Day 4990

When is this month going to be over? I keep waiting for the weather to change, but every day is the same. It looks like we're going to have clear skies and triple digit temperatures forever. The only time when the weather is tolerable is just before sunrise. Our early walks with Dawn are warm now, but they are still the nicest part of the day.

I applied to attend another launch at Kennedy Space Center. This one isn't until early October and I'm not even sure I want to go. I need to keep my space connections alive though. It took me a long time before I was publishing regularly and could consider myself an official space reporter. I definitely don't want to be forgotten and have to start all over again. Maybe my interest in things will return when the weather gets cooler. Right now I just want to hibernate.

I took my time with breakfast this morning because I didn't want to get to they gym too early. What's the hurry? Going to the gym is my only regular activity lately. I've got to space things out so I don't have an entire afternoon to fill. When I did arrive for my workout there seemed to be twice as many people on the floor as there usually are. I'm convinced that the heat is driving everyone indoors. Luckily someone was leaving just as I arrived and I still found a spot in the parking garage. If I have to park outdoors, the steering wheel is almost too hot to touch when it's time to go home again. I was slow on the track today, probably because there were too many other people walking and running. I was pretty good on the basketball court though. If I can ever manage to complete ten free throws in a row, I'll move on to something more difficult.

I wish I hadn't started eating lunch again. I know that's why I'm gaining weight. I'm not even that hungry, but fixing myself lunch is a great way to kill time. There are all kinds of things that need attention around the house, but I'm doing my best to avoid them. Painting is messy. Repairing cracks in ceiling is messy. Some of the carpentry work that is needed is probably beyond the scope of my abilities. It's actually pretty easy to talk myself out of doing repairs. I'm an expert at talking myself out of things.

The pharmacy still doesn't have the pills I need. I may have to get the prescription refilled at a different pharmacy because I will run out tomorrow. It seems like a pharmacy should always have the pills you need but nothing works smoothly anymore. Little inconsequential things have a way of becoming giant hassles.

It looks like we're going to be doing Santa Paw pictures again. We've already got dates scheduled in December. I hope my old equipment keeps working. I hope my body keeps working as well. I definitely don't want to buy any new photo equipment at this stage of my life. I'll keep walking to keep myself working.

Dawn didn't get to go to her training class tonight. It's still way too hot outside. Maybe next week will be better.

Mickey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4515

Evidently Dawn thought that the weather was back to normal because she was eager to walk this morning. I was a little reluctant because my feet hurt but we all had a nice walk. My feet remain a mystery. Later in the day they felt fine and I ended up with a total of 23,000 steps.

After breakfast I wrote a letter to my sister and took it to the post office. I used to write tons of letters to people all over the world, but this one to my luddite sister is the end of the line. Nobody writes letters anymore. Few people can even send a decent e-mail message. All you get is a cryptic bare bones text these days. I write one of these letters every month and I kind of enjoy the process. It connects me with an earlier, simpler world filled with typewriters, postage stamps, and the delayed gratification of waiting two to four weeks for a reply.

On the way back from the post office I stopped at the pharmacy because I'd received a message that a prescription was ready. I wasn't low on anything, but I was curious which prescription got automatically filled this time. The pharmacist told me that no prescription had been refilled and that the automated message system must have gotten scrambled again. There were no pills to pick up. Jeez. Is it really that hard to keep track of these meds?  I don't know why they even need an automated refill system. The old way worked fine for decades. When I had about five pills left in the bottle, I would just call a refill in. Worked like a charm.

We got a little rain today, but it didn't really affect anything. Dawn got her morning walk before the rain started and I took my long walk after everything cleared up again. I haven't been up on the roof in a long time. I'm just depending on the pumps to keep the standing water level reasonably low after a rain. Pretty soon the summer heat will just evaporate the water. I'd like to think my roof climbing days are over, but lots can go wrong with a flat roof. One of these day I'm going to have to get up there again.

I finally got the nerve to look at my brokerage account today. Not a pretty sight. It seems like we are in a perfect storm of bad news. Inflation is surging. The stock market is crashing. The country is divided and increasingly polarized. And we seem to have reignited a cold war with Russia. A lot of this pain is self inflicted. In my opinion we never should have locked down the world for two years. You simply can't turn off the global economy and expect it to start up smoothly again. Apparently China still hasn't gotten this message. 

I was surprised at how far I was able to walk today. It probably helped that the temperature was cool, but my feet did hurt this morning. I wonder what happened?  I really need to think of something else to do during the day. I don't know if I'd have the time though. I'm hooked on getting my steps and I'm pretty slow anyway. There really isn't much time for anything else. It's remains a mystery how I managed to get so much done during my working years.

I did manage to get the trash out to the curb this evening. This week has gone really quickly. It still seems like I returned from the observatory yesterday.

Dolly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4142

Today was a little different. I took my long walk right after breakfast so I would be back in time to take Janet to the dentist. Yesterday there was a lot of rain in the forecast but today it was just overcast. I was surprised that I made good time today. Often I don't when I walk early.

When I returned home there was a surprise in the mail. My long awaited computer memory chips have arrived. They certainly took the slow route to Dallas, but the package appeared to be in good shape. I'll probably upgrade the computer tomorrow, unless I'm feeling especially clumsy. I'm never wild about making computer modifications. There are a lot of tiny screws and very fine wires inside these things. I try my best to be careful, but the truth is that I am pretty clumsy. I gave up watch repair as a hobby because there are a lot of very tiny parts inside watches as well. I managed to get quite a few watches running again, but I ended up breaking way too many. Luckily, upgrading the laptop's memory is very easy. All I have to do is remove ten screws, take the back off the laptop, disconnect a few wires, and replace the existing memory. This should only take about ten minutes, but it will probably take me an hour.

Janet's dentist was still operating under Covid protocols. They didn't want me to come inside. I dropped her off at the front of the building and then I was supposed to call them from my car when I returned and they would bring her down to me. Her extraction didn't take nearly as long as mine did a few years ago. I was only home a short time before I got a call saying that it was time to pick her up. 

We stopped at the pharmacy on the way home to pick up her meds, but they weren't ready yet. I took Janet home, watched Dawn curl up next to her on the bed, and then returned to the pharmacy. Dawn will make a good nurse. She never leaves Janet's side. I walked up to an empty counter and picked up Janet's meds, but when I was leaving two snarky ladies hissed at me and said "guess you didn't see the line" under their breath. I guess not. They were so far away from the counter that I thought they were shopping for something else.

I've either got to start going to the gym or just accept the fact that my body is wearing out. I was watching one of those Life Alert commercials while I was eating breakfast this morning and found myself wondering if I should get one. "I've fallen and I can't get up" is beginning to seem very real. I'm thinking of getting a walking stick for my trip to the observatory. I might take a folding camp chair as well. One of the bad things about astrophotography is that you often have to get down on your knees to point the camera at the proper section of sky. I remember hating getting up and down so often on my last trip. Maybe a walking stick and a folding canvas chair will help. I still refuse to call the walking stick a cane, but you get the idea.

The Artemis-1 SLS booster I saw at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans a few years ago has finally arrived at Kennedy Space Center. Over the next several months it will be assembled into a moon rocket and hopefully launch before the end of the year. This is the one launch I really don't want to miss. Since I can't really count on NASA anymore, I'm going to have to get to know the people in the Air Force media office again. The people I used to know are gone now, but if I did this once I guess I can do it again.  

Chance is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4129

I'm still puzzled that I didn't get credentialed to attend the Space X Crew-2 launch. I wrote my editor to see if NASA had even bothered to contact the magazine. Before getting press credentials NASA has to verify that you actually have an assignment from your media outlet. The whole process is way too complicated. Maybe I'm doing something wrong when I submit my applications. Hopefully my editor can help me sort this all out. It just makes no sense that I'm accepted sometimes and rejected at other times for no apparent reason.

I wrote a few more letters while I was still in a letter writing mood and then I went to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription they've been calling me about. Somehow my prescription refills have gotten totally out of sync with the rate I am actually taking the pills. I now have an 180 day supply of three different pills. I hadn't even started using the last 90 day refills before this latest refill kicked in. Everything is so automated now that it is hard to change anything. My pharmacist and I both agreed that it would be easier for me to just take the refills and save them until needed than to put in a change order. We tried that once and a prescription I need got accidentally discontinued. 

This is why I always do my best to learn how to fix things myself. Unfortunately, fixing a furnace is easier than fixing a medical record. We live in a world where cashiers don't even know how to make change. People go to a website and click a few buttons to make something happen without having any idea how the whole process works. I'm pretty sure that I'm taking the correct prescriptions but some of them have been listed incorrectly in my medical records for years. I predict that in a few years from now, some of your doctors will have no idea whether you took the Covid vaccine or not. The only record you have is that little card they gave you when you got your shot. How long is it going to take you to lose that?

Tomorrow I am supposed to get a package that the UPS website says was delivered before it was shipped. I'm curious whether I'll actually get the package. We'll see. I've given up on trying to sort this out. Nobody has been able to explain why the tracking number tells me that the package was delivered last month to someone in New Jersey. This whole situation seems very similar to my incorrect medical records. UPS tells me that everything is fine and just to ignore the website. My doctor never even looks at my online medical records. He just asks me over and over again what pills I am taking every time I visit.

Today was uneventful, but what else is new. As always, I drank my morning smoothie while catching up on the dismal state of the world on cable news. I can't stand to watch anything for more than thirty seconds, so I'm constantly switching channels. I check my e-mail and the mailbox outside after breakfast. The electronic world is nothing but junk and so is the physical world. I'll usually block a few telemarketers on my phone and then I'm done. No wonder I like walking so much.

It's getting pretty warm. I don't think I'll be wearing jackets on my walks for quite a while. Hopefully Dawn will be OK with the heat. She doesn't walk far now, so I think she'll be fine. I'm not so sure about myself. I was sweating when I returned home today and it's only April. I don't even want to think about what it's going to feel like in July. The Summer heat may be what ends up getting me back to the gym. There is a nice indoor running track at the gym and the building is air conditioned. Sounds pretty good right now.

Flash is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3792

I got my second of two Shingles shots today. I was a little late, but still well within the recommended time period. I was initially going to postpone this injection until things returned to normal, but now it appears that normal is out the window. My pharmacist gave me the usual warning about side effects. "I didn't have any side effects with the first vaccination," I said. "Well, you might this time," the pharmacist told me. So, what are the most common side effects you might experience after getting a Shingles shot? Fever and flu-like symptoms. Great. That's exactly what I need at this moment in time.

I mainly got the shot today because I have my annual physical exam tomorrow and the injection costs twice as much at a doctor's office. Why? Bureaucratic nonsense. The Shingles vaccine is classified as a prescription drug and most healthcare providers haven't set up billing systems to file claims through prescription drug plans. So if you end up getting vaccinated at your doctor's office, you are required to pay the full retail cost of the vaccine. Why isn't the Shingles vaccine classified as a necessary preventive service under Medicare Part B like flu and pneumonia vaccines? Your guess is as good as mine. Oh, well. The deed is done. Hopefully, my doctor won't turn me away if I have a fever tomorrow morning.

When the doctor's office called to remind me of my appointment tomorrow, they went over their new post-pandemic procedures. They weren't as bad as I expected. No doctors wearing spacesuits or anything drastic. I'll need to wear a mask and they take your temperature at the front door before you enter. That's it. No valet parking anymore either.

We got caught in the rain again while we were walking Dawn this morning. Timing these Spring storms is tricky. After looking at the weather radar, we thought we'd have plenty of time to take a shorter walk. Wrong. We got wet, but luckily we weren't that far from a picnic shelter when the rain started. We waited for about fifteen minutes for the storm to pass while we were inside the shelter and then continued our walk. I'm so glad that Dawn isn't afraid of storms. Thunder and lightning doesn't seem to bother her at all.

Since I've been successful with my first two computer upgrades, I asked Janet if she wanted me to fix her computer as well. She's been telling me that she can't go to several websites she needs. It turned out that she just had an ancient browser installed. The system was pretty old too, but I left that alone. The system seemed to be working fine. My rule of thumb is if it's not broke, don't fix it unless you are really, really bored. After installing a modern browser, everything seems to work fine.

I have to fast tomorrow since the doctor will be doing new bloodwork. With an early morning appointment I won't be able to enjoy my morning smoothie. Janet will probably have to walk Dawn while I'm gone. It's weird that even tiny changes in my personal schedule bother me. Most of the huge sweeping changes imposed by the pandemic I don't even notice. For the most part, my life in the slow lane is just the same.

Dixie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3651

I got my shingles shot today. Well, I got the first of two shots anyway. I really wasn't planning to do this now, but my pharmacy had the vaccine available and I knew I'd feel foolish if I went back next month and they were out of the stuff again. It's a mystery to me why the vaccine has been in short supply for over a year. It's somewhat of a mystery why I even need these shots. When I got the older Zostavax shingles vaccine a few years ago, that was supposed to be effective too. I'm pretty good about following doctor's orders though. I think it's one reason why I'm still reasonably healthy today.

On the way home from the pharmacy I picked up some more LED bulbs to replace the ones that are burning out. I think the reason these bulbs are failing is that I was a very early adopter of this technology. Today's bulbs are less expensive and last longer than the first generation bulbs I bought. Most of them even have a ten year guarantee now. This is the curse of the early adopter. I'm ofter the first to buy a new type of computer or camera. It's been irritating to realize that if I just had the patience to wait a few years, I could have gotten something that was much better, often for a lot less. I'm glad I wasn't the first to buy a flat screen TV. The early models used to cost over $5000. Now you can get something much better for a few hundred bucks.

I finally got my tree guy to commit to removing one of the remaining Oak trees in the back yard. I like the trees, but they are all getting very old and part of this tree has already fallen. I definitely don't want to have the rest of this large tree falling on my house or the neighbor's cars. I'm also thinking of relocating my driveway to the back yard. The traffic on the street in front of our house keeps getting worse and worse. During rush hour it is almost impossible to get out of the driveway. As luck would have it, the big Oak tree is right where a potential driveway might go. This is kind of an ambitious project, so it may never happen. A lot of my ambitious projects don't.

I'm continuing to watch Series Four of The Expanse. I still don't think the new series is as good as the shows first three years, but it's good enough to get me hooked. It's a good thing to watch during this holiday week. There isn't much else to do anyway.

I've noticed that some of the White Pelicans wintering at our lake are wearing little leg bands. You can see a band on the leg of the bird in today's picture. Who put these on and why? A little research revealed that ornithologists have been banding pelicans and other migratory birds for a long time to study their migration patterns. A lot of White Pelicans were initially banded at Marsh Lake, Minnesota between 1972 and 1998. Evidently Dallas is right on the migration route between Minnesota and Mexico. One question remains. How do you catch a pelican? These are large, powerful birds. They don't even want you to get close to them.

I started washing the windows on the house this afternoon. I'd like to show Janet that I made at least a minimal effort to straighten things up while she was gone. It's hard to do more though. The house has a lot more problems than I have energy.

Ziggy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3646

I went and signed up at my pharmacy for a shingles shot today. My doctor has been urging me to get this vaccine for a long time, but it has been in short supply. Usually, I get all shots and vaccinations at the doctor's office, but for some reason most people are getting the Shingrix vaccine at their local pharmacy. I think it has something to do with insurance payments. I've already had the older Zostavax shingles shot, but this new two part vaccine is supposed to be much better. I thought I'd get the shot today, but of course the process was much more complicated. It always is. I was given a long form to fill out. The pharmacy said they needed to get me approved by insurance first. When I'm approved, they'll order a dose of the vaccine and contact me to come in for the shot. After the first shot, I'll need to go get a second shot three months later. Ordinarily, I wouldn't bother with all this, but my doctor has told me three times that all older people should get this vaccination. OK. You win. I haven't filled out the form yet, but I will.

I also paid my property tax today. My tax rate is supposed to be capped because I'm over 65, but it seems to go up every year anyway. I think only the portion of the tax that goes to schools is capped. There are still a lot of other government agencies that want this money as well. We don't have a state income tax in Texas, but the government always finds a way to get the money it needs. I have a little house and am still surprised at how much I have to pay. People with large houses must really hate property taxes.

I think there's something wrong with the washing machine again. I'm hearing a new clunking sound during the final spin cycle. I guess I'd better call the appliance repairman. The tub on this front loader spins really fast and I'd hate for it to self destruct in the utility room.  The furnace and the water heater are in this same room. An exploding washing machine is definitely something you'd want to avoid.

Other than a brief trip to the pharmacy and post office, today was uneventful. At least the weather was nice. There was so little to do that I ended up vacuuming the house before I took my walk. I think I identified a new tree today. Was it a White Fringe tree or Swamp Privet? You know I'm bored when I try to identify ugly scrub trees in the park.

Janet has been getting pictures of Hank and Jelly Bean in their new homes. They both look really happy. It's amazing how quickly dogs adjust to having a real home. Now we just need to find homes for the rest of them.

Alvin is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3546

Today seemed busier than usual. The tree guy call me during breakfast and we tried to schedule some time for him to come remove the fallen tree in our yard. There are other trees that need to be dealt with as well, but first things first. No promises were made, but hopefully he will show up tomorrow. Before taking my morning walk, I took some September bills to the post office and picked up my mystery prescription from the pharmacy. It turns out that they switched all my prescriptions to auto-refill. Maybe I have reached the age where they just assumed I was becoming forgetful.

It was a little cooler this morning and there was a nice breeze, but at the end of my walk I was still hot and tired. I'm continuing to walk five miles in the morning now in case I don't have time for a second walk in the afternoon. Lately, I barely have time for the morning walk.

The reason I was trying to get thing finished up quickly this morning was that Janet and I were returning to the boarding kennel to spend some more time with the new Dalmatians. The kennel staff spends a lot of time with our dogs, but we thought that they could all use some additional time to become accustomed to being around people. A little socialization can work wonders. The dogs are already becoming familiar with their surroundings and were much more relaxed than when we visited them on Saturday.

Our rescue dogs tend to get adopted very quickly. While we were at the kennel today a woman arrived who had been looking for a companion for her female Dalmatian after her male passed away. One of the new dogs got along extremely well with her dog and since the lady was well known to Dalmatian Rescue, this lucky boy ended up finding his forever home as well. Two adoptions in three days is really pretty good.

We stayed to play with the remaining dogs who are still looking for a home. They are all getting to know us now and it is fun to watch them grow and develop. Most are already starting to learn some basic commands. Hank seems to be doing well. So far there has been no reoccurrence of his bloody stools. His lab reports haven't come back yet, so we are still waiting for a diagnosis.

By the time we returned home it was almost time for dinner. The day was basically done and it was too late to start any other projects. I never got around to submitting my article to Sky and Telescope, but I should have no problems doing this tomorrow. The only thing on my calendar is a routine checkup at the doctor's office. I imagine that the tree guy will want to come over during my appointment, but I'll worry about that later. It's hard to decide whether it's harder to reschedule tree removal or a doctor's appointment.

Traffic was terrible on the trip to and from the boarding kennel. I'm really missing the empty streets of Fort Davis. All the new dogs are on the website now if you're curious.

Chief is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3405 - Easter

It was a very quiet day. After breakfast Janet joined me on my morning walk. She's in better shape than I am these days and I had to walk a little faster to keep up. We both do a pretty good job of staying active. Janet just enjoys the activity more. I go to the gym once a week out of necessity. She goes almost every day for fun.

I was surprised that the park didn't seem very full today. The weather was beautiful, but there were very few egg hunts and family gatherings. Usually this place is a madhouse on Easter morning. Maybe traditions have changed. We saw lots of cyclists and joggers today, but there weren't a lot of children.

I finished clearing the water off the roof today. This is how I get my exercise. No spin class or yoga for me. Just drudgery. I'm glad it's getting warmer because the water evaporates faster. There really wasn't that much standing water today. Of course, I don't think it has rained since Thursday. I may have to continue this task indefinitely. The bids for replacing the roof are much more expensive than I anticipated. It's a shame that it is so complicated to add a slight slope to the roof so the water drains properly. The hole in the center of the roof where the atrium is doesn't help matters. Maybe I'll just continue patching things.

I watched a show on Easter Island this afternoon on PBS. Later, there was another segment on Sixty Minutes about Easter Island. This seemed like a strange coincidence to me until I remembered that today was Easter. Easter Island was discovered on Easter. Of course the people who live there discovered the island thousands of years earlier. It would have probably been better if Westerners had never discovered the place. The tiny island has become a tourist trap. It is a destination for cruise ships now.

Even though I rarely cook, I've always liked The Great British Baking Show. There was an Easter Special today about making traditional Easter pastries. I'd never have the patience to make my own puff pastry. Even making Hot Cross Buns seemed far too complicated for me. Nevertheless, I enjoy seeing these creations come together. Bread is a forbidden pleasure for me. I could live on bread and pasta, but my body wouldn't be happy. I do better if I avoid the stuff.

I looked up the theater where High Life is showing. Parking is bad and there are no early matinees. This probably gives me the excuse I need to just wait until the film is available on iTunes. It really doesn't take much to convince me to stay home. If a movie happens to be playing at Northpark, I might convince myself to go. Other theaters just aren't very appealing.

I was surprised that my pharmacy was open today. I could have waited until tomorrow to pick up my prescription, but like I said earlier it was a very slow day. Going to a strange theater may seem daunting, but I have no phobias about going to the pharmacy. I go there all the time.

Joe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3371

I hate it when I fail to notice that there are no more refills available on a prescription. You call in the refill and the pharmacist tells you that you'll need to get your doctor to renew the prescription. You call the doctor and he's always out of the office or busy with something else. Little things like these can eat up your entire day. I eventually got Dash's Plavix prescription renewed before he took his last pill, but I really need to remember to look at these pill bottles more carefully.

I finally got around to getting my faulty power supply fixed today. I'm methodical to a fault, so I keep doing the same things over and over again. The last time I needed to get these batteries replaced, they cost $60. That was two years ago. Today the same batteries cost $100. It's irritating how the price of ordinary things keeps going up and up. Sure, big screen TV's are cheaper than they used to be, but most things aren't. It would cost quite a bit more to replace my car with the same model I'm currently driving. Airfares are higher. Movies cost more. It would even cost more to replace my Apple Watch and Apple isn't known for raising prices.

Dash was super slow today. I couldn't tell whether he was having trouble walking, or if he just wanted to spend extra time smelling things. This should have been a good day for him, since the weather was perfect. Eventually we made it home this morning and then Dash was equally slow eating his breakfast. Every time I started my own breakfast, Dash would come out to his bowl and just stare at it. I finally realized that he wanted me to hand feed him. After Dash finished eating and pooping on the floor, he took a nap. I felt like taking a nap too, but I had my own breakfast to finish.

I spent a few hours this afternoon getting my taxes organized. I think I found everything my accountant needs, but I'll take another look tomorrow. Why do old people even need to pay taxes? You should be exempt after you reach the age of 70, just like you are exempt from jury duty. I still don't think it's fair that I'm forced to take a distribution from my IRA account now. I'd just as soon leave the money untouched until I really need it. These distributions are classified as ordinary income too. That sucks.

With any luck I can finish my tax preparation tomorrow and get that chore out of the way. Then I'll turn my attention to more important matters, like buying more rocks for the potholes in the driveway. I'm glad I never called the plumber to come out and search for a sewer leak. The puddle in the back yard has dried up. I'll probably never know what caused the puddle. Who knows. I might have just left a hose on for a week.

After seeing Apollo 11, I've discovered that there were other documentaries about the Apollo program. I started watching one called For All Mankind that was made in 1989 using some of the same NASA footage. Again, the things that really caught my attention were the details. The astronauts shaved in space using a Gillette razor and shaving cream. They brought bread with them and made sandwiches. They took a Sony walkman along for the ride with cassettes of their favorite music. Did I forget this stuff, or was I never even aware of it?

I forget a lot these days. Hopefully I won't forget to finish my taxes. I need to remember not to let my prescription expire either. Dash is resting with Janet now. I hope he gets a good night's sleep so he has lots of energy tomorrow for his walks. This nice weather won't last forever. We need to make the most of it.

Nick is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3253

I got a letter saying that I needed to change my pharmacy to continue getting the "preferred rate" on prescription drugs. This has happened before. I wonder what goes on behind the scenes at insurance and pharmaceutical companies. Prices and procedures are always changing with no explanation. Are generic drugs really the same as their brand name equivalent? Why do Dash's pills cost substantially less than mine? Often he takes the same pills that humans do. All I know is that healthcare has become way too complicated and is much more expensive than it needs to be. Jeez. I don't want to change my pharmacy for some stupid bureaucratic reason. I like my pharmacy. I need to check and see what this "preferred rate" really is. It may be nothing. The government always likes to scare you into doing things their way. I'm always willing to pay a little more to do things my way.

I was surprised to see that half the junk I took out to the curb yesterday is already gone. All the metal objects are gone. People drive by and scavenge the bulky trash piles. I guess they sell the metal at recycling plants. The city seems more than happy with this practice because there is less trash for them to pick up. The whole thing seems kind of sad to me, but what do I know. You know the old saying: one man's trash is another man's treasure. I did haul some pretty heavy metal objects to the curb yesterday. There was no copper though. It was only steel. Can you make money scavenging steel from trash piles? Like the true cost of prescription drugs, this is probably something I'll never know.

I had to leave the house for a meeting at noon today. Once again, it was hard to get ready in time. By the time I clean up all the poop, make the bed, walk Dash, eat breakfast, and take a shower, it is almost always noon. It's getting harder and harder to do more than one thing a day now. Today's meeting wasn't even necessary. My business bank wants to start selling me investments now that I'm retired. I keep telling them that I already have all the investment advice I need, but they are persistent.    I wonder why they don't understand that I want from them is the kind of service they were giving me fifteen years ago. Unfortunately, nobody wants to provide the type of service they offered fifteen years ago. That ship has sailed.

How do you prescribe bed rest for a dog? I'm having a hard time getting the cut on Dash's paw to heal, because he is always scraping the scab that is trying to form. He wears socks in the house now, but they are always falling off. The boots are too heavy to wear around the house, but the boots are what keep the socks on. At least the wound is trying to heal now. Dash just isn't a very good patient.

I woke up to find poop in the bed again last night. Dash didn't even wake up. Sometimes when the poop is firm I can pick it up with a poop bag without leaving a stain. I did this last night and just went back to bed without waking anyone up. I did wash the bedspread in the morning, but it still looked pretty clean. I don't know if I'm becoming better at cleanup or just more casual about poop. When stuff like this happens every night, it's hard to get very upset about it.

I've got my eye exam tomorrow. I think my eyes are still pretty good, but I have a tendency to rationalize my body's slow deterioration. I guess it wouldn't be the end of the world if I needed to wear glasses. I just hope I never have macular degeneration like my Dad.

Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3184

Dash needed a lot of attention today. He got me up several times during the night and then when morning arrived he was slow and listless. We got him suited up for his morning walk, but in less than half a block, he turned around and wanted to go home. He wouldn't eat his breakfast and immediately went to sleep. I always worry that his heart condition has become worse when this happens, but he was breathing normally and wasn't coughing. I figured he would eat later in the day when he was hungry and I went ahead and fixed my own breakfast.

About 11 AM, Dash wandered out to the kitchen and started to eat. He didn't finish everything before he went back to his bed, but it was a start. Early this afternoon when I was getting ready to take a shower, Dash got up and headed toward the back door. I could tell he was finally ready for his walk, so I quickly got dressed, put his rubber boots on, and off we went. It was a little too warm, since it was the middle of the day, but Dash was determined.

Not surprisingly, he was pretty tired when we returned to the house and promptly went to sleep again.   For the rest of the day, every time I got ready to do something, he appeared by my side and let me know that his needs were more important. Dash has perfected the art of being needy. He knows I will never ignore him. I want him to eat, so I always feed him something when he heads for the kitchen. I don't want him to poop in the house, so I make sure to take him outside at regular intervals. He likes me to lie on the bed with him. The only way I can get anything done is to join him on the bed for a few minutes until he falls asleep and then quietly get up and go about my business.

The only thing on the agenda today was picking up a prescription at the pharmacy. I asked the pharmacist if they had the new shingles shot. My doctor seems to think I need this, even though I've already had the old shingles shot. For some odd reason Medicare pays for the shot if you get it at a pharmacy and won't pay anything if you get the shot at your doctor's office. It's exactly the same vaccine, but two different sets of rules. At the pharmacy, the shot is considered prescription medicine and is covered by Medicare Part D. In a doctor's office, the shot is considered a medical procedure that has not been approved yet. Nothing is covered at all. One more example of our bureaucracy at work.

I was trying to explain to Janet how strange Dash had been acting today, but he was completely normal by the time she came home from work. He eagerly ate his dinner, took a nice sunset walk, and then settled down with Janet to watch Netflix movies. I have no idea how he's going to be feeling tomorrow. Every day is a new day.

I didn't make the cut to cover the Mars landing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. I've applied for these NASA events twice before and was accepted both times. I guess my social media status has diminished. When I initially applied to cover a launch several years ago my Klout score was still pretty high and I had a ton of Twitter followers. Now, Klout doesn't even exist and I rarely even look at Twitter. Maybe NASA has finally figured out that I just write about my dog. I am on a waitlist in case some of the other participants cancel, but that rarely happens. When November arrives, I'll probably be glad I stayed home anyway. Lord knows how well Dash will be doing then.

Marcie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 3124

Friday the 13th. arrived a day late. Dash woke me up around 5 AM heading for the back door. He didn't make it and pooped all over the living room. After breakfast, he drank too much water, started coughing, and ended up throwing up everything he ate on the bedroom carpet. We were out of Nature's Miracle, so I went to the pet store to get some more to help clean up the mess. The bottle leaked in my car. That was enough bad luck for me, but later when I went to get groceries, the lids to both the blueberry and strawberry containers popped open, spilling the fruit all over the back of my car. All this happened before noon. The afternoon was actually pretty normal.

I don't think it was the vestibular disease that made Dash throw up today. He wasn't disoriented and didn't seem to have vertigo. He just burped and all his food came out. Accidents like these are becoming our new normal. Often, I will take him outside to pee and after wandering around aimlessly for a while, he will come back inside and immediately poop on the floor. Actually, he did this right after dinner this evening, making it two for two in the indoor pooping sweepstakes. It's hard to be mad at the little guy. He's trying his best to be a normal dog. Age is a bitch though. The body just doesn't cooperate anymore.

I definitely sympathize with Dash. Age hasn't been kind to me either. I went up on the roof this afternoon to prepare things for the roofers and my shoulder hurt for the rest of the day. An hour of pushing water off the roof with a push broom was all it took. I was going to mow the grass today as well, but I'll save that for another time. Enough is enough.

We must have got a lot or rain last week. The water level in the lake was about two feet lower than usual earlier this month, but this morning I noticed that everything was back to normal. Flowers have started blooming again as well. I spotted some Jimson Weed this morning. The blooms are pretty, but they are poisonous. I never want to let the dogs get too close to these plants.

I went to pick up a prescription yesterday and the pharmacist told me it wouldn't be ready until Monday. This morning, the same pharmacy called me and asked why I hadn't picked the pills up yet. Go figure. I suspect the pills were actually there yesterday but just didn't show up in the computer. It's getting harder to have faith in the pharmacy. Like anyone else these days, they make mistakes from time to time. I'm always looking up pills on Pill Finder to make sure I'm taking the right drug. Same thing for Dash. There are so many generic versions of most drugs that the pills often don't look the same. Dash had some odd looking Enalapril today. The pills were oval instead of round. They turned out to be the correct medication. These just happened to come from a different manufacturer.

I wish life hadn't become so complex. I didn't used to look up all my meds on Pill Finder to make sure I wasn't taking something that was going to kill me. I didn't used to look suspiciously at the Caller ID every time the phone rang. I remember when it was still OK to click on the links that appeared in e-mail messages and open your door when someone knocked. Not anymore.

I've decided that the best thing to do in a dystopian world is mind your own business. There is craziness everywhere, but you don't have to go looking for it. I try to walk Dash when the park is empty. I do most of my shopping when other people are at work. I never talk about politics with anyone.

Dolly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 3087

I'm very disappointed. The blood clot in Dash's heart has returned. Actually, the doctors think that this is a brand new clot and aren't entirely sure why it has appeared. The current theory is that Dash has a heart valve problem that causes a vortex around the valve that lets clots start to form. We've known that Dash has had a heart murmur for a long time. It's possible that he has had periodic clots for a long time as well. There's not really much we can do. Since one clot actually did dissolve over time, we're hoping that this new one will as well. I was expecting a more favorable outcome after the good news we heard on our last visit. It wasn't meant to be.

Dash's early morning vet appointment caused the day to get off to a slow start. By the time we were ready for our morning walk, the sun was already high in the sky and Dash quickly got overheated. He just can't take the heat anymore. I cut our walk short and returned home. This was fine with Dash. I think the vet visit was all the activity he wanted to deal with today anyway.

The grass I thought was dead yesterday looks even worse today. I'll give it a little time, but I think I'm going to have to complain. I hear thunder in the distance, so maybe a good soaking rain will help. It won't help the roof, but it just might help to revive this pitiful looking St. Augustine grass.

I photographed some more art work for the auction house today. I'm still not quite sure what they're looking for. Some items they get excited about and others not so much. I still think that this is a good time to begin to simplify my life. I just wish it wasn't so complicated to simplify.

My pharmacy has been bugging me to pick up some prescriptions. An automated message calls me every day to remind me to pick these things up. I finally did go to the pharmacy today and the pharmacist told me that it was too early to get the pills. WTF? "Medicare won't pay for these renewals until June 30," he said. "Well, why to you keep asking me to pick them up," I asked? The pharmacist had no answer. We both knew that this was just one more example of a healthcare system out of control. I'm not out of pills anyway. I'll just go back and pick these up at the end of the month.

Dash currently is shivering under my desk again. There isn't a lot of rain, but there sure is a lot of wind and thunder. I don't know what Dash is worried about, but I'm worried about losing power. We definitely have had a lot of rain in the past several weeks. Every time I get ready to tell the roofer that there's going to be a long enough stretch of dry weather to finish the repairs, another storm pops up.

I forgot to record the new episode of The Expanse last night. It just goes to show that I can't even remember things that I want to remember. No great loss. I'm sure I can find this episode online anyway. If I had a little more patience, I could just buy the entire season on iTunes and avoid all the commercials.

The new syndication service that replaces NetworkedBlogs actually works. Yay. Truthfully, I wasn't expecting this. I'm always pleasantly surprised when something works.

Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 3010

Dash was in a weird mood today. We'd only walked about half a block this morning when he froze and wouldn't go any further. Although the street was completely empty, he seemed panicked for some reason and was trying to run back to the house. We tried again a couple of hours later and Dash refused to leave the yard. Inexplicably, around 11:30 AM, he decided he was ready to walk and headed toward the park as if nothing had happened. We took a nice long walk without incident and I never could figure out why he balked at the idea earlier.

When I tried to renew Dash's Plavix prescription this morning the pharmacist told me that the prescription had expired. It took forever to get the prescription renewed. The vet would tell me that they had called the prescription in and then the pharmacy would tell me that the hadn't received anything. I kept asking the vet to try again but the prescription wasn't going through. I think everyone was getting annoyed with me, but I really needed to get the Plavix today. Eventually, the vet and the pharmacist connected and I was able to go pick up Dash's meds. I had to pick up something for myself as well. The only problem with my prescription was that it was too expensive.

I haven't used my large format printer in several months, so I was apprehensive about turning it on this morning. I didn't have anything to print today, but knew that the longer I waited, the harder it was going to be to unclog the lines. As I expected, the printer was hopelessly clogged. I used up two of the eight ink cartridges running the cleaning program and was still not able to clear the lines. Reluctantly, I called my supplier and ordered some more ink. I might as well add the printer to all the other broken stuff that needs to be fixed.

There seems to be a perfect storm of bad news that is sending the market into a tailspin. I miss the days when people bought and sold stock based on whether a company was making money or not. Now market moves are almost entirely fueled by fear and greed. Why are people so upset about Facebook? Facebook's entire business model is based on selling our information. We are the product and advertisers are the customers. It's always been that way. It's pretty easy to opt out of just about everything on Facebook too. People are just too lazy to go to their settings page. I don't understand the panic about tariffs either. There is not going to be a trade war with China. Both countries depend on trade with each other. Tariffs are silly and ineffectual, but most modern presidents have imposed them at one time or another. I don't know why rising interest rates would cause a panic either. We actually need interest rates to go up a little. The Fed has kept interest rates artificially low for way too long. Why can't people act rationally about money? I guess that's too much to expect in a world ruled by emotions.

It was a slow day so I did an extensive search of nearby breakfast restaurants. I must have looked at two dozen menus and found nothing that appealed to me. Why is this so hard? I don't think I'm that picky. I've enjoyed a perfect breakfast numerous times. It just seems difficult to find this illusive meal again.

Truthfully, everything seems somewhat illusive these days. I don't know whether it's me or the world in general, but I'm beginning to feel like a stranger in a strange land. I think it would take a time machine to return me to a place that felt familiar.

Brooke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2977

Dash didn't want to go outside when we woke up this morning. He shouldn't have been so indecisive. Ten minutes later it was pouring rain. The rain didn't last long, but there was plenty of time for Dash to get soaking wet. We dried him off and ate our breakfast. The morning walk could wait until later.

According to the weather forecast, this is the beginning of an entire week of wet weather. I'd better hurry up and find something I want to watch on Netflix. Without any deadlines to keep me busy, I'm going to have a severe case of cabin fever.

Dash did get his walk when the rain stopped and then I got started on my Saturday errands. I picked up some Phenobarbital for Dash and got Carvedilol for myself. For some reason the pharmacist wouldn't renew the Carvedilol prescription until today, even though I ran out of pills on Thursday. Medicare is very inflexible. It didn't matter that I didn't have any pills. What mattered is that they thought I should still have some. Once again, veterinary medicine is so much more straightforward.

I still haven't bought a new refrigerator. The big President's Day sales are a joke. Not a single refrigerator I've looked at during the past three months has seen a price reduction. They're all exactly the same price as they were before. I'm really tempted to buy a supply of spare parts and just attempt to repair my current refrigerator myself if it breaks again.

When I went to the grocery store today I noticed that strawberries have gone down in price. I wonder why fresh fruit prices fluctuate so wildly? There always seems to be a steady supply of strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries, but the price is always different.  Fruit that grows on vines seems to be available year round, but fruit that grows on trees is very seasonal. I'll be glad when peaches are available again. My morning smoothies always taste better with peaches.

I should have cleaned the house this afternoon, but I didn't feel like it. I must not have felt like doing much, because very little was accomplished today. Some days are like this. At the end of the day you wonder if anything happened at all. At least Dash got a nice afternoon walk before the weather turned cold again.

I finally got the nerve to look at my brokerage account. I'm still down quite a bit, but last week's mini-rebound certainly helped. I've learned over the years that's it's best to ignore a sell off. When you panic, you always end up selling too late and then buying again too soon. I'm hoping that sanity will return to the market soon. The economy is still good.

The United States doesn't seem to be doing so well in the Olympics. I may be wrong, but didn't we used to win more medals?  The Japanese own figure skating now. I watched Yuzuru Hanyu win the gold while I was going to sleep last night and he was amazing. I guess it's been a long time since Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding.

It's time to go the the gym again tomorrow. I've really got to start going twice a week.

Lexi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2974 - Valentines Day

I don't understand AT&T at all. A couple of guys came out to bury the fiber optic line today. After they'd been working for a while I went outside to see what they were doing. Much to my surprise, they were laying an entirely new cable. "Why aren't you burying the cable that is already hooked up," I asked? "That's just the temporary cable," one of the guys said. They didn't hear me when I mentioned that both cables were exactly the same. "Aren't you going to hook the new cable up," I asked when they were finished. "We don't know how," one guy told me. The other guy said that someone else would come back later in the week to connect the new cable they just buried. Jeez. That's three trips for one cable. I don't get it.

I ended up getting cupcakes after all. I'm superstitious and I hate to mess with tradition on symbolic holidays. As usual, there was a long line at Sprinkles. Every single woman in line was texting someone or checking their Facebook page. None of the men were. This probably means something, but I'm not going to hazard a guess.

I went to pick up a prescription on the way home from the cupcake store. "Medicare won't let us fill this prescription until Saturday," the pharmacist said. "But I'm out of pills," I told her. "You shouldn't be,"  the pharmacist told me. I couldn't convince her that I only had two pills left. I think they miscounted the number of pills they gave me 90 days ago, but there is no way of proving it. Whatever. I guess I'll just skip a few days.

I did get Dash's prescription filled. It's always easier to deal with veterinarians than with my own doctors. I often wonder why veterinary medicine is so much more straightforward and affordable than human medicine. Probably it's because insurance isn't involved. Once insurance companies enter the picture, prices tend to skyrocket.

I was going to pick up something for dinner at Central Market, but I couldn't find a parking place anywhere. Not only were all the spaces filled, there were dozens of car circling around waiting for people to leave. One long line was enough for today, so I gave up and went home. There wasn't much in the refrigerator, but I made some pasta with a leftover meatball, some olive oil, and a piece of cheese. My creation was surprisingly good. It's too bad I don't like to cook because my own meals are almost always better than the take out dinners I live on during the week.

I've started watching the Olympics because it's getting hard to avoid it on TV. Curling is surprisingly interesting. It took me a while to figure out what the brooms and all the sweeping was about. Did the sweeping make the rock go faster or slower?  Apparently, sweeping the ice decreases friction and makes the rock go faster and straighter. The game is kind of like shuffleboard, but involves a lot of finesse and strategy. Admittedly, curling is not as exciting as watching Shaun White do back-to-back 1440s, but it's an intriguingly pleasant game I can watch while I'm eating dinner.

I wonder when the fiber optic technician is going to return. I never dreamed this installation would be so complicated. A fiber optic connection is very fast, but I'm not even sure I need fast anymore. I rarely upload or download huge files anymore. I'd rather have rock solid reliability than speed. I was actually happy enough with the 2800 baud modem I used back in the 1990's.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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