Day 3784

I'm disappointed. My application for media accreditation to cover the Space X Demo-2 launch was denied. NASA was telling the truth when they said that media access to this launch would be severely limited. I know people who always seem able to get a press pass who got rejected as well. NASA did send me a nice letter explaining their guidelines for narrowing down their list of applicants, but it didn't help me much. Credentials were issued based on the number of people that NASA thought they could safely shelter in place at the press site in case of an emergency. Major media organizations that lease their own building at Kennedy Space Center got preference because they could shelter in place at their own buildings. I'm sure the small group of reporters who seems to have covered every launch since the 1970's received preferential treatment as well. It will be a very small group of people at this historic launch though. The press site building is small and isn't going to hold many people when they are spaced six feet apart. Oh, well. That's how it goes these days. I'll try again when the Mars 2020 lander launches later this Summer.

So many things completely baffle me about the new normal. Road construction crews had two months to fix the roads here in Dallas while nobody was driving. It would have been the perfect time to fill potholes and get caught up on things. Nope. Road construction ground to a halt last month. Now that our governor has declared the state reopened again, the construction crews are back, blocking traffic and making a mess of things as usual.

I couldn't get the deposit feature to work when I was setting up online banking yesterday, so I had to drive to the bank and wait in the drive-thru line again. Usually there is a little canister that you put your deposits in and then it gets pneumatically sucked thru a tube to the bank. The little canister was gone today. I guess the bank tellers didn't want to touch it. We were told to place our deposits directly in the tube. I wonder how many little pieces of paper got lost today?

We took our walk with Dawn before breakfast again this morning. The place was virtually empty. Either a lot of people have gone back to work, or old habits die hard. The parks are usually crowded during the weekend, but what's the difference between Sunday and Monday these days? Not much, as far as I can tell. At least it was nice to have the park to ourselves again. The pandemic may have taught people to wash their hands but it certainly hasn't stopped people from littering. There was a ton of trash in the park this morning, left behind by Sunday picnickers. Dawn snatched a half eaten hot dog off the ground and I had to get it out of her mouth before she swallowed it. It's not that I worry about hot dogs so much. It's just that there are too many people who intentionally leave poisoned food, or food with razor blades inside for animals to find. You can't trust anything these days.

I ordered the parts I need to upgrade my laptop this afternoon. Do I really need a super fast laptop if I can't go anywhere? Probably not. It's something to do though. At this point anything seems better than cleaning the office.

Crosby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3744

Hey, I'm doing my part. My car hasn't left the driveway all week. With the exception of a short trip to the vet yesterday, Janet's car hasn't moved much either. I can't say that my behavior has changed. I've been living this way for years. Janet is the only person I talk to regularly and I frequently drive less than ten miles a week. Isolation isn't all that bad. For many, many years I made a good income writing and designing websites from a computer in our spare bedroom.

It seems strange and somewhat disorienting to see people turning to things I've been doing for decades. Videoconferencing, working from home, ordering supplies online, maintaining a home network, and learning to tolerate long periods of silence and isolation are all skills I mastered years ago. I wonder how many people are going to decide that this is actually a better way to live when the pandemic is over?

I think people are already discovering the benefits of being outdoors. I see more people in the park than I've seen in years. I see them doing yoga, practicing kickboxing, and lifting weights, as well as the usually walking and cycling. Parents are taking their kids on long walks. I suspect that most of them are trying to wear the kids out so they will take a long nap and let the parents get some work done when they get home. Seems like a good plan to me. We all keep our distance in the park and hope nobody tries to force us indoors. There aren't a lot of things you can do proactively to stay healthy. I'm convinced that exercise and getting some good outdoor air into your lungs is a good place to start.

Local grocery stores are starting to limit the number of people inside the stores. In theory this is a good idea, but all it really does is cause people to bunch together at the store entrance waiting to get in. I wonder when the panic buying will stop? Eventually everyone is bound to have enough rice, bread, beans, and toilet paper.

I'm already starting to see used gloves and masks littering parking lots. This is insanity, but I'm really not surprised. For years I've seen people in the park pick up their dog poop in poop bags and then just throw the bags in the woods. What does this prove? There are plenty of trash cans in the park. Leaving a sealed poop bag in the hot sun is worse than doing nothing at all. Dog poop is biodegradable. Poop sealed in a bag and not disposed of properly probably becomes radioactive or something.

I wonder where all these people throwing away used masks and gloves in grocery store parking lots are getting them? You certainly can't find these items in stores yet. We still have lots of purple surgical gloves left over from Dash's chemo treatments. No masks though. When I administered Dash's meds every day, I couldn't touch the Palladia pills. They were very toxic and I had a complicated cleanup procedure to follow. Even Dash's poop was toxic and had to be disposed of properly. Washing my hands frequently seems simple by comparison.

One of the most enjoyable things about Spring is that there are new wildflowers to enjoy every single week. The Prairie Verbena arrived this week. These little purple flowers have always been one of my favorites.

Petey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3179

I enjoyed breakfast this morning. There was real china, heavy flatware, and waiters in white coats. The place was quiet and relaxing. Although the menu was limited, my egg sandwich was delicious. Eating in a nice hotel wasn't a bad idea. I'll probably go back.

I was surprised to see how high the lake levels were this morning because we didn't get any rain yesterday. It must have rained heavily to the north of us. Whenever there are heavy rains, huge amounts of trash and litter flow into the lake from the creeks that feed it. The water definitely looked ugly this morning. When the water recedes, this litter will be left on the shoreline. Eventually, people from the Parks and Recreation Department will pick it up. It's a shame that nobody in Dallas seems to be able to throw their trash in a can, but I'm sure other cities are even worse.

I'm glad there was time to take Dash on a nice walk this morning because it was our turn to get rained on today. As the day progressed, the sky got darker and darker. It's raining right now and that means there will be no evening walk. People always say we need the rain, but I don't know why. It hasn't been a particularly dry year. I don't like rain, but I'm slowly learning to respect it. Whenever I see all the forest fires out West and the hurricanes and floods to the East, I realize that Dallas is in kind of a sweet spot. We've managed to avoid weather extremes for quite a while.

I feel sorry for Elon Musk. He's getting crucified for making a casual comment about taking his company private and then smoking pot on TV. Musk is the Thomas Edison of our generation. I think people ought to cut him some slack. Steve Jobs got treated the same way for quite a while. It's weird. If you're a businessman or a politician, you're expected to follow conventional rules. If you're a musician, anything goes.

We've discontinued the probiotic Dash was taking and his poop is slowly becoming firmer. This is counterintuitive but what do I know. The disappointing thing about veterinary and human medicine is that everything is so compartmentalized. Nobody seems all that good at evaluating the big picture. It seems obvious that health is a combination of lifestyle, diet, heredity, and medications. Doctors always focus on the pills though. Somehow, I feel that Dash would be doing better if he were eating exactly the right thing. I'd probably being doing better if I were eating exactly the right thing as well. I don't have any answers, but I do think that nutrition should be just as important as pharmacology in medical school.

I saw the auction catalog for one of the Fall auctions today. It was weird to see my picture right up there with some pretty well known art. I'm no art historian, but I recognized some of the other images up for auction immediately. I'm hoping that this might be is my Antiques Roadshow moment. I don't want to get my hopes up though. Auctions are weird and unpredictable. Nobody might bid at all. I have art in two different auctions and both are in October. Lets hope they do well.

Janet wants to take pictures of some new rescue dogs this weekend. If the weather improves, that's what we'll do. I still am unwilling to leave Dash alone in a storm, but I'm actually looking forward to taking photos again. Life is so slow, that I look forward to doing almost anything.

Bailey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3020 - Easter

Janet and I have been watching old World War II bombers fly over our house for the past week, so we decided to go see them today. A traveling exhibit called Wings of Freedom was in Dallas this week which included some of the last remaining examples of legendary planes like the B-17, the B-24, and the P51 Mustang that are still in flying condition. You can even take rides in these planes although it is pretty expensive. I had no idea how a thirty minute flight could cost $450 until Janet and I climbed inside the B-17 parked on the runway and took a look inside. Good Lord. How do these things still fly? It might be pretty exciting to ride inside one of these ancient bombers, but bungee jumping seems safer. The planes looked huge on the outside but were claustrophobic inside. The B-17 only has room for 7 passengers and costs $4000 an hour to fly. No wonder rides are expensive. You have to always watch your step, because there are few areas where you can stand up and lots of sharp things to bang your head on. These bombers were state-of-the-art in the early 1940's, but seem primitive by today's standards. It's amazing how much the world has changed. I don't know if I'd have the nerve to fly in one of these things, but I have a lot of admiration for the men and women of my Dad's generation who did.

I was surprised at how cold it was this morning. I'm sure glad I fixed the furnace. Maybe it was a little premature to think that Spring was here to stay. Hey, at least we aren't getting snow like some parts of the country. The cooler weather didn't deter the hordes of people who descend on the park every Easter. People were already staking out their territories when we took Dash on his sunrise walk. Later in the day the place looked like a rock concert. I don't know where these people come from, but they sure don't believe in picking up their trash. Every year, the park is a disaster on the day after Easter. Lots of garbage get blown away by the wind and never gets picked up. The rest sits around for weeks until the sanitation department finally gets around to removing it. For the next three weeks I'm going to have to watch carefully to make sure that Dash doesn't eat chicken bones or children's Easter candy. The stuff is everywhere.

It's a shame that Dash wasn't feeling great today, because Janet and I had a delicious Easter feast. We enjoyed a traditional meal of smoked ham, candied yams, green beans, corn on the cob, and spiced baked apples. Dash had an upset stomach and was reluctant to eat his favorite dog food. He must have experienced another vestibular event. Even though Dash seemed normal for much of the day, he ended up throwing up twice as evening approached. Hopefully, the worst is over now and he'll be able to hold down his evening meds. It's always important that he takes his phenobarbital.

It was enjoyable to get out of the house today. While we were at Love Field we stopped to visit the Frontiers of Flight museum. The museum is home to the Apollo VII capsule and they were getting ready for a fiftieth anniversary celebration of the launch later this year. Has it been that long? Jeez. I'm really getting old. I remember each of the Apollo launches quite vividly. There were a couple of World War II vets touring the B-17 with us. I imagine they felt even older.

It was nice having a holiday weekend, but it's back to normal tomorrow. I might even have to mow the grass.

Haley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2881

The only thing I've been making any progress on lately is in getting Dash to walk. We're taking nice long walks again. Dash doesn't appear to be in any discomfort. He is walking normally and seems to be enjoying himself. We walk very slowly now. I think his doctors would approve. It takes well over an hour now to complete our morning rounds. The knee brace and boots don't seem to slow him down. He just likes to smell everything. When I was busy, this would have driven me crazy, but there isn't much on my schedule these days. A long walk certainly beats watching morning TV.

I took my November invoices to the post office today and paid some bills. All my bills come with an admonition to pay online instead. One of the envelopes I addressed today even had a little message where the stamp goes. "Can't find a stamp? Pay online instead," it said. I wonder why everyone hates checks? My bank doesn't even like to take deposits. They would prefer that I scan a check with their smartphone app and deposit it electronically. I think I'm becoming even more of a Luddite than my sister. I still like paper.

I got a new writing job today. In the old days I used to send a FedEx package with my completed copy to the client. Sending a PDF file via e-mail certainly saves money, but I kind of liked having the FedEx man come to pick up packages every day or so. I had the same delivery guy for many years and he got to know me by name. Sending and receiving packages this way made me feel like I had a real business a lot more than pressing the send key on my computer.

I see so many signs that the world has permanently changed. Our neighborhood used to be filled with nice, but very modest houses. Now, whenever somebody dies, the house is scraped and replaced with a larger, much more opulent dwelling. I don't think you could call this gentrification. The neighborhood was always nice. It doesn't appear to be nice enough for today's affluent buyers though. Perfectly good homes that my parents would have been proud to live in are being torn down to make room for mansions. This doesn't seem like a good thing, but then very little I see these days seems like a good thing.

I certainly don't understand the whole bike-share phenomenon. The rental bicycles from LimeBike, Spin, VBikes and others are popping up all over town. A huge number of them seem to be abandoned in the park. I counted twelve abandoned bicycles on our morning walk. People do ride these things, but they are a real eyesore and seem like littering to me. Maybe I'm too old and set in my ways for the sharing economy. LimeBike, Uber, and Air B&B all seem a little weird to me.

I hope I can finish my roof repairs before the coating product goes bad. I noticed a little message on one of the containers saying that the product should be used within 72 hours of opening the seal on the bucket. That's not going to happen. I guess the stuff starts to cure inside the container if you don't use it fast enough. Oh, well. I have no control over the weather. I'll finish things as quickly as I can.

There's no point in going up on the roof this week. There is more rain in the forecast. I'll write my article tomorrow and do what I can to make the day enjoyable for Dash. Sounds like a plan to me.

Ivy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2669

I found out this morning that the guy who played lead guitar in my old band is dead. I was going to wish him Happy Birthday on Facebook and when I went to his page I discovered that he had passed away last September. I'm so out of touch these days that this isn't the first time this has happened. I'm kind of wary about wishing someone my age Happy Birthday now without checking to make sure they're alive first. I'm not sure about the etiquette of these things, but it seems disrespectful to send a Facebook greeting to a dead person. Although it's a little late now to pay my respects, I was really sorry to learn about my old friend. He was a good guy. The years I spent playing in a band with him were some of the best.

I cut myself again today and didn't even notice until hours later. This is the second time I've done this recently. I have a feeling that I'm scraping my arms on branches in the yard when I'm holding Dot up when I take her outside to pee. I have to really concentrate when I'm walking her around like a marionette. I used to be able to just walk behind Dot, holding up her rear end as she walked. Now, her front legs are starting to become weak as well, so I need to provide support for both the front and rear. It's kind of awkward and hard on the back, so I have to be careful that I don't trip. It's not really surprising at all that I don't notice when I've bumped into a tree.

Blueberries are back. There was a big supply today, but they had doubled in price. I wonder sometimes how stores keep a steady supply of seasonal items. These berries probably came from South America instead of California or Mexico. Somewhere there's a guy who's job it is to source berries from all over the world, so people like me can enjoy them in their smoothie all year long. I'm always impressed that things like this work so smoothly. Maybe I'm not as much of an isolationist as I think I am. I enjoy having access to fresh fruit all year long. I routinely buy coffee from Ethiopia and Sumatra. And I'm continually amazed that you can get good sushi in Dallas.

The indestructible pants I bought at REI last year are already falling apart. I'm disappointed, but Janet tells me that you're not supposed to wear the same pair of pants every day. The knees of these pants tore first, which isn't surprising since I spend half my day on my knees cleaning up poop, or trying to get Dot back in an upright position. If lifting weights is supposed to build muscle, I don't understand why I'm still having trouble with muscle atrophy. After two years of lifting a fifty pound dog, I should look like the incredible hulk by now. Sadly, my muscle mass hasn't increased at all and all I've done is tear up both shoulders.

It looks like we got a bumper crop of wildflowers this year. The fields and meadows around our house are in full bloom now. I'm seeing new varieties almost everyday. Some flowers only bloom for a few days and others stick around for months. Some bloom very early in the morning and disappear by midday. It's fascinating to watch this pageant of color unfold. I spotted some Lazy Daisies this morning. I wonder who names these things.

I'm going to have to be careful when I walk the dogs in the park tomorrow. Every year, hundreds of families have their Easter Egg hunts here. Nobody seems to hide real eggs anymore. They hide plastic eggs filled with candy and chocolate. The kids never seem to find all the eggs, but the dogs do.  Since chocolate is poisonous to dogs, I definitely don't want Dot and Dash to go snooping around in the grass for stuff the kids left behind. It's amazing how much litter appears every Easter. Nobody even tries to pick up their mess.

It's been a long day. Two rugs and a blanket got soiled, but it could have been a lot worse. Dot is tired now and so am I. Hopefully we'll get some decent sleep before we start all over again tomorrow.

Krissy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2294 - Easter

I think I've finally got all my tax information in order. I keep postponing this task longer and longer because it's so discouraging. This is the one time during the year when it becomes abundantly clear that I'm not making much money anymore. What's even worse it that I know that my accountant will charge me more than he did last year to tell me that I made less than I made last year. I certainly don't begrudge my accountant for raising his rates every year. My dentist and my plumber do the same thing. Just about everybody raises their rates except for web designers, who are expected to work for much less than they did ten years ago.

We're still supposed to get some severe weather later in the week, but today was perfect. The dogs loved the crisp, clear Spring day and we were able to take two nice walks. We certainly weren't the only ones in the park today. The place was full of family Easter celebrations. Every open field was filled with children looking for Easter eggs. I wish people still hid real eggs. Hard boiled eggs would be fine, because if the children didn't find them, animals would eat them or they would just rot and disappear. Plastic eggs filled with candy and trinkets tend to stay around forever. From now through May, I'll have to be on the lookout for candy on the ground, because Dash will smell the stuff and try to eat it. Chocolate is really bad for dogs and a lot of these plastic eggs are filled with chocolate. Nobody seems to care about littering anymore. Public parks just seem to be a designated place where families can litter with impunity.

In addition to working on my taxes today, I was also able to catch up on a few things around the house. I went up on the roof and cleared away the standing water from last week's rain. It was nice to see that some of the water had already evaporated. The warmer it gets, the faster the water evaporates. When I was working, I noticed several new worn places that will need to be patched. Patching the roof after the Spring rains has become an annual ritual. I need to call the roofer, as well as the landscapers and a tree trimmer this week. It's that time of year. Hopefully, I won't need to buy a new lawn mower. I seem to need a new mower every four or five years. I'll see if I can get the current mower started tomorrow. If I wait much longer, the front yard is going to be full of weeds.'

I tried to superglue some broken stuff back together this afternoon. I think I was successful with the Nike running shoes, but the watch band was a dismal failure. I need to remember that superglue and duct tape are not the answer to every problem. As careful as I try to be, I always manage to get some superglue on my fingers. It's almost impossible to get this stuff off. I usually try acetone or Janet's nail polish remover, but if I wait too long, even that won't work.

I'm not sure what I'll be doing this week. Work has often been slow at the first of the year, but it's not the first of the year anymore. This slow period has lasted a lot longer than I anticipated. It's beginning to look like this might be permanent. I wish I knew how to get clients who would pay me what I made in 1995. I wish I knew how to get clients period. My business grew through referrals from existing clients and everyone is retiring now. It's the end of an era.

Chloe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2293

In theory, today would have been a good day to sleep in. Unfortunately, lazy mornings are only a theoretical concept at our house. Dash ensured that we got up early as we always do. I thought he needed to go outside, but the little shit just wanted his breakfast. I know Dot would have been happy to sleep a bit longer, since she and I had already been up twice during the night cleaning up another mess in her bed. Basically, it was just a regular Saturday morning.

I'm making progress getting everything to work on the new server. It really doesn't matter whether my website works perfectly or not, but I still find a small amount of pleasure in learning how things work. The new server is different than the old server and I'm slowly learning why. It's unlikely that you'd know the difference if I corrected all the small errors I'm finding or not, but I'm correcting them anyway, mostly because I can.

I decided to go to the gym today because it is going to be closed for Easter Sunday. I also had some errands to run that I was planning to take care of on the way home. Trying to cram all these activities into a single afternoon was a mistake, because I ended up leaving Dot alone too long. When I returned, I discovered that she'd pooped in the small protected area where I'd left her. She must have slipped in the poop because her leg was dirty, along with three small rugs and all her blankets. I think she ate the poop too. I hate when this happens. If I was there, I could have helped her. She hates to make a mess in her pen and I could tell she had struggled to get away from it. It's hard to live your life where you can never leave the house though. I try to make sure everything goes smoothly, but sometimes it doesn't.

I still haven't gotten around to preparing my tax materials for the accountant, but at least I've cleared the deck so I can concentrate on that tomorrow. There are so many things I need to do that it feels a bit overwhelming. The grass is getting long in the front yard and I still haven't checked to see if the mower works. I know there's water on the roof, but it seems like a huge waste of time to remove it, since it's going to rain again in a few days anyway. I did put clean sheets on the bed and did several loads of laundry. It's important to make an effort.

Tomorrow, the park will be littered with colored eggs and candy. The place is a popular spot for family egg hunts and the children never come close to finding everything their parents have hidden. Dot and Dash find all this stuff the next day and I have to be careful that they don't eat the candy and other trash left behind by the Easter crowds. If anyone has their egg hunt early tomorrow morning thay are sure to see real Easter Bunnies. This seems to be a good year for rabbits. We see dozens every morning on our walks. Maybe the coyotes have moved on the greener pastures. In prior years coyotes have eaten a lot of the bunnies, but this year they appear to be thriving.

It's already time for bed again. The kitchen selves are stocked with food. Dot's blankets and the hallway rugs have been cleaned. I learned a few things about writing Perl scripts. I even had a pretty good workout at the gym. Although I did quite a bit today, I feel like I've accomplished nothing.

Bubba is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1860

We started out the day by moving some stuff from Janet's storage warehouse to my storage warehouse. I'm not sure what this accomplished, but it did keep Janet from throwing a few things away. She is trying to de-clutter, while I have apparently still failed to grasp the meaning of the word.

Today was even nicer than yesterday.  We were graced with another day of clear blue skies and 70 degree temperatures.The park is a mine field on days like this. The dogs amuse themselves by trying to grab all the chicken bones and barbecued ribs that picnickers throw on the ground. They can smell food scraps from fifty feet away. They can smell horse poop from even further, and there's plenty of that as well. There are stables in the area and a nice Sunday afternoon ways brings out plenty of riders. Somehow, we managed to negotiate all these pungent smells without Dot and Dash eating a bunch of crap. Although I enjoy walking a lot more on days when the park is empty, I don't think the dogs agree. They see days like today as a treasure hunt.

Since it was a pretty day, there was nobody at the gym. I counted only five people in the huge building, which was fine by me. I almost always prefer to do things when other people are doing something else. Maybe this is why I tend to prefer a matinee to an evening movie. In an empty movie theater you can always find the perfect seat. I hate rush hour traffic and always try to schedule meetings at either 10:30 AM or 2:30 PM. I studiously avoid trendy restaurants. I discovered long ago that the food is just as good after the bloom is off the rose and the trend-setters have moved elsewhere.

Since I feel so comfortable going against the grain, I spent a portion of this warm and sunny afternoon sitting in my office catching up on writing assignments. Why not? I'd already had a nice early morning walk before the rest of the world got out of bed. I had a good workout in an empty gym. I even organized my storage warehouse a bit and Janet fixed steaks for dinner. It was a good day.

Tomorrow is a holiday, but I bet I'll have work to do anyway. Banks are closed and government workers get the day off, but almost everything else seems to continue as normal. I'm not sure about my schedule, but I know I still have a physical therapy appointment. If the rest of the day turns out to be just like today, that would be fine by me. I'm not a huge football fan, but I still can't figure out how Green Bay lost that playoff game today. They were ahead the entire game and all of the sudden they inexplicably lost. That's life, I guess.

Dovey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1844

Janet and I went to a movie this afternoon. It's been so long since I've been to a movie in a theater that it seemed like a whole new experience for me. Maybe it was a new experience. I certainly haven't been to a theater since they stopped screening 35mm prints and began building high resolution 4K digital cinema systems. Everything was so clear. It was like watching an enormous Apple retina screen with immersive surround sound audio. I've watched DVD's on my computer for so long, that I'd forgotten how mesmerizing a really good theater can be.

I'm generally very detached when I watch movies on my computer. There are dogs barking in the background, interruptions from clients calling on the phone, and of course I'm always aware that I'm really just sitting at my desk in the office. It's different in a theater. When the lights dim, I get sucked in and become much more involved with the story. Tears frequently roll down my cheeks in dark theaters. I certainly wiped my eyes a few times today as we watched The Theory of Eveything at the Angelika Film Center. This story, based on the memoir that Jane Wilde wrote about her life with Steven Hawking was both uplifting and incredibly sad. Eddie Redmayne was amazing as Steven Hawking and Felicity Jones was mesmerizing as Jane. I seldom watch movies like this because they make me cry, but I came out of the theater thinking that I really ought to read A Brief History of Time.

The rain continued today as expected. We were able to find time to walk the dogs when there was only a light mist, but the rain never really stopped. At times there were drenching downpours with thunder and lightning in the distance. At other times the rain slowed to a drizzle, but it is still raining right now. The weather app on my phone says the skies will be clearing tomorrow, but I don't really trust this thing, since it also said the skies were clearing when I got groceries this morning. I got drenched.

The city passed a new ordinance recently that forces merchants to charge you a nickel every time they put your purchases in a bag. This is supposed to decrease littering. Imagine my surprise when I went to Central Market and they bagged my groceries in nice heavy paper bags like they always do without charging anything extra for the bags. "Don't you guys have to charge for bags like everyone else," I asked. "No,"  the checkout clerk told me. "We're exempt because our bags have handles." I laughed as I headed home. This is one more example of government at work. Somebody thought they were doing something good and all they ended up doing was rewarding well-off people for shopping at upscale markets like Central Market and Whole Foods, while making things more expensive for the folks who still shop at Kroger. Sadly, this ordinance is not going to stop littering anyway. People who litter could care less about city ordinances.

It's getting to the point where I have to ask Janet what day it is when we wake up in the morning. Somehow it's very confusing when Christmas and New Year's fall on a Thursday. Everything is out of whack. Today seemed like Sunday, while tomorrow is only Saturday. Go figure.

Lilly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1223

I wish people who visited the park behind our house were as nice as the people at the dog park. The people we see at the dog park all seem to be considerate with very well socialized dogs. The people who visit the public parks on weekends are anything but. They change their babies in the bushes and leave the poop filled diapers on the ground. After their weekend picnics, paper plates and cups litter acres of greenery on Monday morning. Worst of all they let their poorly socialized, and often aggressive dogs off leash. I feel like I"m walking the dogs through a minefield on weekends. Happily, the same park is quiet and almost empty during the rest of the week. Today we avoided a loose pitbull, but weren't so lucky with a group of kids who wanted to pet Dot & Dash. The kids were nice enough, but they stopped us near a big pile of horse poop, which Dash proceeded to eat.

I wish they'd let Dash in the small dog park. He's been fearful of larger dogs ever since he was attacked several years ago. He seems to have overcome his fear of small dogs though. Today a small terrier befriended him at the dog park and the two of them had great fun running and playing. I think Dash looks forward to these trips to the dog park all week long. It is one of the few places he feels safe.

I made some more fresh juice today. A mix of half pineapple and half orange tastes quite good. Making the fresh juice is quite easy with the new juicer. Cleaning up the machine afterwards is another matter entirely. What a mess. I can't wash the pulp down the drain either. Even with the garbage disposal, I don't think our old pipes would handle it. I've taken to making enough juice to last a week, so I won't have to clean the machine so often.

I've taken to watching Dr. Who on Sunday afternoon as well. Watching the show on the DVR at a different time than it was broadcast is a little bit like time travel, which makes a show about time travel even more interesting. I wish I'd discovered the DVR earlier. Janet and I always used to complain that there was nothing worth watching on TV. We were wrong. It's all there. The problem is that the shows we like usually come on when we are working or busy with something else. The DVR solves all that. You watch what you want, when you want to watch it.

I need to make a list of questions to ask the vet this week. Dot has her acupuncture treatment and Dash has his annual exam. Dash has been rubbing his snout on the carpet lately and I wonder if he has a toothache. I need to know what the vet thinks about my decision to forgo the elaborate MRI and spinal tap tests for Dot. We're taken Dot and Dash off Trifexis for heartworms and switched them back to Sentinel. There's no conclusive proof that Trifexis can cause seizures, but there sure is a lot of anecdotal evidence on the Internet. Better safe than sorry, I think.

Joe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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