Day 4119 - Easter

The picture is old, but I still like it. Dot was a great dog. She was a patient soul who let us dress her up in all manner of ridiculous costumes. I doubt that Dawn would wear bunny ears. They would just be one more thing to be scared of. We wanted Dawn to have a nice Easter, so we drove her to another park this morning where we knew she would have new things to explore. Dawn really enjoys these outings even though she's not fond of riding in the car.

We had a relaxed and very enjoyable Easter. Janet went to church yesterday to avoid the crowds and today was just a low-key day around the house. Dawn was in a good mood today and took two walks. We were impressed. After we took her to a new park in the car, she did her familiar one mile loop later in the day. The park was busy, but it wasn't nearly as crowded as in previous years. Covid has changed everything.

Janet joined me on my long walk today. A walk is always a good time to talk and catch up on things. I managed to keep up a pretty decent pace and my foot didn't give me any major problems. Although it was overcast today, the weather was mild and I didn't need a coat. We've lived in this area for a long time and it's weird how much the neighborhood has changed. Even the park has changed quite a bit. It was largely undeveloped when we moved here. I think I liked it better then. At some point the city passed a huge bond issue with the money designated to go toward improving the park. Over time the area became a popular destination for people all over North Texas. They come to birdwatch, to hike, to cycle, to kayak and sail, and to have picnics and barbecues. It's really a wonderful park now, but I still liked it better when it was wild and undiscovered.

By mid afternoon the house began to be filled with the smells of a delicious meal being cooked. While Janet was cooking, I tried to clean up the yard. There are still lots of leaves trapped under the dying ground cover in the back yard. We haven't tried to rake this area because it would pull up the remaining Asian Jasmine that managed to survive the big freeze. I thought I'd try to blow these leaves away with a leaf blower. I was partially successful. I removed a lot of leaves, but unfortunately the entire area doesn't look any better. It's going to take a long time for this part of the yard to recover.

After I gave up on yard work, I practiced processing some of last October's astrophotography images in Photoshop. I watch a lot of YouTube videos and bookmark tutorial sites. I continue to learn and the results are beginning to show it. I'm getting better at this odd and often difficult avocation. I walk to keep my body active and I write and keep learning to keep my brain active. I may be wrong, but I'm convinced that staying active like this is the best way to avoid dementia and maybe even Alzheimer's. I've seen way too many people my age begin to decline the minute they give up and quit learning.

Our Easter dinner was delicious. The small batch meat company that hand smokes the hams I get every Easter is amazing. This stuff is addictive and surprisingly easy to cook. Janet made candied yams with marshmallows on top and green beans with bacon and peppers. We topped everything off with a cherry pie for dessert and we are both pleasantly stuffed.

It looks like I'll have some tasty leftovers for the rest of the week. I hope Dawn continues walking. She did well today. She even came out of the bedroom and joined us at dinner for a while. Easter is supposed to be a hopeful time and today felt good. I'm not typically an optimistic person, but today I'm more than willing to give it a try.

Dottie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2200

Today felt like a holiday, but it didn't really feel like Christmas Eve. I went out to breakfast this morning, because I knew the place would be closed tomorrow. The roads were empty and so was the restaurant. It was quite pleasant. Breakfast almost felt like I was on a road trip somewhere and had stopped at a small roadside cafe in Wyoming. I savored the quietness, because I knew it wouldn't last.

Later in the morning, I took Dot to her physical therapy session. The clinic was closing early for Christmas, and we were the last appointment of the day. Dot's vet had the flu and wore a mask so she wouldn't give her cold to me. I felt bad for keeping the appointment because she probably could have gone home earlier if it wasn't for us. Dot seemed tired today, so we kept the treadmill at a slower speed. I was a bit tired as well. Both dogs kept us up last night. Dash had gotten into something the day before, and had diarrhea during the night. He kept scratching at the door to go outside about every ten minutes for a while. Not to be outdone, Dot pooped in her bed. By the time the sun came up, both dogs were back to normal and seemed just fine.

I thought I might be able to fix the sliding glass door myself by using a metal file to smooth out some irregularities in the track. Logically, this should have worked, but it didn't. It looks like I'll have to contact a professional. Since I couldn't really fix anything today, I decided to just wash the car and call it a day.

Apparently colder weather is on the way, but it certainly didn't arrive today. It was in the mid-70's for most of the afternoon. I wore shorts when I took Dash on his afternoon walk and turned on the air conditioner briefly when it got too hot in the house. This would have been a good day to clean up the yard, but I sorted through a stack of old mail in the office instead. I really ought to start opening mail when I receive it. In today's stack of mail, I found a letter from my bank saying that I needed to renew my safe deposit box. The letter was dated sometime in October. I'm sure the bank probably just automatically renewed the box for another year and deducted the rent from my account. I'll need to check though, because I'm just guessing on this.

I think I finally fixed the problem I've been having with WiFi reception on my phone. It took quite a bit of research on Google and a certain amount of guessing, since the problem could have been caused by any number of things. The phone still works after I reset everything, so I must have done something right. Now that I have installed a more modern operating system on my main computer, fixed my phone, and upgraded the software on my watch, maybe I can start the new year with all my devices working properly for a change.

Janet baked a pumpkin pie this evening, so there is a holiday smell in the house. There are more presents for the dogs under the tree than for us, but that's the way it should be. Maybe we'll get to sleep in tomorrow morning. That would be a nice Christmas present from Dot and Dash. We'll have Christmas dinner at home this year and whatever happens, we're looking forward to a quiet, enjoyable day.

Dash is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1836 - Christmas Day

I hope that all of you had a wonderful Christmas. We slept in late and probably would have slept even later if the dogs hadn't insisted on their morning walk. The skies were clear for a change and the park was virtually empty. Even the joggers and cyclists were home this morning. There were plenty of ducks and squirrels though, so Dot and Dash had a great time. Dot seemed stronger and more active today, so maybe the Rimadyl is working.

We had a nice leisurely breakfast when we got home and then we the took the dogs to the dog park. This used to be a Christmas tradition, but for a variety of reasons we haven't been able to go for several years. Last year, Janet was out of town visiting relatives and the year before we had terrible weather. Today was beautiful though and both dogs were eager for an outing. I wish the traffic was always as light as it is on Christmas Day in Dallas. It seems to be the one day each year where most of the stores close. Merchants seem to ignore Thanksgiving and Easter now, but Christmas still seems to be a day of rest. Driving through the virtually empty streets, I realized that I would enjoy living in a big city a lot more if there weren't any people.

The dog park was fairly empty too. Only die hard dogs enthusiasts make going to a dog park a priority on Christmas morning. Dot and Dash enjoyed mingling with the eight or ten other dogs in the park until a guy arrived with a pit bull who was a bit too aggressive for our taste. I've got nothing against pit bulls or any other breed, but I'm always a bit wary of powerful, poorly trained dogs who aren't well supervised by their owners. Things can escalate quickly when the owner isn't in control. This guy wasn't paying attention to his dog at all and kept telling people to slap it on the butt if it was bothering them. The dog was way too interested in Dot and was getting aggressive, so we left early and went home. I wish there was a way to keep people from bringing unruly and aggressive dogs to public dogs parks, but for the most part, these place operate on the honor system. You take your chances and just hope that all the other people in the park with you are nice.

When we got home again, the house was quickly filled with delicious smells as Janet began to prepare Christmas dinner. The dogs both took a nap near the kitchen, so they would be nearby in case scraps of food fell on the floor. Since it was a nice day, I went up on the roof and removed several weeks of rain water and leaves. It's been windy lately, so most of the leaves are gone from the trees by now. From now through Spring the troublesome roof should be a bit easier to manage.

Dinner was a delicious feast. The dogs got a boiled chicken breast as a Christmas treat, while Janet and I enjoyed a crown roast of pork with traditional holiday side dishes of sweet potatoes, dressing, and noodle kugel. There was even a fresh pumpkin pie for dessert. Opening our gifts was almost an afterthought. We have everything we need these days, so the day is mostly about relaxing and enjoying some time with the dogs.

Tomorrow, it's back to work for both of us. Even though it was Christmas Day, I still remembered to take the trash out to the curb this evening. You never want to forget about trash day.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1662 - Independence Day

In recent years, I've seen twice as many people celebrating Cinco de Mayo in the park as I do on the Fourth of July. Sign of the times, I guess. There are still plenty of flags on front lawns and backyard barbecues, but something has changed. There just isn't the sense of unity and common purpose I felt on this day as a child. Granted, as a kid, I was much more interested in fireworks  than patriotism, but it was still a special day where neighbors gathered together and everyone smiled a lot.

I'm surprised that I didn't blow myself up on the Fourth of July when I was young. Everything was legal back then. In the weeks leading up to Independence Day we would buy huge stashes of cherry bombs and M-80s from roadside fireworks stands. Makeshift cannons were fashioned from lengths of cast iron drain pipe and contests were held to see who could shoot Coca Cola cans filled with sand the longest distance. This was incredibly foolish in retrospect, but not any dumber than the game my young friends and I made of shooting arrows straight up in the air and seeing how close we could get them to land to us. We didn't wear seat belts either when our parents drove us around in the family car. It's amazing that so many of us survived.

These days, the Fourth of July is much more subdued. I took the dogs on a nice long walk while Janet went to a neighborhood parade that her company helped sponsor. After breakfast, I thought I'd get a couple of more watches running again before I lost interest in this tedious activity entirely. I've already forgotten a lot. I had to look up some information on Google before I could even get the case opened on one obscure mid-70's relic. I did manage to get three more watches running this morning though. That's three down, three hundred to go.

When Janet and I went to the grocery store to get ingredients for this evening's cookout, it appeared that the entire city had the same idea. Central Market was jammed with people buying holiday food. I guess we're not the only ones to wait till the last minute. Dinner was delicious. It doesn't get much better than burgers on the grill, fresh potato salad, and coleslaw. The only thing missing was the beer. I still can't bring myself to drink alcohol after all the effort I've made to get my liver back in shape.

It seemed like Saturday today. I'm sure it will seem like Saturday tomorrow as well. That's OK. Two Saturday's in a row is much better than two Monday's in a row.

Matao is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1622

On my way to the gym on Sunday, I often listen to the TED Radio Hour in the car. The show starts at 2 PM, and by coincidence, that's usually when I leave for the gym. TED talks are one of the few things I continually find interesting. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design, but these wide ranging talks can be about virtually anything. I always learn something. I wish there was a station that ran these talks non-stop, because they are a lot more interesting than listing to Hip Hop, old 80's rock, or ads from mattress stores. Today's talk was about fear and I listened to a fascinating conversation with astronaut Chris Hadfield as he explained what it was like to be strapped to the top of a rocket when the odds were about 1 in 35 that it would explode.

The odds were much better that I'd have a good workout today. I'm getting stronger now. I'm sure that having a fully functioning liver again helps. If I can manage to find the time to get back to my goal of three good workouts a week, I imagine I'll really start seeing some progress. Something is always better than nothing though, so for the moment, I'm trying to make the most of my once a week schedule.

I wrote my monthly essay for my writers group this afternoon. Why this afternoon? Well, the deadline was today. Like I've said many times, I'm very deadline oriented. Without a deadline, I'd probably do nothing. I'm skeptical of people who tell me that they are motivated by simply loving what they are doing. That isn't enough for me. I need a deadline, combined with the fear of public humiliation, to find the motivation I need.

The neighbor's new cat returned to our yard this morning. It's a shame that Dot has such a strong prey drive, since the little cat is very friendly. I think it has decided that it would rather live with us than with the people next door who adopted it. I've got to figure out how to convince the neighbors to keep their new cat indoors. If this is going to be an outdoor cat that is attracted to our yard, Dot will eventually hurt the cat, or hurt herself. She is much too old and frail to be chasing cats.

We had burgers and home made potato salad for dinner. It seemed like a perfect meal for a three-day weekend. I'll be the first to admit that I've led a fairly sheltered life. Like many baby boomers, I spent my life living between major wars and never served in the armed services. The period between the Vietnam War and the post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan was probably the longest period of extended peace in our country's history. It's easy for people like me to forget what this Memorial Day holiday really means. My parents both served proudly in World War II. They had something most of my own generation lacks. Patriotism wasn't just a word to them, it was a way of life. In honor of their service and of the service of the thousands who continued to fight and die after them, I hope that we can all agree to start treating our veterans better. It is simply unbelievable to me that prisoners at Guantanamo Bay receive better medical care than many of our own veterans. Maybe this Memorial Day holiday, we can finally decide as a country that the time has come to do much, much better.

Ranger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day