so many non-related problems? Both of Dash's doctors believe that SAMe is worth a try though. We'll see. If it works, maybe I should start taking it myself.

Looks like another exciting day tomorrow. You'd think I'd be bored out of my mind, but I'm not. I've just about perfected how to turn a walk with Dash, a morning smoothie, an afternoon nap, and some idle time on Facebook into an entire day.

Lou is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2655

I thought my plan to go to the dentist early in the morning was pretty clever, but I forgot one important thing. The drive was right in the middle of morning rush hour. Ouch. As much as I complain about cleaning up dog poop, it's still not as bad as driving in rush hour traffic. All it takes is one small fender bender wreck to back traffic up for miles. I think I'd go insane if I had to do this every morning. Luckily, I have other things to drive me insane.

Every time I go to the dentist, there is a new dental hygienist.  Sign of the times I guess. The first dentist I went to had the same dental hygienist until he retired. Now there's a new hygienist every six months. The woman who cleaned my teeth today was pleasant enough, but she talked the entire time. It's very difficult to carry on a conversation while there are dental instruments inside your mouth.

I got new x-rays today and the dentist said my teeth are in good shape. No cavities. I'm not surprised. I use a Waterpik Flosser every day and brush with one of those Sonicare electric toothbrushes. I thought I was ahead of the curve, but apparently not. They now make WiFi toothbrushes that connect with your phone. This seemed a little over the top to me, but the hygienist said that the high tech brush provides feedback to let you know if you are cleaning your teeth properly and reminds you if you forget to brush. The robots are coming. I'm sure there will be a plate soon that reminds you to eat all your vegetables.

I knew I should have taken Dot outside to pee last night before I went to bed. She was sleeping peacefully though and I hated to wake her. Big mistake. When I woke her up this morning, she peed all over the place. Three rugs got soaked before I was able to get her outside. The house would be much easier to clean if we didn't have the rugs, but they are essential to keep Dot from falling. I tried to air dry the rugs in the back yard today after I washed them. They are making a mess in the dryer because little bits of the rubber backing flake off and clog the lint trap. There is no good solution though. By the time the rugs are dry, there will be spiders building webs in them.

I went to the vegan store this afternoon to pick up something for dinner. I always look at the website first to make sure they have something I like. Typically, when I get to the store, there is a completely different selection of meals. It doesn't seem to bother these people that the website and the store are perpetually out of sync. It's frustrating to me because I'm picky about my vegetables. I like chickpeas, brown rice, lentils, and any type of bean. I don't like sweet potatoes though. I'm not wild about tofu either. I ended up getting something I didn't really like, thinking that I really should have gone up the street and ordered a bowl of Pho from the neighborhood Vietnamese restaurant.

I need to call the roofer again. They still haven't come out and patched my roof. I need to call the landscaper too, even though it will be a waste of money. I wonder if there are any bedding plants that can tolerate being stepped on again and again? Years ago, Janet and I thought about putting artificial turf in the back yard. It probably would have been a good idea.

Brooke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2652

Maybe I should start shopping on Sunday. There were no blueberries yesterday, so I went back to look for some this morning. The entire produce section had been restocked and everything looked much fresher. I got the blueberries I wanted and kind of wished that I'd waited until today to get the strawberries too.

I mowed the lawn for the first time in 2017. Like it or not, Summer is on its way. Every time I get the lawn mower out for a new season of cutting the grass, it seems heavier and more cumbersome than the year before. I wonder how many more years I can continue doing this. Eventually, I'll probably have to start using a lawn service like everyone else in the neighborhood. If the yard was flat it wouldn't be a bit deal. The hills are starting to be a problem. I've grown to hate pushing the mower up the hill in the front yard.

When I walked Dash this morning I saw the coyote again. I was surprised that the coyote was out in the open so late in the day. We got a late start this morning and I didn't walk Dash until after 9 AM. Several neighbors say they've seen two coyotes together. This probably means there is a den and cubs nearby. I probably should worry more about snakes than the coyotes. It is getting warm enough that the snakes are starting to emerge as well. I've learned to avoid the areas where snakes are abundant, but the coyote seems to like the same part of the park that Dash does. We see it frequently now.

This was another day when I was already tired before I even made it to the gym. I went anyway though. If I only went to the gym when I was feeling fresh and energetic, I'd probably never go at all. Since it was a nice Spring day, the gym was virtually empty. I like it this way, because there is seldom anyone using the basketball court. Midway through my workout it occurred to me that I might have left a gate open when I took the lawn mower back to the greenhouse. I always worry about the accidental open gate, because it wouldn't take Dash long to discover it. I called Janet and I guess I secured the gate after all. My memory is really getting bad.

We decided to walk Dot at sunset today, so she wouldn't get so hot. This worked out well. She actually seemed to have more energy than I thought she would. I guess sunset walks are going to be our new routine as the weather continues to grow warmer. This isn't the most convenient time of day for me, but it's easy enough to rearrange my schedule. I wonder why I even bother with a schedule anymore. It's become pretty clear that it doesn't really matter when I do things, or even if I do things.

I had to get up early this morning to take Dot out to pee. The sky was still dark, so after I took Dot back to her bed, I went outside again and looked at the stars. I enjoy stargazing, although it sure would be nice if the sky over our yard wasn't a solid canopy of trees. Despite the partially obscured view, I spotted Saturn to the left of the moon and Jupiter low on the western horizon. I could easily see four of Jupiter's moons through the binoculars, but I had trouble seeing Saturn's rings. Maybe sometime soon I'll have the time and energy to get the telescope out. I could easily see Saturn's rings through the telescope.

The only thing on my plate next week is a trip to the dentist. I'm not looking forward to that.

Pringles is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2458

Today was busy. By the time I finished breakfast and our two regular morning dog walks, it was almost time for my dental appointment. I took a quick shower and headed up to North Dallas to get my teeth cleaned. I do this every six months now, which I guess is a lot better than once every ten years. The dental hygienist said that other than a moderate amount of plaque, my teeth looked pretty good. How could I have any plaque at all? I use one of those sonic toothbrushes every day and then follow up with a water pik. I still wish that I never had to have one of my wisdom teeth removed. I'm such a symmetrical person that it bothers me to have an asymmetrical number of teeth.

When I got home, I got started writing a new article. Some of my writing assignments don't really provide much input. I had to do some serious Google searching to find enough information for today's subject. It's all OK though. This is one of the few ways I can make money while keeping an eye on Dot to make sure she doesn't get stuck in a corner or poop all over herself.

I used to go to animal rescue meetings quite a bit. I'm still a member of several groups, but I seldom go to the meetings anymore. I just don't have the time. For some reason I thought I'd go to one of these meetings this evening. The meeting started a little later than usual and Janet was going to be home with Dot, so I thought everything would be fine. I'd forgotten that any sort of meeting takes longer when wine is served. By the time I thought the meeting would be over, it was actually just getting started. I stayed as long as I could, but evidently I was the only one who had a blog to write. I felt bad about leaving early, since I don't go to many of these meetings anyway, but I could either finish my article and write the blog or stay and chat. I'm not very good at chatting anyway.

Dot seems stronger today. It's a mystery why her condition seems to change so much from day to day, but I suspect that this is just a part of the aging process. I have good days and bad days too. Maybe the extra rest she got yesterday helped. At any rate, Dot didn't stumble as much today and felt like moving around more than she did yesterday. Hopefully, her renewed energy will continue thru tomorrow, when she had another appointment with the underwater treadmill.

I'm still not finished with my article, but I'm getting close. I'll definitely be able to turn it in tomorrow. I don't think I'll be going to any evening meetings for a while. I'm just too slow and have lost most of the flexibility I once had. I made it through the day though and everything got done. Well, almost everything. I still have to take Dot outside to pee. Lord knows how long that will take.

April is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2254

Two vet appointments in a single day is probably too much. I basically spent the morning taking Dot to her physical therapy appointment and the afternoon taking her for a reevaluation at the cancer center. Dot was tired and so was I. Dot did well during the therapy session, as she always does, but the big news was that her blood pressure has returned to normal. The blood pressure medication she's taking appears to work. We'll recheck her urine and blood work in a week or so, but I'm not quite so worried about kidney failure anymore.

I am still worried about the cancer. Dot's oncologist wants to resume chemotherapy on a trial basis. We're going to try a smaller amount of Palladia and add an extra day between treatments to help her recover. We'll try this until next Friday and see how well she tolerates the new treatment schedule. The oncologist agrees that quality of life is more important than longevity at any cost. If Dot tolerates the Palladia, we'll continue the treatment. If it makes her miserable, we'll quit.

Hopefully, we'll have better luck with chemotherapy this time. I'm not looking forward to it though. It's a nuisance to put on the purple rubber chemo gloves every time you give her a pill and since Dot's poop will be mildly toxic during chemo, an accident in the house will be a bit more consequential than it was before. Incontinence and chemotherapy are not a good combination. As always, we'll do the best we can.

I'm coming down with a cold, which is rare for me. I can avoid colds almost indefinitely as long as I stay away from other people. I could have gotten the cold anywhere, but I have a feeling that I  caught this particular bug while I was at the photoshoot last weekend. Ironically, this is also where I probably got the nail in my tire. Maybe I should stick to photographing inanimate objects. I frequently get a cold when I'm doing holiday pet portraits for Dalmatian Rescue. If I'm photographing children, I'm toast. At least this is just a garden variety cold and not the flu. I woke up with a mild sore throat and spent the day sneezing, but that's about it. I should be fine in 48 hours.

I can't believe its been a year since I had my dental work done. It's already time for my annual checkup. In my prior life I would have ignored these annual checkups, but last year's dental adventure finally convinced me that I need to take care of my teeth. I want to keep the teeth I have left, so I'll do anything the dentist wants these days. I use a Sonicare toothbrush now and floss with a Waterpik before I go to bed each night. Hopefully they won't find any cavities when they clean my teeth tomorrow. The less time I spend in a dental chair, the better.

It would have been a good idea to go to bed early tonight, except that it's already late. That's the way it goes. The days are long and very little is accomplished. Now, if I could just remember where I put the cough drops the last time I had a cold.

Joshua is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2066

My teeth have never looked better. Actually, they probably looked a lot better when I was a kid, but they haven't looked this good in a long time. When the dental hygienist asked me if my previous dentist had me on a six month cleaning plan, I laughed and told her that it was more like a ten year cleaning plan. I was a bit embarrassed to admit how seldom I go to the dentist, but I did add that I faithfully use a Sonicare toothbrush and Waterpik every day. She told me that she might have to sand blast my teeth but she could keep them looking good again if I would agree to come in every six months for a cleaning. I promised I would. I have passed the age where I can keep ignoring my health. I remember the terrible problems my Dad had with his teeth as he got older and I'm determined not to suffer the same fate. I've got good strong teeth, but I can't continue going to the dentist once every ten years.

Dot has only been off the Palladia pills for three days now, but I can already see a difference in her attitude. Her left rear leg is still extremely weak, but she is more alert and active now. She tries to get up on her own around the house and seems more eager to go on her two daily walks. I'd like the see her muscle tone and overall strength improve, but this new attitude has to be a good sign. I'm no expert, but I suspect that the chemotherapy was making her uncomfortable and contributed to the increased weakness we've been seeing for the past month or so. If dogs could talk, we'd have a lot better idea what some of their symptoms actually mean. Dot has always been pretty stoic about pain, so things have to get pretty bad before she lets you know something is bothering her. On the other hand, if the UPS delivery guy knocks on the door, or she sees a cat, she'll let you know right away how she feels.

I'll be curious to see whether Dot's vet thinks she has improved when we go for our physical therapy session tomorrow. She hasn't seen her for a week, so she'll have a more objective opinion than I do. I want Dot to get better so badly, that I might be seeing signs of improvement that aren't really there. If Dot continues to become more active, I'm going to ask her oncologist to continue this Palladia free experiment for an additional two weeks. After she has been off the Palladia for a full month, we'll do another Ultrasound scan and measure the tumor again. If the tumor still hasn't grown or spread, there's a chance we could take her off the drug completely. We can only hope at this point.

Work is finally starting to pick up again. I have new writing assignments and more websites to revise. It's nice to stay busy as long as things don't get too busy. It's hard to keep the right balance. I'm either way too busy or there's nothing going on at all. Even today, when I had things pretty well planned out, I ended up being late to the dentist because I encountered unexpected road construction along the way. You just can't plan everything. I didn't have my French Toast and sausages either, because I forgot to take the sausages out of the freezer. We'll see how tomorrow goes. As long as I remember a little more than I forget, I think I'll be OK.

I was trying to remember something I did back in the 80's this morning, so I looked through a few of the old journals I used to keep. They went all the way back to 1983 and were remarkably similar to this blog. The only real difference was that I wrote my posts in a little blank book using a ball point pen and nobody read them. If the Internet had been invented a little earlier, I would have been blogging for over thirty years now. That's pretty amazing.

Ellis is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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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

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Day 2009

Take care of your teeth. I've always had good strong teeth and when I was younger I would frequently go decades between dental visits. This was a mistake. Just because my teeth didn't hurt didn't mean there weren't any problems. The problems grew slowly and painlessly year-after-year, until one day my mouth just imploded with bad news. If you take care of your teeth you can probably just go to a regular dentist. I had to go to a place called The Center for Complex Dentistry.

I was in the chair for over three hours today. The dentist talked back and forth with his assistant throughout the procedure. At one point I heard him say "This isn't supposed to be that difficult." At another point he called hurriedly for a second assistant, saying "I don't have enough hands to do this." Toward the end, he told me "I think you've made my top 10 list." Apparently, the work I had done was very difficult. I only had two fillings and one crown replaced, but one of the fillings was almost impossible. The dentist lived up to his reputation though. He was very, very good.

Be sure to pee before you have major dental work. Three hours is a long time to sit in that chair. I still have to go back in early August to have my permanent porcelain crown installed, but my long dental saga is almost over. My teeth are in good shape again, and most importantly, I won't need to get implants. I still don't know why it takes over a month to get a crown made, but I guess it does. The temporary crown they made me today fits well and I don't expect problems. They dentist just told me not to eat anything really sticky like taffy or caramel while I have the temporary crown. No problem. I don't eat many sweets anyway.

I didn't get a lot of work done today, since I was at the dentist for so long, but I did figure out a clever way to do a lobby slide show for one of my clients. These type of things used to involve dragging a ton of still images into an editing program, creating dissolves or other transitions between each image, and then burning the Ken Burns style Quicktime movie to a DVD in continuous play mode. I hated to make these things. Now you just have to plug a little Chromecast stick into the back of your TV, link the TV to one of your existing Google photo albums using your phone and you're done. It took me less than 45 seconds to have a nice looking slide show up and running.

It rained sporadically throughout the day but I was lucky enough to have a dry spell at both the beginning and end of the day so I could get the dogs walked. Dot hasn't had any more accidents in the house since I started being much more conscientious about getting her outside frequently to poop.  The days of trying to fit the dogs activities to my schedule are over. In the long run it is a lot easier just to change my schedule to meet the dogs needs. My financial adviser called today to confirm an appointment for tomorrow. I told him I'd be there unless there was a bad storm and I needed to stay home with Dot and Dash. Nobody even questions these type of things anymore. They all know who comes first in my world.

Hershey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 1982

I've been telling people that I've got a huge hole in my jaw where my wisdom tooth used to be. No one believes me. They think I'm a whiner. Well, the dentist believed me. "That's a mighty deep socket you've got there," he said. He was surprised that it had been a month since I had the tooth extracted and said said the socket usually starts filling in by now. I asked him how long it would be before my extraction site would fully heal and he said it could be as long as six to nine months. Great. I'm going to have to keep doing salt water and antiseptic rinses after every meal for the rest of the year.

The dentist can't even begin to repair the adjacent tooth for another six weeks. He said that filling this particular tooth would be very difficult because of the location of the cavity, and he wanted the empty wisdom tooth socket to heal some more before he even attempted to fill the tooth next to it. He also said I need a new crown on the tooth next to the one that needs to be filled. Basically, the last three teeth on the lower right side of my jaw are toast.

I just got finished paying for the oral surgery and now it looks like fixing the next two teeth is going to cost even more. Yikes. I don't know why crowns are so expensive. The last time I had a crown it cost me $500. Now it costs two or three times as much for a dentist to create these pricy little porcelain caps. Growing older sucks. It was much more fun to spend my money on cameras and guitars than on medical bills and prescription drugs.

I'm taking what I've learned playing around with my responsive test site and using this somewhat fuzzy knowledge to built my first mobile site for a client. CSS classes and structured HTML are finally starting to make a little sense. It's kind of sad that I'm probably not be able to use Dreamweaver and Fireworks in the future. Adobe has basically abandoned these stand-alone products anyway. The Dreamweaver software I use isn't even updated anymore. If you want the latest and greatest Adobe innovations you have to get a subscription to their Creative Cloud products. The software I'm using to build responsive websites is all cloud based as well.

Dot seems a bit stronger today. I don't know shy she has good days and bad days, because life is very consistent around here. I don't know why I have good days and bad days either. I hope Dot does well at her physical therapy session tomorrow. I've got lots of questions for the vet. I don't know how hard I should push her. She really needs the exercise to build muscle, but she's very old too. Since Dot is extremely food motivated, she's starting to gain weight again as well. Extra weight makes it even harder for her to stand under her own power. Without treats, it's hard to get dogs with limited mobility to do anything though.

Tonight is the very last David Letterman show. I saw the show live once when I was in New York, but I wouldn't be surprised if I slept through tonight's finale.

Harley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 1979

Although we had heavy thunderstorms last night, our power stayed on. When the skies cleared and the sun came out later this morning, our power went out. Go figure. It's anybody's guess what caused the problem this time. It wasn't the weather, and it wasn't the trees. The power company had just finished trimming all the trees in the neighborhood a few weeks ago. Maybe a piece of equipment at one of the sub-stations was underwater. We've certainly had our share of flooding recently. I haven't seen the lake this high in years.

There's not a lot you can do when the power goes out. We walked the dogs and Dot did surprisingly well. Earlier in the morning, she threw up, but it was probably just storm phobia stress. The thunder was loud and relentless last night and Dot didn't like it a bit. I was afraid she would try to hop up in the bed and hurt herself, so I slept on the floor with her to keep her calm. No wonder the dogs like to sleep in the bed so much. The floor is pretty hard. Sleeping with Dot calmed her down though, so it was worth the sore back in the morning.

Since the computer, the television, and even the coffee maker were all dead, I decided to wash the outside windows. I've been avoiding this task, since the windows were not only dirty, they were filled with spiderwebs as well. I think most of our resident spiders are harmless, but I've never liked spiders and do my best to avoid them. I disturbed a couple of big ones today, but the windows are a lot cleaner.

Since clean windows didn't bring the power back, I had no choice but to go to the gym. I think it's been well over a month since I've visited the gym and the dogs aren't walking very far either. I'm out of shape again. I tried to do my regular workout routine and was amazed at how quickly I'd regressed. It seemed like I was starting all over again. My doctor says I need to get on the treadmill more, to counteract a gradual loss of bone density, My physical therapist says I need to do lots of stretching exercises to keep from getting a frozen shoulder. If I did everything I am supposed to do, I'd be at the gym all the time.

The power company eventually restored our power and life returned to normal again. I cleared all the water off the roof from yesterday's storms. I fired up the computer and made a few minor website updates. Janet fixed a nice dinner. And I didn't need to worry about making today's blog bost using a laptop with a half dead battery.

My mouth has finally healed enough from the wisdom tooth extraction for me to go see a different dentist next week. I'm not looking forward to this, but it would be silly to postpone things. The whole reason I had the wisdom tooth removed in the first place was to save the tooth next to it. If I delay getting this tooth repaired, it might have to be pulled as well. This whole dental journey has been like opening Pandora's Box. I just hope it all ends reasonably soon.

I think we'll see a little sunshine tomorrow, but starting Tuesday the thunderstorms return. The long range weather forecast says to expect the storms to continue all the way through Memorial Day. Too bad we can't send some of this water to California. We've got way too much here.

Susie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 1969

Benicar, the medication I use to control my blood pressure, has joined the growing list of drugs targeted in class action suits. Every time I turn on TV I seem to see one of those 1-800-BAD-DRUG ads about Benicar. It seemed like it would be prudent to switch back to Zestril, my original blood pressure medication, so I stopped by my doctor's office in hopes that he'd just write me a script. No so fast buddy. I have to have a full exam and probably some more blood tests first. Nothing is simple anymore. Knowing my doctor, he'll probably want to keep me on Benicar, despite the ominous sounding TV commercials.

At least Dash has finished with all his meds. He seems to have made a full recovery from the torn paw pad and no longer needs antibiotics or pain pills. Maybe I should take his leftover pain pills. My teeth are still bothering me. I'm starting to think that it's not even the wisdom tooth extraction that is causing the problem now. When I initially went back to the dentist at the first of the year, he mentioned that I may have to have a crown replaced. He thought the existing crown had a crack in it and that this was causing the temperature sensitivity I was experiencing at the time. Unfortunately, he also said it was impossible to fix the crown until I had the crooked wisdom tooth removed. Somehow, having the wisdom tooth removed has upset a delicate balance that left me thinking I had great teeth for years. Now, the fortress appears to be crumbling.

Dot did great during her water therapy session today. The vet is very pleased with her progress, but thinks we need to be doing more strength building exercises. Instead of taking Dot on longer walks, she wants me to spend more time walking her up and down hills and inclines. This shouldn't be hard to do. The park is full of hills and inclines.

On the way home from the vet, I hit a deep pothole in the road and damaged one of my wheels. Potholes are everywhere this Spring, since we've had so much rain. Road crews are repaired some of them, but they have only scratched the surface. I've never seen the roads this bad. I'm really glad I got the tire and wheel damage coverage when I bought the car. It seemed expensive at the time, but when you figure in the damaged tire that was already replaced under the policy and the repair to this wheel, I've already paid for the coverage.

We've been on the verge of a bad storm all day. It rained a lot last night, and then off and on during the day, but I managed to get the dogs walked without getting wet. I may not be so lucky tomorrow. I think the weather is supposed to keep getting worse through the weekend, with the possibility of tornadoes on Saturday.  I hope this forecast is wrong. I don't even want to think about tornadoes on Saturday.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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