Day 3851

Life has settled into a predictable routine. We get up early and walk for two hours. I make the bed when we return home. I watch TV while slowly eating breakfast for another two hours. I turn the computer on and check my mail and watch a few YouTube videos. Then I wonder what I'm going to do for the rest of the day.

The coronavirus has changed everything. There's not much point in making travel plans. Where would you go? I'm not sure when I'll ever feel comfortable getting on a plane again. Living in a world where you have to act like everything is radioactive has taken the fun out of the simplest things like going to an afternoon movie or eating in a neighborhood restaurant. The issue isn't about masks or no masks. It's more basic than that. We're living in a world where everyone is waiting for the other shoe to drop. Politics has spoiled a lot of old friendships as well. It's getting ugly out there. Why even bother talking with someone if you are just going to end up getting in an argument? Let's face it. You're not going to convert anyone these days. The lines have already been drawn in the sand.

I was pleased last year that I had managed to find two things that I really enjoyed doing. I liked spending time at large observatories and attending launches at Kennedy Space Center. My favorite observatory is closed for the foreseeable future and you'd have to be crazy to go to Florida right now. I'm not even comfortable taking my telescope down into the park at night because Dallas has become a dangerous place after dark. The longer the pandemic continues the more trapped you begin to feel.

There is no rain in the immediate future, so I guess it's time for me to go up on the roof again. It's probably time to mow the grass again as well. It's amazing how quickly the grass grows when it rains in the Summer. I've got to do outdoor chores early these days and it's usually already too hot by the time I've finished breakfast. The heat provides a good excuse for waiting until tomorrow, but eventually all these things need to be done. I'm not sure I'll get much done tomorrow because Saturday is always grocery day. One chore a day is plenty.

I watched an interesting tutorial video on astrophotography this afternoon. I learned a lot, including the fact that it is virtually impossible to take these kind of photos in a city. The guy who put the video together lives on a small remote island. No wonder his pictures looked so good. I've been thinking about getting up early to take pictures of the comet Neowise, but I can't even find a place nearby with a clear view of the eastern horizon. Maybe I'll have better luck when the comet begins appearing in the evening sky.

It's going to be a long Summer. Fall is probably a lost cause as well. Let's just hope that when Winter eventually arrives, the world will be a better place.

Keller is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3768

And just like that, everybody was wearing a mask. I'm amazed at how quickly we're all adapting to this new world. Life goes on. I made my weekly supply run today. Doggie poop bags are an easy way to avoid touching the pump handle when you get gas. It's been almost a month since I filled my tank. I still only added three gallons. I always bring a few Clorox wipes with me to wipe down the steering wheel and door handle after I finish touching grocery cart handles and all the packages I put into my cart. I'm adapting. So is everyone else.

I like the Sam's Club where I shop. The customers are mostly Hispanic small business owners. I'm a business member myself. There are no lines and almost 100% of the shoppers wear a mask. The store does a good job of resupplying all the essential things and customers do an equally good job of staying out of each other's way. If you use the shopping app on your phone like I do, you don't even have to stand in a check out line. You just quickly pick up your stuff and go home. Unlike some of the affluent suburbs where people are standing in long lines at trendy grocery stores and freaking out, things seem more or less normal here. It's almost as if everyone realizes that it's just another fucked-up day.

I got a letter from NASA today. It was addressed to members of the press and said that they were still working out the details for press coverage of the Crew Dragon launch on May 27. A limited number of photographers and reporters will be allowed at the launch site, but they will have to follow a strict set of social distancing rules that are still being developed. There were hundreds of reporters at the Solar Orbiter launch. I imagine that the list will be much smaller for this one. I probably won't know if I make the cut for several weeks but was very happy that NASA officially considers me a member of the press now. I'm just guessing but I actually might have a better chance of covering the launch than I think. The London magazine I represent probably won't be able to send anyone from the UK this time. I'm hoping they like my writing enough to assign me the lead story.

Believe it or not, I managed to sell one of my trains in the middle of a plague. My dealer in Kentucky said his store is closed like most small business and he is trying to sell his inventory on eBay now. He hoped I wasn't mad that the collectible train model sold for less than he thought it was worth. I'm just happy that the guy is still managing to stay in business. I told him that this wasn't the time to complain about prices and that I hoped his store will reopen soon. It's really a cool little store. I've been a small business owner for a long, long time and I really feel sorry for those who are trying everything they can to keep their dreams alive. The nationwide lockdown has decimated small business.

As many of you know, I could care less about politics. It makes me sad though that not even a plague of biblical proportions could bring our country together. The divide is bigger than it ever was. My Democratic friends would probably be dancing in the streets if the pandemic only killed Republicans. My Republican friends are all out buying guns and ammo. I'd like to think I'm more pragmatic. When this is all over I might go take an EMT course and get certified. It would be nice to be able to handle minor medical emergencies myself. When the trees in the backyard come down, I might consider putting solar panels on the roof. I need to build up my stock photo library to provide some sort of a passive income. You can't trust the stock market. I've always been resourceful and self-reliant but probably this experience will make me even more so in the future. I've seen nothing so far that increases my faith in government or makes me want to open the window and start singing "We are the World..."

Stay strong my friends. This is one fucked up mess, but at least we've still got dogs. Dogs rule.

Mattie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3377

I've never seen someone go from hero to goat so quickly. Just a few days ago Robert Mueller was the knight in shining armor who was going to deliver Trump's head on a platter. Today, he did the unthinkable to some on the left: he didn't follow their game plan. Why were these guys so convinced that Mueller was going to bring the president down? If this was the honest investigation that they claimed they wanted, the outcome was never predetermined. Hey, it's time to move on guys. It didn't turn out the way you wanted. If you want to win the next election you need to start telling people what you like. We already know what you hate.

I find politics humorous and sad. It seldom works when people allow it to become their religion. The Democrats could probably win in 2020 with a ticket of Biden and Beto. People like these guys. The progressives will never nominate an old white guy though. How could they? They've boxed themselves into a corner on that one. I predict that they'll pick someone ideologically pure, culturally diverse, and too weird for the country. They'll end up losing again. Don't say I didn't warn you.

I don't think about politics at the gym. I wonder about the other people on the floor. Everybody at my gym is pretty old, but some are amazingly fit. I'm impressed at what they are able to do. I like to think that these people have more discipline than the others. They were probably the ones who always came to work early and left late. The fat people on the floor are probably nicer human beings, but I'm still impressed by the folks with the most determination.

Dash is certainly determined. Even though he has taken a turn for the worse, he still wants his daily walks. I've tried to cut the distance we walk in half to prevent him from becoming too exhausted. So far, this seems to be working. It takes forever to go even a short distance these days, but that's OK. I certainly don't have anything better to do. I'm a little worried that if something happened while we were out in the park, I wouldn't be able to get him to a vet in time. A walk is a simple thing, but occasionally I feel like I'm balancing on a tightrope without a safety net.

Now that Dash is sleeping more, his schedules have changed. We were worried for a while that he was losing interest in eating again, and then we realized that he wanted to eat his dinner at midnight. Often we have to get out of bed to feed him. It works though. Once he's had his midnight snack, he sleeps like a baby. We've gone several days without Dash pooping in the bed. He's been waking up and going outside. This is probably just a happy accident, but it is appreciated. I have no idea what will happen tonight. Life has become very unpredictable.

Spring has definitely arrived because the insects are back. I see long lines of small sweet ants climbing up the exterior bricks, looking for a way inside. They always find a way inside. Next month I'll see them in the bathroom. The Crane Flies are the worst. They congregate by the back door at night and every time I let Dash out, a dozen of them get in the house. Crane Flies are slow and easy to catch, but they are still irritating. I see one flying around the office now.

Chelsey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3214

Jeez. I'm getting so tired of politics. I feel like yelling "You guys are doing it all wrong" to both political parties. I'm sure nobody will listen but I'm convinced that Democrats would do a lot better if they abandoned their confrontational, in-your-face tactics and the Republicans would do better if they completely rethought their stance on immigration.

The other day I heard a Democratic friend say that they thought it was important to get out the vote, but they were afraid they might actually be encouraging someone to vote Republican. Bingo. Every time an angry mob screams obscenities from a Senate Gallery or chases a Senator out of a restaurant, you risk encouraging a non voter to get off the couch and vote against you. I don't think the politics of rage actually works. A lot of people have enough problems in their lives already. The last thing they want is a political circus. These undecided people may not march or put up yard signs, but when you make them feel like it is unsafe to go out to dinner or even enjoy a movie they will vote against you. If you block traffic with a protest on their way to work, they will definitely vote against you.

If the Democrats need to become less confrontational, the Republicans need to quit antagonizing Hispanics. What is wrong with you guys? Hispanics are practically begging to become Republicans. These guys are entrepreneurial. They work hard and tend to form businesses at a much higher rate than the general population. They still believe in the nuclear family and their kids tend to grow up with both a Mom and a Dad. They're even more religious than the general population. Isn't this the demographic you've been looking for? Republicans should be working to reform immigration laws and make it easier for Hispanics to become citizens. Quit being stupid. Welcome these guys into the fold and you could stay in power forever.

I can't quite put my finger on what has made our political system so crazy, but I think social media has a lot to do with it. Remember the Arab Spring? Everyone thought that sharing things in real time on Facebook and Twitter was going to bring democracy to the middle east. It brought total chaos instead. Libya, Egypt, and Syria crumbled. Maybe we're next. I think we need to bring back the smoke filled room where politicians can create practical, workable compromises without the scrutiny of social media pressure and a 24-hour news cycle. Winston Churchill, John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and many others would never have survived in a world dominated by silly memes and Instagram pictures.

I'm discouraged by politics, but I was encouraged that the market rallied today. Maybe this week's free fall was just a normal market correction or perhaps the selloff was an investor temper tantrum about interest rates. All I know is that I'm too old to weather another major crash.

I'm probably too old to deal with my perpetual roof problems as well. I'm almost certain the roof will leak again tonight. We had a horrendous, heavy rainfall this afternoon. That's usually all it takes. I've called the roofers several times but I'm sure that there are leaks all over town. I wouldn't be surprised if the roofers were planning to move to Florida for six months. I hear that there's lots of roof work in the Panhandle.

Dash seemed like a normal dog today. I don't know how the little guy does it. He's like the Energizer Bunny of Dalmatians.

Kuuipo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3207

There is no truth anymore. It's gone. All we have left are carefully constructed narratives. Keep in mind that a narrative is just a story. I say this as a person who has spent most of his adult life constructing narratives. I'm an advertising writer. There's a good chance that I might have convinced you to buy something you didn't really need. I might of even convinced you to believe a lie. That'a what a narrative is meant to do. It's really not that hard to influence someone when you can engage their emotions.

This is why I'm deeply distrustful of politics. Politicians have become addicted to narratives, mostly because they are much more effective than looking at things objectively. I have to give the Democrats credit. They are great at creating a good narrative. The threat from Russia is genius. Not a day goes by without hearing about Russian meddling. Hmm. I can't recall the Democrats caring about Russia one way or the other since the days of John Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Democrats knew that there were still a few old school Russia Hawks in the Republican Party though, and if they could peel away a couple of them, their opponents might lose their slim majority and legislation could be blocked. It worked. Warhawks like John McCain became allies instead of adversaries and it was McCain who ended up casting the critical vote to save Obamacare.

The Republicans seem to like narratives as well. The need for a border wall is a narrative calculated to appeal to people's emotions. If you really want to stop people from crossing a border, a wall probably isn't the most effective way to do things. A wall is basically useless, but it is a powerful symbol. It got a president elected.

I wish that politicians didn't feel the need to create stories that are meant to fan the flames of human emotion. We are already a divided country and these narratives are just making a bad situation worse. A narrative that is gaining traction now is the idea that under certain circumstances it is perfectly OK to say that someone is guilty until they can prove their innocence. It doesn't seem to bother the people who created this narrative that this is exactly what happened during the Salem Witch Trials. They knew that when you combine a huge voting block with an explosively emotional issue and stir vigorously, you have a witches brew that just might provide you with the kryptonite you need.

I find it a bit distressing that many of my friends seem all too willing to burn the witch. When you abandon due process and have politicians who actively condone mob rule under the guise of resistance, all is lost. What ever happened to the preponderance of evidence standards that have guided our judicial system for so many years? Have we really returned to the McCarthy era or the dark days of the Salem Witch Trials? I thought about these things as Dash and I walked by the pathetic little circus that seems to be still taking place in the park. That's what we've got right now in this country: a pathetic circus.

Lightning is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3201

The unicorn has never been my spirit animal. I have always been a pragmatic, unemotional, and slightly cynical observer of life. When those "Black Lives Matter" and "Blue Lives Matter" memes were popular, the only thing that resonated with me was an icy cold picture of the Andromeda Galaxy with the inscription "No Lives Matter." We humans think we are way too important. In the grand scheme of things, we are just a single grain of sand on the beach.

I'm convinced that if you want to see what the future is like, all you have to do is look at the past. History repeats itself, over and over again. If you want to stop global warming, you have to realize that it is caused by too many people on the planet. Solar power and carbon credits aren't going to make any difference unless you can reduce the population. It was already been calculated that it will take 1.5 earths to sustain our present population indefinitely. Doesn't that bother anybody? We only have one earth. By the same token, if you want to change people's behavior, you have to understand history. If humanity has acted in a certain way since the dawn of time, things are not likely to change overnight. The pendulum always swings both ways. If you push too hard, the pendulum swings in the other direction and attempts to restore equilibrium.

This is why today's political circus is troubling. In a raw grab for political power, some politicians pushed too hard. They were willing to ignore all laws of fairness and decency and destroy two good people's lives in an effort to get what they wanted. Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh have both become roadkill. Probably anyone who has ever known either of them is terrified that they will become roadkill too if this travesty continues.

If you upend the simple things that have kept civil society from imploding, you've got to expect pushback. Our country was built on the idea that all people are innocent until proven guilty. An assumption that someone is guilty until they can prove their innocence is going to get pushback. If you are expected to believe someone just because they say so, it is going to get pushback. I wonder if the women who want to destroy the patriarchy have really thought this through. If they succeed, 50% of the world's population will still be men.

Can you really change all of recorded history? Aristotle thought women should be slaves. Napoleon Bonaparte thought the same thing. Confucius, that wise sage who said "do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself' also said that "one hundred women are not worth a single testicle." Gautama Buddha, the guy who started Buddhism thought that women were too stupid to become Buddhists. Think that modern men have become more enlightened? Think again. Norman Mailer, one of our most celebrated writers famously said "a little bit of rape is good for a man's soul." Kurt Vonnegut, whose novels are still loved by many young women said that "educating a beautiful woman is like pouring honey into a fine Swiss watch: everything stops." It is well known that Picasso was very abusive to women. I could go on and on.

Are you really going to change all this by destroying a distinguished public servant with a loving family who has led an exemplary life? If it is fair game to go all the way back to someone's high school yearbook in an attempt to create a new narrative, where does it stop? Will we be looking at middle school behavior next? Will an eight year old kid who slapped another kid on the butt find their life ruined forty years later. This is how real fascism starts.

If you woke up this morning and discovered that a family member,  a coworker, or a friend you have known your entire life was actually on the other side, don't be surprised. A line has been drawn in the sand. Some of your best friends are now on the other side.

Let's hope that men don't ever decide that this issue is more important than football. If that ever happens, all bets are off. I don't know where this ends, but if you really want to change things, you've got to be fair. If you want to chase unicorns and change the world, I wish you well. History says it is going to be difficult. If your motive is retribution and payback, it will not end as you expect. I always tell people to be careful what you wish for and to beware of unintended consequences. They never listen.

SweetPea is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3199

Wow. What an ugly day. The hearings were hard to avoid. They were on every channel for the entire day. Dr. Ford was credible and her supporters will believe her completely. Judge Kavanaugh was credible and his supporters will continue to stand by him. I don't think a single opinion was changed today. I do think the country was harmed. Weaponizing sex for political purposes will have repercussions for decades. Turning our justice system upside down and deciding that a person is guilty until proven innocent is breathtaking and almost Stalinist in nature. Both of these tactics were terrible ideas. You may be passionate about who sits on the Supreme Court and think that the end justifies the means. If you feel this way, you may be forgetting about the law of unintended consequences. In the long run, what happened today will not be good for women. It will not be good for men. And it will not be good for the country.

I felt sad watching today's hearings. I kept hoping that sanity would prevail, but it never did. Lines have been drawn in the sand and I don't think anyone is giving an inch. We didn't use to be this kind of a country. I really think we are headed toward a second civil war. It's so sad. When we believed that we were a great melting pot and shared a common set of values, the United States was the greatest country in the world. All that is gone now. I think the future belongs to China. The Chinese don't have to deal with the chaos and discord we witnessed today. Democracy is messy. Perhaps it is too messy to succeed in a world where politicians see no problem in unleashing flash mobs to harass their opponents in restaurants.

No wonder that so many people on Facebook say they prefer dogs to people. People are horrible. The world would be a better place if people spent more time taking their dogs on long walks and less time letting something they saw on their phone work them into a frenzy. It's not going to happen though. Social media is a Pandora's Box that can't be closed.

I spent too much time watching TV today, but there was still poop to clean up and pills to administer. Dash fell again today and I had to put his harness on while he was struggling on the floor so I could lift him up. Dash panics when he can't get up and it's difficult to help him. I think it's time for him to wear his special harness full time. He's still eating well though and enjoys his slow walks. I wish I could make him younger. I wish I could make myself younger as well. Truthfully, I wouldn't want to be young in today's world. I'd rather take a time machine back to 1950 instead.

I just finished taking this week's trash out to the curb. I can't decide whether to go back to the hotel for breakfast. The food and atmosphere are great, but the menu is very limited. I think I've already tried everything. This week went quickly, but apparently not quickly enough. What a mess. I'd love to see sanity return next week, but I'm not counting on it.

Sophie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3030

I started to get ready for Summer today. I called the landscaper to get the backyard looking decent again. I called the tree trimmer to get some dead limbs removed from the Oak trees. I called the roofing supply company to see if I could buy the elastomer coating in a small enough size that I could lift the can up to the roof by myself. I found the battery for the lawn mower and installed it to see if it would still take a charge. Nothing was actually resolved today, but at least I made a start.

I was pleased that I managed to find an inexpensive used MIDI keyboard controller that does everything I need it to do. Since this keyboard cost me less than a single one gallon can of the elastomer roof coating, I thought I got quite a deal. Best of all, when I got home from the music store and plugged the keyboard into my computer, everything worked perfectly.

I wish everything worked perfectly with Dash today. He was moody again and refused to take his afternoon walk. It was a beautiful day and Dash wasn't having any vestibular issues, so I don't know what was wrong. I know that Dash was feeling OK, because when Janet came home just before sunset, he abruptly changed his mind and wanted her to walk him. He likes it when we all walk together. It's all too complicated for me. On Monday and Tuesday, Dash was eager to take his afternoon walk. I guess I'll never know why today was different.

I feel kind of sorry for Mark Zuckerberg. Every time I turned on the TV today, there he was, testifying in front of a bunch of old people who basically knew nothing about technology. Why is everyone so outraged about privacy? There is no privacy anymore. Every time you go to the grocery store, fill your car with gas, or pick up a prescription at the pharmacy, you are being tracked. Surveillance cameras are everywhere and you'd be horrified if you knew how much Apple and Google already know about you. Zuckerberg is just a geek who invented a cool app that everyone became addicted to. It's your fault that he became a billionaire. Jeez. Nobody is forcing you to use Facebook. If you really value your privacy, stay offline altogether. If Cambridge Analytica sold your information to Target or Walmart nobody would care. This is all about politics. A wide variety of companies have been selling your information for decades and congress never even noticed.

Even more puzzling to me than the Facebook debacle is the situation in Syria. The only thing the Democrats and Republicans seems to agree on is that they would both like to bomb somebody. Why? Couldn't we wait a while? Nobody has even verified that the gas attacks were real. Isis and Al-Qaeda have staged these type of events before. They guys might not have a powerful army, but they have learned that provocative fake news can be even more powerful than bombs. Lobbing hundreds of cruise missiles into Syria isn't going to help anything. Even if the gas attacks are real, adding a bunch of bombs to the mix is just going to make the situation worse. I wonder how long it's going to take for our government to realize that it's time to come home. We've accomplished absolutely nothing in the Middle East and probably never will.

The dismal state of the world is one of the reasons I focus my energies on dogs. Dogs don't care about global politics. They don't even understand why they need to wear a city registration tag. All a dog wants is regular meals and a warm, safe place to sleep every night. If we're lucky, they enjoy our companionship as well. If these were our own priorities, the world would be a much better place.

Tyson is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2729

I'm always amazed at how terrible morning traffic is when I have to drive somewhere during rush hour. This morning's early morning errand was taking Dash to the vet for his triglyceride test. When a dog has to fast for twelve hours, early morning is the way to go. I can't imagine waiting until noon to feed Dash. I'd rather face the traffic than listen to Dash barking in the kitchen all morning. Luckily, everything went smoothly at the vet and we were back home in time for breakfast. Dash was hardly inconvenienced at all. Hopefully, his triglyceride levels are back to normal. We've got a big problem if they aren't.

I forgot to pick up Dash's blood pressure and thyroid medication while I was at the vet, so I had to go back later in the day. When I got home, I thought I'd picked up the wrong meds, but after talking to the pharmacist, we determined that the prescription was correct but the label was wrong. I put the new pills in the old bottle with the correct label and everything was fine. You should always check your meds carefully before you take them. A lot of pills look alike and it's very easy to make a mistake.

As I listened to the news while I drank my fruit smoothie this morning, a felt sad about the level of hate in this country. This wasn't a middle eastern terrorist shooting at congressmen this morning. It was a Bernie Sanders campaign worker. Our politics have become tribal and we're really not that different from the Sunni and Shia anymore. I really never thought I'd see this happen in our country. I wish people would realize that politics isn't worth fighting about. Eight years of George Bush didn't change much. Eight years of Obama didn't change much either. I can't imagine that Trump is going to end up changing very much. Real change doesn't happen over election cycles. It takes generations. When the baby boomers are gone and the millennials take charge, it's not going to matter what political party you belong to. Things will definitely change when my generation is just a memory. They'll probably change a lot.

I was planning on doing some more house cleaning today, but my veterinary errands ended up taking more time than I thought. I'm really not good for more than one task a day anymore. Somehow, whenever I manage to check one thing off my list, the day is gone. There's always tomorrow though. With any luck, I'll accomplish one more thing tomorrow.

The more I read about the August solar eclipse, the more I'm thinking that driving to the totality zone might be a disaster. According to reports, most accommodations in the totality zone are already gone. Enterprising municipalities are now selling spots in high school parking lots for $100 a night. I think your $100 includes access to a porta potty, but maybe not. State highway departments are predicting total gridlock on eclipse day. They say that if you are not exactly where you want to be at least a day ahead of time, you are probably out of luck. I may have to rethink this trip. I hate crowds and one of my worst fears is having car trouble in heavy traffic.

If I can wait seven more years, there is going to be another total eclipse of the sun that comes straight through Dallas. Seven year is a long time when you're old though. I might not even be around by then. It would be nice to see the eclipse this summer. It's just not going to be as easy or trouble free as I thought.

Tomorrow, it will be two weeks since Dot passed away. I still find myself listening for her breathing when I wake up at night. It's weird to only fix one bowl of food for Dash at mealtimes. Life is different now. I'm going to miss that dog for a long, long time.

Daisy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2642

I increased Dot's pain medication today. Actually, I'm only giving her the dosage the vet recommended, but it's still more than she was getting yesterday. Did the extra meds help? It's hard to tell. Dot slept well during her morning nap and actually did seem more active and engaged in the afternoon. She appeared tired on her afternoon walk though. It could have been the humidity, or maybe the pills are doing nothing at all. It sure would be easier if I could just ask Dot how she was feeling. If my own doctors prescribed pain medication the way vets do, lord knows what I'd be taking now. The doc would probably just twist my bad shoulder and when I screamed, he'd prescribe something for pain. I'm not a big fan of pain medication. A lot of it is addictive. For the most part, I've just learned how to compensate.

So, what do you do with a dog? A mild amount of discomfort will keep an injured dog from doing something stupid and injuring themselves further. Mild discomfort is kind of a reality check. Severe pain is something else entirely. Since cancer can cause severe pain, I rely on what the oncologist tells me when I take Dot for her periodic evaluations. We always run some tests to determine whether things are getting better or worse. I try to notice subtle changes too. Changes in behavior do mean something. Dot is definitely more uncomfortable than she was a year ago. She still seems happy though and rests easily without a lot of panting or muscle tenseness. I want Dot to be as happy and comfortable as possible as she completes her journey. It's hard to hit the sweet spot though. Too little medication leaves you in pain and too much turns you into a zombie.

I must really be bored. I spent an inordinate amount of time this afternoon looking for someplace new to have breakfast. I extended the radius I was willing to travel from five miles to ten miles and several new options turned up. Everybody basically offers the same thing on their breakfast menu, but the quality and price vary wildly. Who would have thought that there were so many variations on pancakes, bacon and eggs, migas, eggs benedict, breakfast tacos, and waffles. Yelp reviews aren't very much help. Some people actually seem to like crappy food. I found a place in Lakewood that sounded interesting and another in the lower Greenville area. Both are a little further than I usually travel, but what better have I got to do in the morning anyway?

Don't let me start talking about politics. Ever. Political discussion seems to be a virus that has infected most of my Facebook friends. I've never seen anything like it. The weird thing is that everyone is just preaching to the choir. I can't think of a single person I know that has actually changed someone's mind. If I did talk about politics, I'd probably just become a purveyor of fake news. It's almost too easy to rile someone up with fake news. Everyone is so locked into their preconceived view of the world that they'll latch on to anything that reinforces their beliefs. I feel like throwing a bucket of cold water over some of my friends. Good grief. The world isn't coming to an end and I doubt that we are on the verge of a new renaissance either. Ten years from now, you'll look back and wonder what all the commotion was about.

I just hope I'm still around ten years from now. People in my age range are dropping like flies. Almost every week I read about someone I know who has passed away or is fighting a losing battle with cancer. Not everyone is Betty White and quite a few folks never make it to 80. There's not much I can do to change the odds. If having a Dalmatian keeps you young, I'll live forever. If you need close friendships and a sense of community to keep you going, I'm probably a goner.

Val is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2596

I was working out today and was surprised to notice that I had a three inch gash on my right leg. Where did that come from? You'd think I'd notice a cut like that, but I have no idea where it came from. I didn't even notice until I was doing some cardio work that got my heart rate up. With my blood pumping faster the cut stung a little, but it wasn't bleeding anymore. I don't remember dropping anything on my leg or bumping into anything sharp. The cut just seemed to appear out of nowhere. I mentioned this to Janet when I got home and she said it happens to her all the time. I guess the older you get, the more you bump into things. Dot still has a mysterious cut on her leg too. Dot falls so much that she needs a coat made out of bubble wrap. I'm going to start falling too if I don't get to the gym more often. I'm not a person who makes goals, but I really need to figure out how to go to the gym at least three times a week.

On my way home today, I stopped at an Office Depot store to get a monthly accordion folder for my 2017 receipts. I do this every year, even though my accountant told me that he never actually looks at the receipts when I bring him the folder at tax time. I don't go to office supply stores very often and I was surprised at how empty the place was. Half the store was bare with nothing in it at all. The same thing seems to be happening when I go to the local Fry's Electronics store. I think retail is dead. It's just so easy to order anything you need online. I think in five or ten years most of the traditional big box stores will be gone. It's a shame that this transformation has been so complete. I used to like shopping. Small independent camera stores were great places to talk shop and learn things from the shopkeeper and other photographers. There were lots of weird little stores that couldn't even exist today. Two of my favorite stores when I first moved to Dallas sold nothing but electric trains.

I actually threw some things away today. This is almost unheard of for me. When I moved the garment rack to my office yesterday, there were a few things that wouldn't fit after I reconfigured the room. A cheap Ikea shelf that I'd been meaning to toss for years had to go, along with a bunch of old magazines, catalogs, and books. Admittedly, you could hardly call this downsizing, but at least it's a start. I need to do this again sometime. When I look around the office, I hardly see anything I actually use anymore. Most of the stuff is here just for the nostalgia value.

We've reached the point where we need to start decreasing Dot's Incurin dose. Starting today, she only gets half as much as she's been getting for the past two weeks. It makes me a little nervous that her incontinence hasn't been completely cured. There's been a definite improvement, but it wasn't like the first time we tried this treatment two years ago. I'm going to have to talk with Dot's vet, but I have a feeling that she's going to end up being on a much higher maintenance dose than she was before.

Is the political infighting and acrimony ever going to end? I'm getting sick of it. It's almost like we're engaged in a lazy man's civil war. In this new age civil war, we don't battle over territory. We just say nasty things about each other on Facebook and then go home to a nice dinner and a movie on Netflix. I don't think anything will get fixed this way, but what do I know. I'm just a guy who would like to take a time machine back to 1955.

Raider is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2572

Why have the Russians suddenly become this huge problem? Something seems fishy to me. Let's say that the WikiLeaks information originally did come from the Russians, even though Julian Assange denies this. The WikiLeaks information was all true. Even the Democrats acknowledge that John Podesta's e-mails were authentic. So, are we supposed to believe that our democratic process was compromised by revealing information that was actually true? Heaven forbid. This just seems like a lot of sour grapes. Whatever the Russians are doing, they've been doing it all along. We do the same thing to them. It's called spying. This manufactured crisis didn't happen overnight. Personally, I don't think Obama cares what the Russians are doing. He just wants to create havoc for Donald Trump by pitting hard-line republicans like John McCain against him and making it as difficult as possible for the new administration to conduct foreign policy. This would certainly explain throwing Israel under the bus at the United Nations too. People should be outraged at the way we threw Israel under the bus, but they are too busy being outraged about a bunch of things that don't even matter. Grow up people and quit being such sore losers. Instead of pardoning a bunch of criminals and thugs during his last days in office, Obama should pardon Julian Assange and Edward Snowden. I learned more factual information from these two guys than I have from any politician.

As you can see, I need to get out more and quit watching so much television. I'm dangerously close to talking back to the television like my Dad used to do. Is is a bit distressing that there is almost nothing to unite us anymore. There is no objective truth either. All the recent furor about fake news has made me realize that most of what I've been listening to for the past fifteen years has been fake news. It's all fake news. I don't trust Fox. I don't trust MSNBC. I don't trust any of it. It's sad that we have become so tribal. Worst of all, Facebook has ruined everything. Now that I know what my friends really think, I don't trust them either.

It should come as no surprise that caring for an old, sick dog has become my solution. I don't have time to argue about politics. Each morning I try to gather my wits about me and get ready for a day of cleaning up poop, helping Dot walk, and keeping her from injuring herself. I try to keep Dash engaged too, so he doesn't feel left out. Dot did very well today. Maybe it was the cool temperatures and low humidity. She walked with confidence and for the most part, was able to move her rear legs without my help. Dot did poop on the floor, but I was able to make a dramatic save and quickly place a nearby piece of paper under her before the poop hit a rug. Little things like this make my day.

An old college friend called the other day and wants to have lunch when he is in town next week. This shouldn't be a dilemma, but of course it is. For starters, I don't eat lunch anymore. I don't feel comfortable leaving the house for very long either. I wouldn't mind seeing the guy though. I wonder if I'm starting to use Dot as an excuse when I actually could go somewhere. It's complicated.

I do still eat breakfast, so I'm looking forward to going out for a tasty meal tomorrow morning. My breakfast excursions are perfect. The dogs are sleeping after their morning walk. My favorite place is nearby, so I'm rarely gone much more than an hour. I don't have to talk to anyone, but I like the other customers and feel vaguely connected anyway. It's just what I need.

Petey & Greta are our Dalmatians of the Day

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Day 2561

This was easily the coldest day of the year. I think the temperature was only fifteen degrees when we woke up. Everyone wanted to stay under the covers except for Dot. She needed to pee. I threw on a coat, got her outside, and quickly realized that it was going to be a long day.

After feeding the dogs breakfast, we all bundled up in warm coats and hats and went on our regular morning walk. Dash wasn't very enthusiastic, but Dot seemed to love the cold. She had enough energy to make it all the way to a tennis court on the edge of the park, about a half mile away. The old girl is pretty amazing.

Several people suggested that I just take it easy today because of my cold, but I don't even understand the concept anymore. Chores, obligations, and a feeling that I've just got to keep moving have taken over me. I don't even feel like reading a book or going to a movie anymore. Dot always needs something. I'm always doing laundry, cleaning up poop, or walking Dot around with her special harness. It's a lot of work, but it's good to feel needed. There are not a lot of people who actually need me anymore, but I can tell that Dot appreciates having me around. Needless to say, I didn't relax and watch a movie this afternoon. I went to the gym like I always do.

There was a story on the news today about several people in a wedding party getting killed when a large tree fell on them at an outdoor reception. There are so many old trees the park, that I always worry that a tree will fall on me while I'm walking the dogs. Several years ago a tree actually did fall on a cyclist in the park and severely injured him. I have seen large limbs fall off old growth trees while we were walking, but luckily we were always out of harm's way. At least twice in the past ten years, large limbs have fallen off our own trees. One landed on our roof and the other narrowly missed falling on Petey, an earlier Dalmatian we had. I'm probably living on borrowed time.

Am I the only one who is really getting tired of hearing that everything is Russia's fault? If Russia is such a huge problem, why didn't you whiners bring it up before your candidate lost the election. I seem to remember that Hillary took a lot of pleasure in pressing that Russia reset button a few years ago. And didn't Obama whisper in Dmitry Medvedev's ear that "After my election I will have more flexibility." How quickly we forget. It's weird to hear anyone on Capitol Hill get bent out of shape because Russia allegedly meddled in our election. For years, the same CIA that broke this news has been one of the world's worst offenders at meddling in other people's elections. Ask Benjamin Netanyahu how how he feels about US interference in his own election campaign. The CIA has a long history of installing puppet governments all over the world. Karma is a bitch guys. The United States has been meddling in other people's elections for decades. Personally, I don't care whether the Wikileaks information originally came from the Russians or a DNC insider. These leaked e-mails were just about the only truth that was revealed during the entire election campaign. Almost everything else on both sides was fake news. To me it is a bit ironic to hear democrats whine that their candidate lost because some information that was completely true was leaked to the public.

I'm not a political person. I've had conservative friends, progressive friends, and friends who never bothered to vote. For the most part, I've always respected my progressive friends. It's getting harder now, because you guys are such irritating whiners. Get over it. Your candidate lost. If you want to win next time, you might try listening to what people actually want instead of always trying to force feed them what you in your infinite wisdom think they need. Moral superiority is not a winning proposition. Hey, what do I know though? I never voted until I was 40.

Alvin is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2522

I felt good this morning. The rain has lifted and Dash and I walked under a partly cloudy sky, watching the dawn turn into a beautiful sunrise. It was also heartening to see that democracy still works.

I was beginning to wonder. To my democratic friends who think the world has ended, how could you not see this coming? You simply can't go around saying let them eat cake forever. I'm convinced that the election turned out the way it did because millions of good people got tired of being ridiculed and shamed for simply wanting to continue living according to the values their parents and grandparents taught them. Our parents were good people. They weren't burdened with the tyranny of political correctness. They had more important things to do than worry about gender neutral pronouns and safe spaces. They won World War II, went to the moon, and built an an amazing, vibrant country with the belief that we were a great melting pot where everyone could prosper by working hard and adopting a shared set of values. When a political party starts to ridicule those values, this is what happens. When you look at a political map, you see a vast sea of red surrounded by a few slivers of blue on either coast. It is arrogant and wrong for the elites to characterize this vast sea of red as an irrelevant bunch of ignorant racists, sexists, and homophobes. These people are America and they have spoken.

I'd like to see us adopt a shared set of values again. Diversity without the desire to assimilate just creates tribalism. That's where we are now. We are just a bunch of tribes with no particular loyalties to any of the other tribes. Remember that poem by William Butler Yeats where he says "when the centre cannot hold; anarchy is loosed upon the world?" That's where we're headed. So many things are falling apart because we have lost the center that kept us together for so many years.

Perhaps I had time to ruminate about politics because today was so slow. I'm beginning to wonder if I'm ever going to get any more writing assignments. I didn't even have any website updates today. I picked up some prescriptions at the pharmacy and spent the rest of the day walking Dot up and down the hallway. She is not sleeping as much as she did a few months ago. Now, I get summoned by her barking every hour or so. We walk around for a little while and then she gets tired and wants to lie down again. It's too bad we can no longer take the long, active walks we did when the dogs were younger. Dalmatians are very active dogs and I think they get frustrated when they spend too much time in the house. I get frustrated too.

I saw another meteor this evening. I guess that's one good thing about the time change. I don't like walking in the dark, but I do like looking at the stars. In less than a week I'm going to get a chance to see the largest supermoon since 1948. I've seen these close approaches of the moon before and it really doesn't look much bigger. Maybe this time will be different. I hope it doesn't rain on the 14th. I'd really like to see this.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2517

I got an early start to a slow day. For some reason, we had the dogs fed and walked before 6:30 AM. Pancakes won the coin toss this morning, so I went to a restaurant that had good pancakes. I'd show you a picture, except my Instagram settings are all screwed up and pictures aren't being saved to the phone's camera roll anymore. I'm sure it's something I did. My phone's battery is wearing out and I keep turning off features to extend the battery life. Sometimes I turn off so many features that the apps don't work anymore. At any rate, the pancakes were good, and the service was quick, since I was so early. I finished my breakfast, went to the grocery store, and was still back home well before 9 AM.

I called around to see if any lighting stores had the candelabra base LED bulbs I've been looking for. One store said they had exactly what I needed and I drove over to pick the bulbs up. When I got there, a salesperson said she'd never heard of these bulbs. It was a wasted trip. One more reason that I should have ordered the bulbs on Amazon.com in the first place. I really do try to support local businesses, but it's becoming hopeless. Local stores just can't compete with what's available online.

I no longer have satellite radio in my car. I let the SiriusXM free trial expire and they promptly cut me off. It's no great loss. I think the service is grossly overpriced. If they charged like Hulu or Netflix, I probably would have subscribed. The only thing I listened to on satellite radio was NPR anyway, and I think I can still find that on my FM dial.

The dogs were unusually active today. It's a good thing that I wasn't really busy with work, or I never would have gotten finished. Every time I sat down at the computer, tried to take a shower, or do anything where Dot couldn't see me, she started her plaintive "I need you" bark. Since she can't get up on her own, I really can't ignore her. We were busy today, walking up and down the halls and occasionally going outside. Most of these meandering journeys ultimately led to her food bowl in the kitchen. I think she just wanted to be fed.

Daylight Saving Time ends this weekend. I still can't remember why we have Daylight Saving Time in the first place. To me, it's just a nuisance. I like having daylight in the morning and at night. Maybe if we just set the clocks back half an hour this weekend, we could split the difference and just leave it that way all the time. If the idea behind the annual time change was to save energy, it clearly isn't working. I think we actually consume more energy as a result of Daylight Saving Time.

I wonder if I'll have any friends after this election is over? I think people will eventually realize that talking about politics on Facebook was a bad idea. I've learned sme things that I didn't really want to know. Hey, vote for whoever you want, but at least let me pretend that you agree with me.

Ginger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2513 - Halloween

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Halloween is a non-event in our neighborhood. When we were walking the dogs this evening, we saw one young trick-or-treater walking down the street with his Mom. That was it. There weren't a lot of decorated houses this year. I didn't even buy a pumpkin to put on the front porch. The holiday seems to have morphed from an occasion where children go door to door in search of candy to an occasion where young adults can indulge their fascination with cosplay. I have a feeling that adult costumes outsell children's costumes now.

I got my website project finished today. When I'm doing these things, it occurs to me that I'm still pretty good at what I do. It's a shame that these skills are no longer in demand. People don't even get excited about websites anymore. Everybody has one, but they have largely become like Yellow Pages ads. Small businesses need a website so that when someone Googles their name, something shows up. I buy stuff from large online retailers like Sweetwater and B&H. I order pizzas and Pad Thai online from local restaurants. That's about it though. I'm not even curious about most websites.

I'm not a political person, but I am curious about this election. The whole thing has become like a real life version of House of Cards. Every day when I turn on the news in the morning, there is something new that is even more astonishing than the stuff I heard the day before. I thought that some of Trump's blunders would be hard to top and then along comes Anthony Weiner. It's amazing. Both sides are running elaborate and very sophisticated disinformation campaigns. About the only news you can trust is coming from hackers. Even Snopes, a site I used to trust to give me the unvarnished facts, has been discredited. I can't tell the real news from the Onion anymore on Facebook. Just yesterday, I read an article where a democratic fundraiser said he witnessed Bill Clinton having sex with a cow during a cocaine party. I wasn't expecting that.

I got my property tax bill today. I'd forgotten about that one. It never ends. Every time I start to think that I'm finished with all these unexpected expenses, another bill arrives. At least we don't have a state income tax in Texas. I'd be really frustrated if I had to deal with rising Obamacare premiums along with all the other taxes we have to pay. I think I became eligible for Medicare at just the right time.

Going to the vegan take out store on Monday afternoon has become a new part of my weekly routine. I pick up enough vegetarian meals to supplement the leftovers in the refrigerator. There's always something new on the menu, so I'm getting a chance to try a lot of things I've never had before. I felt like Cajun food today, so I picked up a container of red beans an rice and some jambalaya with broccoli. I've never had jambalaya without shrimp or sausage before, but the vegetarian version looked interesting.

The dogs kept me busy today. Dash refused to walk in the dark this morning, so I had to give him his long morning walk after I finished breakfast. Dot seemed to have more energy than usual, and she kept me busy walking her back and forth around the house and backyard. There was the usual poop to clean up and meals to prepare. It was actually a pretty normal day. It didn't seem like Halloween at all.

Roxie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2501

Another loose dog came after Dash today. I managed to stop the dog before any damage was done, but the incident made me mad. It's amazing how often this happens. It's almost always a young person who isn't paying attention that causes the problem. They're doing yoga in the park, or listening to music with earbuds in their ears while their dog is roaming around nearby looking for something more interesting to do. Luckily this large Lab was dragging his leash behind him and I managed to grab the leash before the dog could get to Dash. Dash was terrified though. He's been attacked before and hasn't forgotten. Loose dogs are a pet peeve of mine. Take your dog to a dogpark if you want to let them off leash. Don't let them loose in an area where there are signs all over the place saying "All dogs must be leashed."

The last presidential debate is taking place right now. I have a live stream of the debate running in a window on my browser. I'll listen for about thirty seconds at a time and then I feel compelled to turn the sound off for a while. I just can't stand listening to these guys. I still don't understand how two of the most unlikable candidates in modern history could have been nominated and think the country deserves a do-over. If either of these folks gets elected, the gridlock we're experiencing in Washington DC just gets worse. Would it really be that hard to find someone the country actually likes? I can't think of a name at the moment, but there's got to be someone.

I never cared much about politics when I was younger. I can recall telling someone when I was in my twenties that I wouldn't mind having a king as long as I was part of the aristocracy. This was flippant, of course, but I just didn't think that voting even mattered. I think I finally registered to vote because my mother kept bugging me mercilessly about becoming a responsible citizen. I became a voter, but always was a bit skeptical about the whole process of arriving at a consensus. I've seen homeowner's associations and condo boards do nothing but bicker for years at a time. I played a very minor role in city government at one point and saw nothing but bickering. I think things might be a little better if lawyers weren't allowed to become politicians, but maybe that wouldn't help either.

If there was a political party that advocated giving the earth back to the dolphins and the whales, I think I'd be for them. Humans have become an invasive species, just like kudzu vines. We can't agree about anything. We eat all the fish out of the oceans. We cut down the rain forests for firewood. If we continue at this rate, we'll be extinct in 30,000 years. I hear a lot of politicians talk about climate change, but none of them even mention controlling the world's population as a solution. There are too many of us already and globalization is only making matters worse.

I don't think I'm going to change things. Somebody is going to get elected. Hopefully, I will continue to get my social security check and be able to live out the rest of my life without the rancor I am witnessing becoming even worse. I don't think the apocalypse is just around the corner, but I do think today's millennials are going to have a tough time turning this ship around. I wish them luck.

Diva is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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