Day 4293

Just a normal Saturday. I filled the car with gas and then went to Sam's Club and Central Market. I debated whether to go grocery shopping first and then walk, or the other way around. If you go grocery shopping early, the stores are less crowded. If you go walking early, it's nice and cool. It's too bad you can't do everything early. I opted to get the shopping out of the way, but it was pretty hot by the time I got around to taking my long walk. I had to use the spray fountain in the park to cool off again. I didn't think it would warm up so quickly, especially since we needed light jackets on our sunrise walk with Dawn.

I've had a stomach ache for several days now. At first I thought that something might have gone wrong with my surgery, but I feel better now. I probably just had a mild case of indigestion. It takes a while to get used to a new diet. I've been having huge fruit smoothies for so many years that solid food must be somewhat of a shock to my system. I think I am eating healthier now, but I always thought I was eating healthy before. Who knows? It's hard to get a straight answer on diet and nutrition. I know I'm doing better than all my friends who still get their meals through the drive-thru window at Wendy's, McDonald's, or Whataburger.

Dawn seems friendlier toward me recently. It's a long, slow process but she doesn't run away when I come into a room anymore. Janet thought that if I was the one who fed and walked her, she would eventually start to warm up to me. It seems to be working. She's real friendly early in the mornings now. Later in the day, she remembers that I'm a man and she's got to be cautious. We are making progress though, so that's a good thing.

I'm not making much progress toward finding something I enjoy doing in Dallas. I still wouldn't mind living out at the observatory and I kind of envy my Florida friends who have built an entire lifestyle around following rocket launches. I guess I just don't like big cities anymore. City life revolves around doing things with other people. Not so good when you are trying to avoid people. I can remember a time when I loved going to gallery openings, lectures, and plays. Not anymore.  Did I change, or did the cities themselves change? I know I used to feel safe in almost any large city. That's a big change right there.

It's time to go up on the roof again. I keeps hearing pecans falling on the roof and if I don't remove them, they will stain the water a dark brown the next time it rains. I need to clean things up and do a thorough inspection before the leaves start to fall. A leak under a huge pile of Oak leaves is even harder to find. I wish I could find someone to do this odious job for me. It would take forever to explain what needs to be done and the roof surface is kind of fragile. I've learned a lot tending to this miserable roof over the years. If someone else was up there, I'd just feel that they were making things worse. I'm not getting any younger though. One of these days, I'm not going to be able to climb up there.

I hope the weather stays nice for Dawn's Sunday outing tomorrow. Walking outdoors is so much more enjoyable when the weather is nice.

Rosie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1608 - Mother's Day

I opted to clean the roof today instead of going to the gym. I really had no choice. When I took a peek at what was up there, it was a soggy mess. Last Thursday's wind and rain had deposited a thick blanket of of catkins, small branches, and leaves that the water had shaped into beaver ponds. This Spring tree debris had trapped all the water and none of it was draining off the roof. By the time I got the roof cleaned up again, I might as well have gone to the gym. The exercise was just as strenuous. I'm always worried that I'll get in a car wreck and the dogs will be left alone in the house for an uncertain amount of time. Probably I should be a bit more worried about falling off the roof.

I went and got groceries for the week this morning. I'm really a terrible shopper. I never make a grocery list and typically just buy what I'm hungry for right now. I tried to be a bit more methodical today, but I still probably bought fruit that will go bad before I get around to eating it and vegetables that I won't eat at all. I carefully try to follow the 80/20 rule where 80% of my diet comes from plant material and 20% from meat protein. I'm eating a lot more vegetables now, but life was so much simpler in my younger years when a similar trip to the store would have resulted in five frozen pizzas, a tub of Blue Bell ice cream, and a case of beer.

Mother's Day is one of those holidays that I probably wouldn't remember if it weren't for Facebook and the thousands of people who use a picture of their mom as their profile picture for the day. I have thousands of pictures of my dogs, but very few of family. Both of my parents passed away quite a few years ago and the memories are rapidly fading. I do still remember that my mother was a remarkable woman. Because I have no long-term memory, I wrote a story about her right after she died. I'm glad I did. Whenever I read this story, I feel lucky to have had a Mom like this, and sad for the way her life ended.

Dash's neck continues to improve. The radiation burn has gone from red, to pink, to a light salmon color. A scab has formed over the worst area and the surrounding skin looks almost normal again. I stopped the Tramadol yesterday evening and he seems just fine without it. Both dogs had lots of energy on their walks today and are in good spirits. There is still a complicated schedule of pills to administer, but so far, so good, on that as well.

I keep hearing on the news that we'll be getting more severe weather tomorrow. No tornadoes are forecast, but there is supposed to be lots of wind and rain. With this kind of forecast, you might think it was ludicrous for me to spend hours clearing the water off the roof this afternoon. Actually, tomorrow's forecast is exactly why I cleared the roof. When there's a heavy rainstorm, you want as much water draining off the edge of the roof as possible. The last thing you want is a beaver pond that just lets the water get deeper and deeper. Hopefully the forecast will get revised as the cold front moves closer. I vote for no rain at all. We've already had enough rain for one month.

Dodger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1282 - My Birthday

How did this ever happen? I've got a Medicare card in my wallet. I'm 65. My advancing age is somewhat confusing, since, at least in in my own mind, I'm still 19. Let's face it. A career in advertising and the absence of children in my life is not conducive to maturity. In many ways, I'm the boy who never grew up. I find myself in a weird sort of Twilight Zone. I have little in common with contemporaries who now share pictures of the grandchildren their own grown children have bestowed on them. I have even less in common with the current crop of young folks. They weren't even born when the seminal events of my life took place. Neil Armstrong's famous words, Ken Kesey's acid tests, and Jimi Hendrix's remarkable performance at Woodstock are all ancient history to them. They look at these things they way I look at Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.

I'm certainly not crying in my beer about the situation though.  Oh, wait!  I can't drink beer anymore. My resolve to give up alcohol and change my diet has actually managed to turn back the clock in an odd sort of way. I feel much better than I did this time last year. I've lost twenty pounds. I have a lot more energy. And according to my doctors, my overall health has improved by just about any objective standard. There's even a much better treatment for hepatitis-c on the horizon, so maybe I can put eventually that behind me as well

I wish Dot wasn't so excitable. She got herself so worked up while the landscaping guys were here this morning sawing up the downed tree limb with their chain saws, that she tore a dewclaw. The vet got Dot patched up during her acupuncture appointment a few hours later, but she's got to learn to calm down. This wasn't the first nail she has torn or ripped out.

Like most birthdays in recent memory, this was just another work day. I completed a big update to an animal rescue website and wrote an article about watches. I didn't have to go up on the roof, because it was quite nice today. The dogs enjoyed their walks and so did I.

After dog training class this evening, Janet and I has a birthday celebration, complete with some delicious Sprinkles cupcakes. The dogs got little dog cupcakes as well. Yeah, I know. Cupcakes have sugar in them. I did forgo the alcohol though. I think I'm all set for another year.

Inky is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1271

It was a typical Saturday. I went to the doctor's office to straighten out a fouled up prescription. I watered the big patch of yellowed grass in the front yard that the roofers killed, in hopes that it would come back to life. I put clean sheets on the bed, vacuumed the house, and unclogged the large format printer. I tried to re-attach some of the plywood that had come loose under the carport when water poured though the unfinished and largely unprotected roof a few weeks ago. The roofers should have done this themselves, but they didn't. The dogs got a walk too, but they didn't want to go far. It was pretty warm today.

Before getting started on my weekend chores, I finished up an article that I knew would be due Monday. Next week is going to be busy enough anyway, so I might as well try to get ahead of the game.

There are so many bills this month, it's driving me crazy. Homeowner's insurance is due on the house. There a big car repair bill. And of course there's the roof. Month after month, small checks from clients arrive in the mail and much larger checks are written to pay the relentless onslaught of bills. My investments are supposed to make up the difference, but that hasn't been working out so well lately. It's frustrating to say the least. I don't understand all these economists on TV saying that we are in a non-inflationary environment when the price of gas, food, utility bills, and just about everything else seems to have doubled. When the phone bill is twice what is used to be, that's inflation to me.

I bought some new jeans when I was running errands this afternoon. As my waistline keeps shrinking, my old pants are starting to feel too large. If simply losing weight was my goal, I'd think I've just about reached it. I suspect getting healthy isn't quite so simple, however. I'm beginning to wonder if I might have lost too much weight. Since periodic blood tests are the only way to tell if I'm headed in the right direction, it's really hard to tell on a day-to-day basis. It probably can't hurt to lose twenty pounds though. I'm not sure my liver appreciates the slimmer, trimmer me, but maybe it will help keep diabetes at bay.

I couldn't figure out why the dogs were both barking so wildly until I looked out the living room window and saw the cat they were looking at in the back yard. I'd never seen this cat before, but it was obviously stalking something. I told the dogs to be nice to the cat, because it was helping us get rid of rats. I don't think Dot and Dash were listening, because they kept right on barking.

Our neighbors are having a party. There's one of those gourmet food trucks parked in their driveway. You can tell the kids are getting older when a food truck replaces the ubiquitous birthday bounce house. I'm curious what the food truck is serving, but not curious enough to become a party crasher.

Lacey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1265

It was a beautiful day with clear skies and a light breeze. The dogs got to frolic in the sun at the dog park and I had plenty of time to catch up on some much needed yard work. I mowed the grass, watered the shrubs, and enjoyed one of those brief moments when everything looks nice for a change. I certainly wasn't the only one taking advantage of the nice weather. The park was filled with picnickers and the lake was dotted with small sailboats. I'm always in a better mood when I can see my own shadow, and sunny days where it's still cool enough to open the windows are the best. From the looks of things in the park this afternoon, there appear to be a lot of people who would agree with me.

I thought I'd re-arrange all the partitions in my camera case, based on how I used my equipment in Las Vegas. It would be nice if the things you used the most were right at the top for easy access. After spending an hour or so peeling away the Velcro partitions and re-attaching them somewhere else, I ended up with a configuration much worse than when I started. I guess this just proves that sometimes it's better to leave things well enough alone.

I sure wish I could have left my diet alone. It's much harder than I thought to avoid salt, sugar, and wheat entirely. While we were eating dinner tonight there was this baking competition show on TV and it made me really hungry. The show was basically like Top Chef, except that the contestants just baked pies and other pastries. I love pie. Unfortunately pie is the poster child for things I shouldn't eat. A good pie is chock full of salt, sugar, butter, and flour. I'll just have to learn to enjoy my Kale.

I discovered why there were so many tasty things that actually were on my diet when I was staying at the Wynn. It turns out that Steve Wynn is a vegan and he insists that all his restaurants have choices on the menu that he could eat. I guess that explains why there was such a variety of astoundingly good vegetable dishes. If you're a vegetarian with plenty of money, the Wynn is definitely where you want to go.

I don't want to go back to the regular work routine tomorrow, but there's basically no choice. It's going to be a very busy week with meetings on Monday and Tuesday, along with a big photo shoot on Thursday. Some of my friends tell me that they couldn't imagine not working. I can easily imagine this kind of life. All I have to do is look at the dogs sleeping peacefully on the bed in the next room and visions of the good life start to appear in my head.

Abby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1219

Some days are so vanilla that I have trouble remembering what I actually did at the end of the day. I certainly was busy today, but nothing stands out as significant. There was a little bit of everything. I went to the bank, went to the post office, picked up a prescription for Dash at the vet and another for myself at the pharmacy. I did a load of laundry, made a quart of fresh juice from half a dozen oranges and a whole pineapple, and still found time to update a couple of websites.

I thought we were going to get out of going to dog training class tonight, since we've been on the verge of a thunderstorm all day. The rains haven't arrived yet, however. According the the weather channel, that will come later tonight, right after I've settled into a sound sleep. I can almost guarantee that Dot will wake me up with another storm phobia panic attack. It doesn't even matter if there's thunder and lightning anymore. Even the smell of rain makes her freak out.

I saw a Spring wildflower that I'd never photographed before right in the middle of a big patch of poison ivy this morning. I was tempted to wade in and get the shot, but sanity prevailed and I left the flower alone. I can always come back later with a telephoto lens. A little further down the trail were some Pink Evening Primrose flowers that had just come into bloom. I photographed these instead.

I'm kind of irritated that the Defender is still running rough. After two major repairs during the past 60 days, it should be running like a well oiled sewing machine. Of course, maybe it actually is running like a sewing machine. The old Singer is running kind of rough too. I've called the dealership twice, but they haven't returned my calls. This usually means they have no idea what the problems is and just want me to go away. The problem could be anywhere. One of the motor mounts could be broken. There might be a bad spark plug wire. The carburetor might be dirty. Chances are it's something else entirely. I seldom guess these things correctly.

I've lost fifteen pound since I changed my diet. That's quite a bit for me, since I was never overweight in the first place. Now it's time to get serious about an exercise program before I waste away. A fellow blogger recommended that I start doing planks to build up my core. I like the idea of planks. Basically all you do is hold your body in a straight rigid position while resting on your elbows and toes. You hold your spine horizontal for as long as you can. So far, several minutes seems like a long time to me. Since this exercise involves no movement at all, and is basically doing nothing, I like it.

Bella is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1179

Well, I discovered why my car had been leaking oil. Virtually all the engine seals have gone bad. Rubber is a great invention, but very old rubber is virtually worthless. My service representative at the Land Rover dealer called me today and told me that the head gaskets, the oil pan gasket, the transmission seals, and a couple of other things that leak on the Defender all needed to be replaced. The gaskets themselves aren't very expensive, but the engine and transmission have to be torn apart to get at everything. This definitely isn't very good news.

The one thing that old houses, old cars, and old people all have in common is that they all deteriorate with age. It's a bitch when all this deterioration starts happening at once. If there is a general theme to my life right now, it is that everything is falling apart.

It wasn't always this way. Janet and I lived in the house for over ten years before there were any problems with the roof at all. The Defender used to run flawlessly for years at a time when it was newer. Most telling of all, I used to be able to have a beer with lunch, two or three glasses of wine with dinner and eat bacon for breakfast every day. Those days are gone. Things are falling apart.

The one bright spot amid all this dry rot and deterioration is that I'm actually starting to feel better as a result of my new diet. I have more energy now and I've actually lost eight pounds in the last two months. I really shouldn't lose much more weight, since I wasn't fat to begin with, but it's nice to be getting back to the weight I maintained for the first forty years of my life.

I got a little adapter in the mail today that allows me to use the headphone jack with my new indestructible iPhone case. I'll add the adapter to the shoebox of weird adapters and plugs I've already bought to resolve awkward connection issues. I could take my phone to the South Pole now, although I doubt that it will ever leave the neighborhood. The phone used to look like a sleek BMW roadster. Now it looks like a H1 Hummer.

Lots of dog activities on tap for this weekend. Dot and Dash get a bath. There's a new dog to photograph at the Dalmatian Rescue kennels. And of course there's always Sunday's trip to the dog park.

Bacardi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1160

It was a good day to go to the dog park. The weather was nice and all the dogs were playful. We stayed quite a while at the park because it is much more enjoyable to watch dogs play than it is to clean the house. Since Janet and I both have the little activity wristlets now, we were probably looking for an excuse to boost our step count too. I feel compelled to walk 10,000 steps a day now. I've probably always walked that much, but now that I'm being measured, I hate to be a slacker.

When we got home from the park, the dogs did the smart thing and took a nap. I decided to clean the bathroom instead. I don't know why it's so hard to get soap scum off the shower tiles. In those Scrubbing Bubbles commercials, the tiles are glistening in just a few seconds. In real life, it never works that way. It's harder to clean shower tiles than it is to clean a barbecue grill.

It's supposed to be a holiday tomorrow, but it doesn't look like I'm going to get any time off. I've already got several jobs on tap that I need to work on in the morning and then I need to go over to Baylor and have an MRI done in the afternoon. I filled out a big stack of pre-admittance paperwork this afternoon, but I'll bet there's more paperwork for me tomorrow. An MRI is pretty painless. The only thing I don't like is when they inject you with dye. It leaves an odd metallic taste in your mouth for some reason.

I'm glad Janet approves of my new diet. It would be much harder to maintain my resolve if she wanted to continue eating cheeseburgers. Luckily, she's been eating healthy all along. All I have to do it eat the same things she does. Well, almost the same things anyway. I'll have to forgo the scotch and red wine.

Too bad I've had to give up alcohol. Drinking all that extra water I'm supposed to have would be a lot easier if I could add a little single malt scotch and a few ice cubes to every glass.

Lexi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1156

The specter of medicare on the horizon is already starting to bother me. I've finally got a group of doctors that I like along with some pretty decent health insurance. I'd hate to lose all this when the government takes over. Since nobody seems to know anything specific about medicare except the people who are already using it, I thought I'd do a little research. I discovered that medicare advantage plans and supplemental insurance are completely different. I also learned that you don't need both. I learned that part-d prescription drug coverage is really just another form of supplemental insurance. Most importantly, I learned that insurance companies and health care providers make a ton of money from selling medicare advantage programs and aggressively try to sign you up for their particular plan when you begin to approach the magic age of 65. It all comes down to money. Are you all that surprised?

I'm really hoping that my latest blood test results will vindicate my new somewhat austere diet. Although I'm slowly acquiring a taste for fruits and vegetables, I do miss bacon, french toast and cheeseburgers. When I asked my nutritionist why my new diet wasn't more popular if it could actually reverse diabetes, prevent heart attacks, and improve liver health, he told me that there wasn't any money in a good diet. The pharmaceutical industry is a billion dollar empire with tentacles everywhere. Selling pills is big business. Eating broccoli isn't. Maybe it is really that simple. Look at the ads you see on TV. It seems like 80% of them are selling pharmaceutical products. When you go to the doctor, there are often more drug company reps sitting in the bobby than patients. The pharmaceutical lobby in Washington DC is probably even more powerful than the gun lobby. Everyone wants you to take a pill because pills are wildly profitable. Again it all comes down to money.

Maybe the medical industry's fixation with money wouldn't be so irritating if I made more of the green stuff myself. I consider my company successful because I've managed to stay in business for over twenty years during a period of time where many businesses like mine have failed. I've never been wildly profitable though. I work hard for my money and profits are somewhat self-limiting. I have never been able to take advantage of economies of scale, since it is only me doing all the work. I'm very reluctant to hire people and grow, because that's exactly why several friends of mine failed. Growing too fast can be much worse than not growing at all.

Maybe I should resign myself to walking the dogs and making just enough to pay the bills. I wrote two articles today. That ought to pay the electric bill.

Tessa is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1149

I got a haircut today. Instead of talking about upcoming vacation plans, like I usually do with my stylist, we ended up talking about funeral planning. Betty's father is sick and evidently she is in charge of making the arrangements when the time comes. I was surprised at how much actually I knew about the subject, since it isn't often a topic of conversation. It certainly isn't something you talk about in a hair salon very often. It's been a long time since I've had to make funeral arrangements, but I guess its something you never forget.

When my haircut was finished, I stopped by the Apple store on the way out of the mall and got one of those little wristlets that tracks all your activities during the day. I'm not all that interested in counting calories, but this thing is supposed to be able to tell you how long it takes you to go to sleep and then tracks your light and deep sleep cycles during the night, as well as identifies any waking moments. I don't feel like I get that much sleep, since the dogs are always waking me up. It will be interesting to see if I get any deep sleep at all. I'm afraid the little wristlet will embarrass me and tell me that I'm asleep during the day. It would be an easy mistake for a gizmo to make. I don't move around much when I write.

I think the dogs thought we were taking them on another road trip when we went to training class tonight. They both seemed real disappointed when we arrived at the field where all the dogs were. Dot didn't even want to get out of the car. When we started the exercises, the dogs seemed distracted. Dot would come to other owners voices by mistake and Dash was so fidgety that he would hardly stay still at all. Eventually, they settled down and did everything right, but I don't think they were really into being trained this evening.

I'm a bit surprised at how easy it's been so far to modify my diet. I haven't been seriously tempted by anything yet. I guess this makes sense in an odd sort of way. I'm totally a creature of habit. I'm in the process now of substituting good habits for bad ones, but they are still just habits. Once the new habits become familiar and turn into rituals, it should be easy to maintain them. Habits are a lot different than cravings. Cravings are fueled by desire. Habits, on the other hand, are fueled by laziness. I don't have a whole lot of desire, but I have an abundance of laziness. For once, laziness might actually work to my advantage. Bye bye bacon. Oatmeal, here I come.

Landry is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1147

My learning journey continues. Oatmeal mixed with fresh blueberries and strawberries and sweetened with a little Stevia is actually delicious. Who would have thought? Maybe I can live without bacon after all. I also learned that the Kale I'm eating in my salad is actually the very same purple plant that I used to buy in pots at the garden store to put on the front porch during the Winter. I always thought these ornamental plants were pretty, but never knew you could eat them. I certainly had no idea they were healthy.

I wish I would discover some equally enlightening things about my chosen profession. I'm really starting to get burned out with what advertising has become in recent years. The stuff I write never was intended to be Anna Karenina or Moby Dick. It's depressing how mindless advertising messaging has become however. For the past three or four years I keep thinking that the Super Bowl ads keep getting worse with each succeeding year. There is no subtlety anymore. It's all rudeness and explosions these days. Coke, GoDaddy, Priceline... there wasn't a coherent idea between them. I didn't even like a lot of the commercials that the young bloggers gave rave reviews on their websites. I thought the Taco Bell spot with the old people escaping the retirement home was kind of insulting and even though I thought the Tide "Stain" spot was clever, it wasn't that great. On the other hand I did like some of the commercials that the young folk thought were insulting. The Volkswagen spot featuring white people talking like Jamaicans was panned by many reviewers who said the spot was racially insensitive. What a bunch of politically correct nonsense. That Volkswagen commercial was one of the few genuinely funny spots I saw all night.

Like many of you, I loved the Paul Harvey "Farmer" spot for Dodge Ram. I was terribly disappointed however to discover that the Dodge Ram ad agency didn't actually come up with this idea. A much smaller Chicago agency had already used the exact same Paul Harvey dialog in another commercial earlier. This is sad to me. Copying has become so mainstream that people don't even think it is wrong anymore. Most of my clients would actually rather copy or emulate something that already exists than to take a chance on something genuinely original. I haven't been asked to do anything genuinely original in years.

I was really busy today, but like I've already mentioned, I wasn't doing much original thinking. That monkey the Iranians sent into space recently could have taken my place today. I changed out pictures on websites. I paraphrased things I found on Wikipedia. I replied to mindless questions with equally mindless answers. Maybe something original will happen tomorrow.

Duke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1143

This is going to take a while. Usually, when I'm in a hurry and don't feel like cooking, I'll run down to a nearby barbecue joint and get the brisket platter to bring home for dinner. Tonight, I went to Central Market and got a broccoli, tomato and garlic salad; a grape, walnut and blue cheese salad; and a bowl of tomato bisque. The meal was tasty and satisfying but I couldn't visualize portion sizes very well and bought too much. That's one of the things I don't like about fresh vegetables. They don't stay fresh very long. I forget about the leftovers and they inevitably go bad. Cured meats on the other hand, seem to last forever.

I really haven't had any major goals for quite a while. I have a tendency to just get up and plod through the day, doing whatever is necessary to keep treading water until bedtime. Goals probably aren't such a bad thing. Maybe staying alive a little longer would be an excellent goal to start with. I'm going to try my best to make this healthy diet work. So, if you hear me talking about bacon and cheeseburgers in a month from now, you'll know I'm just another backslider.

We're planning on taking the dogs on a little road trip. We've always wanted to go on a real vacation with them, but so far we haven't been able to go more than five miles without a major mishap. Dot is just as territorial in the car as she is at home. When we pull up at a stoplight, she'll start barking like crazy at people crossing the street or waiting for a bus. Dot's barking usually throws Dash into a panic and he'll wriggle out of his car harness like a canine Houdini and then he's all over the place. Janet is an optimist though. She thinks that if she sits in back with them, the dogs will be calm and well behaved. I have my doubts, but since they spend most of their day sleeping around the house, there ought to be a way to get them to sleep in the car as well.

A friend of mine wants to send a little health care business my way. He asked if I had ever done any of this type of writing and of course I said "sure." I knew I'd done quite a bit of health care writing. I just couldn't remember what it was. A quick search revealed that I'd written an ad campaign about impotency, some brochures about surgical scrubs made out of paper, and a physical therapy video that featured a lot of old people bobbing around in a huge swimming pool. I've done a huge amount of work for veterinarians, of course, but I'm always a bit hesitant to tell doctors and hospital administrators that I consider veterinary medicine to be more or less the same as whatever they're doing. We'll see how it goes. My new business pitches usually go pretty well unless someone wants to actually see me in person.

Cooper is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day