Day 3239 - Election Day

I decided that it was time to face reality and hire a mover. Even if I continue to move something every day, I just don't think I can get everything out of the old warehouse on my own by the middle of the month. It took me fifteen years to fill this place up. I guess it was unrealistic to think I could empty it out in a matter of weeks. Maybe if I extended my lease until December I could finish the job, but my body would be a wreck. It just isn't worth it. I've only moved about one third of the contents so far and I already feel like a cripple.

The movers arrive Friday. Hopefully, I'll never have to do this again. Jeez. What am I thinking? Of course I'll have to do this again someday. I still don't know what to do with this stuff and I know it's never coming back to the house. Hey, at least I'm getting rid of quite a few things. That's a start.

I made reservations for Thanksgiving Dinner today. As usual, I should have done this earlier. This particular Thanksgiving Brunch has become very popular and the restaurant is filling up fast. I couldn't get a table until 1:30 PM. I guess that's OK. We usually eat later on holidays anyway.

I've got to get up early tomorrow to walk Dash before going to my doctor's appointment. I won't be able to eat breakfast because they want to do fasting blood work again. I hope the phlebotomist can find a vein this time. I hate it when the vein rolls and they keep poking you. That's what happened last time. My veins used to be super easy to find. Now they seem to be hiding.

Dash made it outside both times last night. It's always a good night when Dash doesn't poop in the house. When I go to bed, I never know how things are going to turn out. Sometimes he makes it to the back door with time to spare and other times he can't even make it out of bed. I wish Dash would learn to sleep on the floor. We have nice dog beds, but he still prefers sleeping in the bed with us. I don't know how long this can continue because he's having increasing difficulty getting up at night. If I don't wake up first to help him off the bed, he frequently stumbles and falls.

Even though I have movers coming, I still went over to the storage warehouse and moved a few more things this afternoon. The more I'm able to move ahead of time, the less I'll have to pay. Today I moved a bunch of pictures that were left over from several gallery shows I had over a decade ago. I hadn't looked at these pictures for a while and I'll have to admit they were pretty good. It took a while to secure my first gallery show, but after only two shows I totally lost interest in the gallery world. Competition for gallery space was intense and you had to be an active member of the local artist's community to find opportunities to show your work. Like most other things in life, the art world turned out to be all about who you know. It seemed way too much like business to me.

I'll be asleep long before the election results are finally decided. I suspect that nobody will be happy. We are such a divided country that you can't really expect the results to bring any kind of unity. When I wake up tomorrow morning I expect that half the country will still be mad. At the moment, I just don't know which half.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3238

I try to move a little bit every day. Sometimes it seems like a lost cause. I've lost count of the number of carloads I've moved and yet the storage warehouse still seems full. Today Janet and I worked together to clean out our respective units. Her goal is loftier than mine. Instead of moving to a new warehouse, she wants to quit storing things entirely. I found more stuff she could take to the charity shop while I continued to move items to my new warehouse.

I decided that my days as a hobby watch repairman are over. I still had a lot of boxes of old watch parts that I'd bought on eBay years ago. I gathered everything together and took it to a watch repairman in the neighborhood who used to fix things for me. "Do you want this stuff," I asked. I knew he would, because this guy can't get rid of anything. Maybe he'll find something useful. I felt good. This certainly beat throwing everything in a dumpster.

I've bought a lot of useless stuff on eBay over the years, but have absolutely no interest in selling things on eBay. I don't want to deal with buyers. Buyers are nothing buy trouble. That's why I like auction houses so much. They insulate you from the buyer. Actually, they won't even tell you who the buyer is. The auction houses have been very nice to me. It's too bad they aren't interested in junk. I think I've run out of things that an auction house would be interested in.

Dash pooped all over the place today. He couldn't seem to make it outside at all. For the first time he made a mess on the bedroom carpet. The bricks are easy to clean. Even bedding can be thrown in the laundry. Carpet is much more difficult. You always hope for firm, hard poop if it lands on the carpet. No such luck this morning. I think I finally got everything clean, but it took a while. Dash must have felt bad about making the mess, because he actually helped me clean it up. He's got a good nose for poop. If he's still smelling an area, I know I haven't cleaned it well enough. It took a few tries but everything is fine now. Dash approves.

The warehouse move is really taking a toll on my body. In addition to lower back pain and a bad shoulder, I now have a charlie horse in my right leg. All these aches and pains have come from trying to lift something that was too heavy. Today I moved a large commercial SEAL dry mount press. These things are very heavy.  It's amazing how well equipped I was back in the day. Not every photographer has a dry mount press this big. These days, I bet a lot of young photographers don't even know what a dry mount press is.

When I was walking Dash this evening I kept wishing he would slow down. You already know how slow Dash is. That's how bad my charlie horse was. Maybe my leg will feel better in the morning. I certainly hope so. I'm glad I voted early. The last thing I feel like doing is standing in a long line tomorrow.

Coach is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3237

It's easy to tell when I've been a little too ambitious. Every joint in my body aches. Today I thought I'd combine a workout at the gym with a workout at the storage warehouse. One of these activities would have been enough.

I certainly don't get much exercise on my morning walks with Dash these days. He's become incredibly slow. He still seems to enjoy his walks and I let him take all the time he needs. He stops about every ten feet to smell things. If the smell is particularly interesting, he sometimes forgets about his rear legs and falls over. I'm beginning to think his vision is failing and he's smelling his way along the path. Today he bumped into a clearly visible fence. He might have just had his head down smelling things, or maybe the glare of the rising sun obscured his vision. It's not like Dash to collide with a fence. I hope he's not going blind.

I did really well on the basketball count today. There is no rhyme or reason to this. I did use a different ball today because I couldn't find my favorite one. Maybe the new ball explains things. I bet I would have done terribly if I'd gone to the gym after the storage warehouse. Moving wore me out today.

My goal this afternoon was to disassemble some of the metal industrial shelving, move it to the new warehouse and then put it back together again. In theory, this should have been easy, but it wasn't. The shelves were heavy and once I took them apart, they were very difficult to assemble again. A couple of the metal parts had become bent and the holes for the bolts didn't line up anymore. Apparently these shelves weren't meant to be assembled more than once. I didn't have the right tools with me either. Instead of a hammer and a heavy pair of pliers, I settled for a rock I found in the parking lot. Eventually, I got the first shelf reassembled at the new warehouse. It's not very pretty, but it will work. I hope I never have to move these things a third time.

There are still five more of these large industrial shelves. I don't know if I have the energy to take them all apart. I think it's time to get another estimate from a mover. With a large truck and a couple of muscular guys you could move all of these shelves intact, without disassembling anything. When I finish this more it may be time to curtail strenuous activity like this. I'm too old for this shit. It's time to stop moving heavy boxes, climbing on the roof, and pushing a heavy lawn mower up a hill.

It was a strenuous day, but a shower, a nice dinner, and a slow evening walk with Dash helped me unwind. I'm happy with the morning part of today's time change, put not the evening part. It gets dark way too early. I walked Dash before dinner tonight while there was still daylight. This will be our new routine until Spring. There are still quite a few clocks to reset. Some of them probably aren't worth the trouble. In four months the time will be correct again.

Ginger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3236

Nothing unusual happened today. That's always a good thing. Dash slept well and there were no further seizures. He got me up once during the night, but we were all able to get back to sleep. No rain either. I really can't complain.

Dash was very slow on his walk this morning, but there didn't seem to be anything wrong. He was just slow. I was slow too. There was no reason to hurry. After breakfast, I ran my usual Saturday errands. When I went to the vet to pick up meds for Dash, a family was surrendering their dog. It was sad. The kids wanted to keep the dog, but the Mom didn't. I got the impression that a divorce was involved. Dogs get caught in the middle of a lot of bad situations. I hope this one does better next time.

There were no strawberries at the grocery store this week. This wasn't good. Strawberries are a major ingredient in my morning smoothies. Situations like these are the only times I send text messages. I asked Janet to see if she could find some.

I'm determined to go to the storage warehouse at least once a day. If I don't, I'll never be able to complete my move before the middle of the month when my lease runs out. I was planning to see how long it would take me to disassemble one of the metal shelves today, but when I was actually standing in front of the shelf, it seemed like way too much effort. I just moved a few more things instead. In today's load was an old Singer sewing machine that I repaired at considerable expense instead of throwing it away the last time it broke. Janet has a much better machine now, but I still like this simple one. There was an old lie detector machine that I picked up at an estate sale once. The machine actually worked ten or fifteen years ago. Lord knows if it works anymore. I lost the instructions years ago. There were some die cast model cars that should have gone with the model trains, but the train guy didn't know what to do with them. He said his customers only bought trains. There was a down sleeping bag that I actually sewed myself from a Frostline Kit back in college. Amazingly, the bag is still in good shape. I didn't attempt to lift anything heavy today. I'm not ready for heavy yet.

Janet brought home take out from one of our favorite restaurants for dinner. We don't cook much anymore. Cooking these days is mostly just heating things up in the microwave. I don't think anybody cooks as much as they used to. Fixing food has become more of a hobby than a necessity. Nobody becomes a foodie out of necessity. I have vague, somewhat fuzzy memories of my grandmother's kitchen. She was always baking something. I just go to Panera Bread.

I bought Dash a new pair of boots yesterday and all it took was a single walk to tear a hole in the nylon top. I think these boots are designed for healthy dogs who don't turn their paws under with every step they take. I went back to the hardware store to buy some more Shoe Goo. I wasn't expecting to be repairing these boots for a while, but Dash is full of surprises.

I tried to balance my checkbook this afternoon, but I couldn't get the figures to match the bank statement. Every once in a while this happens. Did I forget something last week or six months ago? Who knows. After a while I just gave up and made an entry that just said "reconcile with bank"

Time to go to the gym again. Wish there was something I could do to strengthen my shoulders and knees. This storage warehouse move is killing me.

Wolfgang is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3235

Dash gave me another scare last night. He woke me up when I felt his whole body shaking next to me. The shivering continued for quite a while and he seemed in some sort of distress. His front legs felt stiff and his heart was beating rapidly. Was this another vestibular seizure or the beginning of heart failure? He's had these episodes before and we've learned that taking him to the emergency room doesn't help at all. Trying to get him into the car during a seizure often makes things worse. I stayed next to him and kept him calm until we both fell asleep again. This morning Dash was fine. It's weird that these episodes always happen at night. I don't think Dash has ever had a vestibular seizure during the day.

The rain appears to be over for a while. It was a cool, clear Fall morning and I walked Dash before going out for breakfast. I really ought to just stay home and drink my regular smoothie on Fridays. It's becoming harder and harder to find anything in a restaurant that interests me. The buttermilk pancakes I had this morning were good, but I ate way too much and felt sluggish for the rest of the day.

Janet helped me with the storage warehouse move today. She filled her car with items for the charity shop while I filled mine with things that had to go to the new storage unit. It's pretty obvious that I don't need any of this stuff. I wonder why it's still so hard to jettison these things? It's easier to turn loose of stuff when Janet is with me. She reminds me how ridiculous it is to save things I haven't used in decades. There's still a long way to go, but I think about a third of the warehouse has been moved.

I need to remember to ask my doctor about my recurring heartburn when I have my exam next week. I thought I had the problem under control, but now it's back again. We has shrimp with pesto last night and it gave me heartburn. Tonight chicken tikka masala gave me heartburn. This shouldn't be happening. I understand why pizza might cause problems, but the pesto sauce was pretty mild. I'd hate to have to start taking proton-pump inhibitors again. They work well to control acid reflux, but they are risky to take indefinitely. Side effects from long-term use include osteoporosis and increased risk of heart attacks.

I'll probably go back to the storage warehouse tomorrow. I wish I still had my Defender. The car was indestructible and was perfect for moving things. I have to worry a lot more about scratches and dents when I'm moving things in my current car. The boxy Defender seemed to hold a lot more too. I'll still probably call a mover at some point, but the more things I can move myself, the lower the final bill will be.

Dash has had a good day. I really hope that he sleeps well tonight. There was a short period last night when I though he might die. The specialist at the cancer center has warned us that if the blood clot shifts and goes to the brain or lungs, he could go at almost any time. It's a good thing that Dash doesn't know what 's wrong with him. He's still a happy camper. I'm pretty sure he'd enjoy spending another year with us.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3234

When I wake up tired, the entire day seems to move in slow motion. It seemed to take forever to make the bed this morning. Dash's morning walk took even longer. By the time I finished breakfast and did the dishes, it was almost noon. This is what happens when Dash keeps me up at night.

I can never predict when Dash will poop in the house. It happens fairly often though. There's no alternative to cleaning things up immediately. First of all there's the smell. If you waited until morning to clean up the mess, someone would inevitably step in it on their way to the bathroom. We never had these problems when Dot became incontinent. I'd just place a disposable puppy training pad under her butt before we went to sleep and she usually hit the target. I even got to the point where I could remove the soiled pad and replace it with a clean one without waking her up. Dash is more of a challenge.

I wrote a letter to my sister after breakfast so I could take it to the post office on my way to the storage warehouse. I was basically just trying to avoid going to the storage warehouse too soon. It was a nice day today, so I had no excuses. My plan now is to move the things I know I need to keep first and then see what's left. I moved some computer equipment today that is still recent enough that I could put it back into service if necessary. I actually like these older computers better than my current setup, but the software companies are holding me hostage. I can't run current versions of most of my essential software on older machines.

I only transferred one car load of stuff today. I'll never get everything moved at this rate, but like I said, I was tired. When I picked up meds for Dash today I learned that he needs a special blood test before this prescription can be renewed again. I'll add this test to the list. It seems like we're already testing him for just about everything.

I got the schedule for Dalmatian Rescue Christmas Santa Paws pictures today. Usually I worry about whether my equipment will still work. Now I'm more concerned about whether I still work. As I've been moving things at the storage warehouse it's pretty obvious that my aging body isn't up to the challenge anymore. My knees hurt. My back hurts. And my wrists hurt. How did this happen? I felt in tip top shape as recently as five years ago.

I've taken the trash out to the curb and the last load of wash is in the dryer. I still can't decide where to go for breakfast tomorrow though. Right now, sleeping in late and eating a stale donut sounds pretty good.

Jada is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3232

I think I made a mistake. I tried moving some really heavy things today and strained my back. I also scratched the paint on my car when I was loading something I shouldn't have been lifting. I'm not sure I can complete this move myself. I called a moving company that had good Yelp reviews but just got a phone message that referred me to their website. I filled out the form, but when I received their automated response, it was clear that the company didn't understand that this was just a storage warehouse that was being moved. The estimate seemed way too high. There is no furniture and no packing involved. I'll see if I can talk with someone in person tomorrow.

After making two trips to the new warehouse, I made a third trip to a charity shop with some stuff that wasn't worth saving. When I realized that my back was starting to hurt, I decided to call it a day. The old warehouse is still pretty full and nothing I'm saving is all that special. This is not going to be pleasant. At least I didn't have to pay for an entire month at the old warehouse. They let me rent for fifteen days in November. That should give me enough time to complete the move. Of course rain could easily screw thing up. It's supposed to rain all day tomorrow, so I doubt that I'll be able to do very much. I should probably rest anyway. There's no sense in making my back any worse than it already is.

Dash didn't need to go outside last night so I got more sleep than usual. He did get me up at 5 AM to go poop, but it was almost daylight anyway. Making it until 5 AM is a win for me. There are so many nights when I hardly get any sleep at all. At least Dash is eating well. He hasn't thrown up in quite a while and seems to enjoy the food we cook for him. He eats better than we do now, but at least he's eating.

I think I'm going to have to buy Dash another pair of protective boots. All three pairs that we currently have in rotation need repairs. Dash is really hard on his shoes. He doesn't lift his rear legs as he walks and ends up dragging his feet. The boots keep him from injuring himself, but they wear out quickly. Maybe I'll go buy him another pair of boots tomorrow. This would certainly be easier than lifting more heavy boxes.

It's hard to believe that it's almost November. Where has this year gone? In a few days we'll have to deal with another time chance. I think we should just forget about Daylight Saving Time. It's such a nuisance to arbitrarily switch the clocks back and forth. Dogs never understand the time chance and wonder why their feeding schedule has changed. Usually we give Dash his evening walk after he's had his dinner. Now, I'll need to walk him before dinner to avoid walking in total darkness. This should be fun. Dash hates making changes even more than I do.

I'll be glad when the election is over. I'm sick of Beto and Ted Cruz making robocalls to my house  and sending text messages every single day. Do these guys really think this helps. It's irritating. Whoever thought robocalls were a good way to influence people has got to be a moron. Probably the only thing that Democrats and Republicans agree on is that they both hate telemarketers.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3230

Sometimes when I'm at the gym I think about the nature of memory. How many memories are actually stored away in our brains? I never think about the gym unless I'm actually there, but while I'm doing my exercises I have very distinct memories of doing these routines many times before. The sound the basketball makes when it hits the wood floor is very familiar. So is the sound the rotating chain makes on the hand bicycle. I can tell you almost to the second how long it will take to walk a mile on the treadmill and what my heart rate will be after ten minutes on the rowing machine. I'm almost to the point where I could tell you what song will play next on the sound system. All these inconsequential memories are stored away somewhere in my brain's filing system. All it takes to retrieve them is doing the same activity again.

I can't tell you what I have in the storage warehouse because many years ago I put something in a box and took it to the warehouse so I could forget about it. For the most part I never thought about the box again. The storage warehouse is filled with things I just didn't want to deal with anymore. I have no idea what is inside many of the boxes until I open them up again. When I look at the contents, the memories come rushing back. Some of the boxes should have remained closed. Like I said, memory is a curious thing.

You'd think I could sink every free throw on the basketball court because I've done this activity for so many years. Evidently thinking something and convincing your arms and legs to do what they're told are two different things. I still have good days and bad days on the basketball court, even though I have a very clear memory of what it feels like to sink a good shot.

Our beautiful Fall weather continues. It's so much easier to clean up poop or do irritating household chores on a really nice day. I wonder how people survive in really terrible climates? A month of rainy days is enough to seriously throw me off my game. Since it was a nice day today, I got a lot done. Dash go a nice early walk. The house got vacuumed. The laundry is done. And my checkbook is balanced.

I even picked out a storage unit and made an appointment to sign the rental agreement at the new storage warehouse. I can start moving in as early as tomorrow. Although several people have advised me to hire a mover, I think I'll just do things myself. Movers would just move all the crap from the old storage space to the new one. The whole point of this exercise is to get rid of things. Since I don't really know what I have, I will need to open and inspect all the boxes. This is not a pleasant task to say the least, but I think I'll feel better when it's over.

I think that Dash is just as influenced by the weather as I am. He seemed to have a good day as well today. Even though he is very weak and stumbles around a lot, he still seems happy. I think he knows that Janet and I are here to take care of him. I often wonder who's going to be around when I become incontinent and start stumbling around the house?

Abi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3228

There wasn't a cloud in the sky this morning. Dash did get me up during the night, but I managed to get back to sleep. When I woke up this morning I felt surprisingly rested. Dash was eager to walk. He was slow, but I wasn't in a hurry. It was a beautiful Fall day.

After walking Dash, I decided to go back to the hotel for breakfast. I kind of wanted the pleasant mood to continue. The place is quiet and the food is excellent. It's too bad they don't have a larger breakfast menu, but it probably doesn't matter. Most of their guests are just passing through. Dining among travelers makes me feel like I'm on a trip myself. The house is such a mess that living in a hotel doesn't sound half bad. I could learn to live with restaurant meals and having someone to make your bed every day.

On my way home I picked up something for dinner. I couldn't find anything interesting at Central Market, so I went across the street to Tom Thumb and got some more of those flash frozen meals from Cadence Kitchen. These things are delicious. I tried Shrimp and Grits this time. It's only a matter of time before I try everything.

My pleasant day came to an abrupt end when I went to the storage warehouse. When you pay by the year they have always given me an extra month free. The manager informed me that they discontinued this program. Then she mentioned that they would be raising my rent next year as well. It's looks like I'll be moving to a different facility.  I can get a much better deal a few miles away, but it is so much trouble to move everything. Guess what I'll be doing in November.

I need to decide what to throw away, what to donate to charity, and what to keep. Today I continued throwing away empty boxes. This was easy. When I found a box with nothing inside, I tossed it in the car. If I'd never saved these boxes in the first place I could have rented a smaller unit. The only boxes I'm glad I saved were the boxes for the model trains. Almost all collectibles are more valuable if you have the original box. Boxes for old and obsolete electronic gear don't improve the value of anything. Nobody wants a fifteen year old computer whether it's in the box or not.

I'll probably have to go up on the roof this weekend. Now that it's cooler, the water doesn't evaporate. It will stay up there all Winter if I don't remove it. At least we're looking at some nice weather ahead. Maybe clearing away all the standing water will be worth the effort.

I hope Dash realizes that we can sleep in late tomorrow. If I have to get up during the middle of the night, the least he can do is let me sleep in late on Saturday morning.

Pearl is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day