Day 3703

I felt foolish today when I got a letter from one of my editors, saying that he didn't always have time to respond to my mail because he gets 200 to 300 e-mail messages a day. Oops. I guess I've forgotten what it's like to be busy. I probably get 2 to 3 messages a day. I'm sure I still get tons of spam, but I don't even look at my spam folder anymore. Messages of any importance are few and far between. OK. Lesson learned. I guess I don't need to send long chatty letters to busy people.

I do need to get started on my article about the launch. I started editing pictures today and reviewing my notes. It usually takes me three or four days to finish an article. I don't think there is any hurry. I'm not even sure at this point if anyone wants the article. The magazine that sent me to Kennedy Space Center just wanted pictures this time. Writing is always good practice though. The more you write, the better you get.

Dawn still seems to be doing well. She seems a lot more comfortable now that the drainage tube has been removed from her neck. She's finished some of her meds as well and her pill schedule is less complicated. With every passing day Dawn gets a little closer to returning to her normal self. Dawn is a quiet, gentle girl. A lot of Dalmatians are constantly getting into trouble, but Dawn is a model of good behavior. This dog is the perfect companion for a solitary writer like myself. I like peace and quiet just as much as she does.

We're finally starting to see some blue sky again, but it still seems very cold. I think we're supposed to get a hard freeze tonight. I don't have to worry as much about setting the outdoor faucets to drip before a freeze anymore. They all leak anyway. I checked a few faucets in the back yard this evening and they were already dripping.

The roofer hasn't responded to my letter. I'm not really surprised. I have to be persistent to get any sort of response from the guy. The current forecast says it is supposed to get up to to 75 degrees this weekend. I hope this is true. If the weather gets warm enough, I'll use the last of the silicon material I have and do my best to stop the leak myself. I wish the roof wasn't such a problem but everyone has problems. This one just happens to be mine.

I just noticed that there's a new restaurant in the neighborhood. Maybe I'll give it a try tomorrow morning. I looked at the menu online and a brisket breakfast taco sounds pretty good right now. Dawn is getting comfortable around the house, so I think it will be fine to leave for an hour or so. I'm going to start writing my article tomorrow as well. I won't bother any editors though. I promise.

Tessa is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2629

The restaurant was crowded this morning. There were all these noisy overlapping conversations that were somewhat distracting and made me realize that most of the clichés you hear about people are based in truth. Even though this was my morning out, I couldn't wait to get back to my dogs.

When I got home, I immediately realized that peace and quiet are pretty illusive wherever you are. When the dogs actually are quiet, I worry that one of them might have died. When they're full of life and moving around, I'm continually cleaning up poop and retrieving Dot from corners were she has fallen or gotten herself stuck. I've got to try to keep Dash from getting too excited as well, because when he gets agitated, the risk of another seizure increases. It's a delicate balance.

I had a surprising amount of work to complete today. I don't think I've had any writing jobs this month, but the website modifications continue to keep me busy. Nobody seems to want a brand new website anymore. I guess everyone already has one. Instead of creating new designs, I spend my time adding new product lines, updating employee rosters, and correcting typos. There are an amazing number of typos, since a lot of clients write their own copy these days. I don't change anything anymore. I just cut and paste. I used to try to edit the text I received but quickly discovered that the awkward syntax that was bothering me was exactly what the client wanted to say.

Dash is acting real strange lately. I've had increasing difficulty getting him to leave the backyard in the afternoon. At first I thought he was experiencing vertigo or dizziness, but now I'm not so sure. As an experiment I tried to lure him out the back gate with a dog treat, so we could take our afternoon walk. It took us over five minutes to get down the alley. I would move to the end of his leash and then hold the cookie where he could see it. When he started to walk toward the cookie, I would move forward and we would repeat the whole process all over again. As soon as we reached the end of the alley and walked down a small hill into the park, he forgot all about the cookie and started walking normally. We finished the rest of our walk without incident. I have no explanation for this odd behavior, but it sure makes taking a walk more difficult.

Part of the problem is that the dogs still don't understand why they can't walk together like they used to. It is simply impossible for one person to walk both dogs under current conditions. It takes both hands and a lot of coordination to keep Dot upright. I walk her like a marionette in a puppet show. Dash is still strong and likes to walk fast. Even if I could manage to hold on to both dogs, Dash would start tugging and probably knock Dot and I over before we'd gone thirty feet. It's kind of sad, because I know that they would still prefer to walk together.

I've been so concerned about Dash's vestibular disease that it took me a while to realize that I had an upset stomach and was feeling a little dizzy myself. Maybe it was something I ate. At any rate, the best part about today was when I managed to convince both dogs to take a nap with me and we all curled up together for a few hours. The rest seemed to help. I'm feeling better now.

Nora is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day