Day 4248

I was aprehensive about my root canal today, but it all turned out well. The endodontist was very good. The only pain I felt was to my wallet. Yikes. I had no idea a root canal would be $2200. The endodontist said I had unusually deep roots, but I think he was just an expensive dentist. The whole procedure seemed quite complicated. Every time I thought we were done, the endodontist pulled out a different instrument and did something else. 

At one point during the procedure I thought I smelled burning flesh. I mentioned this and the dentist said there was a small amount of dead tissue inside the tooth, but that I might have smelled burning rubber instead. Nope. This was burning flesh. I smelled the same thing when the dermatoligist burned off keratosis growths on my skin. It seems weird to have spent so much money and the tooth looks exactly the same as it did before. I'm glad the root canal is done though. It's one more loathsome thing I can check off my list.

I didn't have my smoothie this morning and didn't feel like eating much for dinner tonight. This is as close to dieting as I get. Tomorrow I'll be back on my regular schedule. The numbness in my mouth has finally worn off and their is no pain or soreness in the tooth. It's weird when your entire tongue feels numb. A dentist is a lot like a fancy mechanic in many ways. As I listened to the endodontist ask his assistant for different tools this morning, it sounded a lot like they were working on a car.

We tried to get Dawn to walk a little longer this morning because we knew she would be alone for a while inside the house. She wasn't interested though and just wanted to do her short one mile loop. She has to wear a cone now while we are away. Just to make sure I won't have to wash all the bedding again, I put a waterproof drop cloth on the bed as well. On top of this goes Dawn's favorite dog blanket. It all works out pretty well, but I still feel bad that she has to wear the cone. I tried to make it up to her when I returned home. I sat outside with her for at least half an hour and she had a good time rolling in the grass.

When the anesthetics wore off about mid afternoon I decided to go to the gym. There was a huge traffic jam at the Covid testing site today and I had to take a detour. Something has clearly changed. This site has been here for quite a while, but I've never seen so many people waiting to be tested before. There were more people wearing masks while they exercised at the gym today as well. I hope the gym doesn't close again. It might though. We are definitely headed in the wrong direction.

Dawn goes back to the vet tomorrow for some more tests. Hopefully the MRSA infection is gone now. I keep thinking that this has to be related to the itching and paw licking. There's always a chance that the licking is purely a behavioral problem, but this doesn't make sense to me because Dawn has been with us for well over a year and never began obsessively licking her skin until recently. Old vet records show that Dawn had a bacterial infection when she entered the rescue program. Maybe the initial treatment she received didn't completely clear up the infection and it gradually returned. Who knows at this point. We've got to get this problem solved though. Dawn is not a happy dog right now.

I've got to get my car safety inspected soon. It's time for a new sticker again. I guess I might as well make an appointment for my regular scheduled maintenance as well. I hate to throw even more money down the drain, but I'm tired of seeing that 'service required' light come on every time I start the car. I wish I'd have a month or two with no expenses at all. That's not going to happen though.

Hannah is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4247

Last year at this time we were in the middle of a pandemic. Apparently, we still are. A year has gone by and it feels like nothing has happened at all. We were taking sunrise walks with Dawn last August because that's what you do when the weather gets hot. I was waiting for things to open up so I could resume attending launches again. I'm still waiting. Last year there was a big stained spot in the ceiling where the roof had leaked. The spot is still there. It's hard to get enthusiastic about anything. Sometime I wake up in the morning and think "That's it, I'm done." Then I get up, make the bed and get ready for our sunrise walk. There is a cadence to each day that is very familiar. It's easy to get from breakfast to dinner without a lot of thought. I often feel like complaining about my many aches and pains and then I remember friends who have cancer or aren't even here anymore and realize I have nothing to complain about at all. Life is good. I just need to appreciate it more.

I called the dentist office to confirm my appointment for tomorrow. I wanted to make sure I could drive to and from the appointment on my own. I don't know why I thought I might be sedated for the procedure, but I've never had a root canal before. They assured me that getting a root canal wasn't much different than getting a filling. I'll be glad when this is over. Having dental work done is the least satisfying way of spending money I can think of. I've thought about getting dental insurance but it really doesn't cover very much. My teeth are pretty good so I'll continue to take my chances. Hey, three cavities in seventy three years isn't bad at all.

Dawn hates the new larger cone, but it keeps her from reaching her rear paws. She only wears the cone while she's on the bed because that's where she does the most damage. While she's walking or active around the house, she seldom pays any attention to her paws. If I feel sorry for her and take the cone off, it won't take five minutes before she starts going after the paws again. It's frustrating. Dawn has a vet appointment this week to make sure her bacterial infection is gone. Hopefully the vet will have some answers about the obsessive licking for us.

I really should have gone to the gym today, but I didn't feel like driving. I took my long walk instead and was very hot. There aren't many people in the park on days like this. A few bicycles passed me on the trails and I think I saw one or two other walkers, but the place was basically empty. I completed my six miles, but when I returned home I was done for the day. 

I wonder how Facebook decides what to show me? I'm not very active and seldom reveal my interests. I always erase the cookies on my computer at the end of the day as well. The blog is just a JPEG image on Facebook,  so I doubt that they're reading that. Nevertheless, my feed is filled with pictures of guitars, reviews of the new Ford Bronco, and updates from NASA. They've actually got me pegged pretty well. There used to be lots of information about watches on my feed, but somehow Facebook has learned that I've lost interest in watches. Even though my timeline is mostly pictures of Dalmatians, I get very few sponsored posts about dog products. It's all very curious.

I don't think I'll have time for my morning smoothie tomorrow. My dental appointment is in the morning and the whole ritual of preparing and drinking the huge smoothie takes forever. Maybe I'll just have a small bowl of fruit instead. I could always skip breakfast entirely. I'm definitely in no danger of starving.

J-Lo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4246

We met Bullet today. This four year old male is the newest member of the rescue program and probably won't be with us long. He's healthy, good looking, and very friendly. Bullet loves to play and we had a lot of fun getting to know him. I have a feeling that he's going to find his forever home soon. I took some pictures of Bullet for the rescue website and then we made sure to pay equal attention to Charlie and Cooper. All three dogs were happy to see us today. Each dog has his own distinct personality and they'd all make a great pet for the right person. I wonder if we'll see Bullet next week? I think there's a family looking at him already.

We had to get a new longer cone for Dawn before we left for the kennel because she's learned how to reach her back paws wearing the shorter one. The new cone seemed to work, because there were no signs of damage when we returned. Dawn doesn't seem to mind the cone and mostly just sleeps while wearing it. She took her last antibiotic pill today, so hopefully she is clear of the bacterial infection now. The vet will want to culture another sample to make sure and then we'll move on to solving the paw licking problem. 

I still feel like I'm not getting enough sleep. When we took our sunrise walk this morning all I could think of was going back to bed. I stayed up though because by the time we returned to the house, I was wide awake. Monday is never a terribly busy day, but it usually seems that way. After I made the bed and fixed my breakfast, I charged my camera batteries and got ready to go to the kennel. I'd been using my new Olympus camera to take dog pictures recently, but reverted to the Panasonic GH-4 because it seems to work better under the low light conditions in the kennel playroom. I'm wondering why I got the new camera now. It isn't that great for astrophotography and I think I like my old cameras better for dog pictures. 

There wasn't enough time to take a long walk this morning, so I went to the gym late in the day after we returned from the kennel. I guess I'll keep going to the gym, but the relentless news about how bad the Delta variant is becoming in Texas is making me feel like laying low again. I'd really hate to get Covid now after keeping myself safe for over a year and a half. My gym is never crowded and it's probably even safer than going to the grocery store, but you never know. Obviously somebody is getting this disease because hospitals are filling up again and they say Dallas is running out of ICU beds.

I'm really sick of the pandemic. It's very difficult to make plans because things keep changing. I feel foolish even trying to contact people at NASA or Patrick Air Force Base about upcoming launches because I know I'm not going to Florida anyway. By the time Covid has run its course and disappeared, I'll probably have to start over from scratch on my quest to become a space journalist. 

Janet would like to travel too, but I doubt that either of us will be going anywhere soon. It's probably just as well. We've got our hands full with Dawn anyway. Tomorrow will be a repeat of today except that I won't be going anywhere. On Wednesday I get my root canal done. Such an exciting week.

Nautica is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4243

This is a bad time to be a hypochondriac. You can't turn on the television without being bombarded with seemingly apocalyptic health news. Are more people getting infected now than during the height of the pandemic? Are hospitals full again? It's hard to tell what's really going on. Every time I venture out in the world, everything seems normal. I only know one person who has gotten sick during the last year and he recovered quickly. I know a lot more people who have gotten cancer than have gotten Covid. Why all the fear mongering? It is unnecessary. Every time I have a runny nose or wake up with a scratchy throat, I have to go to Google and see if that might be a symptom associated with one of the new variants. At my age there are probably a lot more immediate health issues to be concerned about. Jeez. I got the vaccine. If you didn't, that's your business.

I'm so glad I am no longer a landlord. I used to own rental property and I know I would have gotten stuck with a tenant who used Covid as an excuse to stop paying rent. I don't really understand extending the eviction moratorium. The economy is doing great. I've never seen so many help wanted signs in stores. You could easily get a job if you wanted one these days. You could probably get a better job than you had before. I think I have more sympathy for the landlords than the tenants. There are definitely easier jobs than owning a few rent houses. I had endless problems with tenants. I'm glad that chapter is behind me.

There is a cobra loose in the neighboring town of Grand Prairie. Who keeps a six foot West African Banded Cobra as a pet? I know I would be really mad if a neighbor let their pet cobra escape. It would be hell to worry yourself sick about Covid and then end up getting bit by a cobra instead. I should just stop watching the news. There is too much weirdness going on. They say the Gulf Stream is slowing down and could drastically change the climate on the East Coast. The West Coast seems to be perpetually on fire. Are these the end times? I have friends who think so.

I don't know why I thought today would be a good day to take a long walk. It was even hotter than yesterday. I guess I just didn't feel like driving today. I completed my full six mile route, but I was really starting to wonder what I was doing outside. I'm glad I discovered the misting station in the park. I sprayed myself with water on both the inbound and outbound segments of my journey, but it didn't take long for the water to evaporate. I read an article recently that said walking consistently was one of the best forms of exercise and included a long list of health benefits. I hope this is true. Walking is still enjoyable for me because it is the best place to daydream.

I need to start taking the antibiotics prescribed for my root canal tomorrow. I take the pills for four days prior to my procedure and then for four days afterwards as well. I'm not looking forward to this. I've never had a root canal before. I've had relatively few fillings over the years as well. All good things come to an end I guess. I'm certainly spending more time at doctors and dentists these days than I did in my 30's and 40's.

Dawn had a good day. There weren't as many problems with licking her paws today and she seemed to enjoy her morning walk. I hope Dawn is happy, but I'll never know for sure. Dawn is an enigmatic dog. Dealing with Dawn's problems is as far as I want to go with problems. I'm definitely not going to solve the world's problems. I doubt that you are either.

Margo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4234

Good grief. Usually a trip to the dentist is uneventful for me. I have good teeth and seldom have problems. Today the dentist told me that I have a cavity in one tooth and need a root canal in another. My regular dentist doesn't do root canals, so I had to go see an endodontist. My regular dentist said it was time for another pano-x-ray. That wasn't good enough for the endodontist however. He said I needed a cone beam CT scan. I got both. Needless to say, it was an expensive afternoon. All I was expecting was a routine teeth cleaning today. My teeth don't hurt and I had no idea there was a problem. The x-rays don't lie unfortunately, so I've got two different appointments in August for some major dental work.

This is probably why I still haven't made appointment with two other doctors I need to see this summer. I hate surprises and the older you get, the more likely you are to be surprised during a routine doctor visit. I'll get everything done this summer, but I'm saving the colonoscopy for last. I'd really like to avoid that one. 

Medical expenses always seem so unrewarding. I'd much rather get a new camera lens than a root canal. You can't ignore your health though. Both dentists agreed that it wouldn't be wise to postpone the root canal, even though the tooth isn't bothering me at the moment. The endodontist said the infection was still contained within the bone. "You don't want this to spread to soft tissue," he told me. "It will be very painful." OK. I believe you. I've made both dental appointments and will probably go ahead and make all my other appointments as well. I might as well get all this medical stuff behind me. Then I can concentrate on important things like going to rocket launches and visiting the observatory again.

It was too late to go to the gym after I returned from my two dental visits today. Even though it was very hot, I went for a walk instead. There was no compelling reason to do anything, but I really wanted to get those steps. I have become a slave to Fitbit and my Apple Watch. There's nothing wrong with exercise though. I think I'm in pretty good shape for 73. Age catches up with you though. Dusty Hill died today. He was younger than I am. I never saw ZZ Top perform, although I really liked their music. I should have gone to a concert while I had a chance. The band spent a lot of time in Dallas. Actually Dusty was born here.

Dawn is still trying to lick and bite her paws. I had to put a cone on her before I went to the dentist today. She's still taking antibiotics and I thought it was funny that the endodontist prescribed the same antibiotic for me. I'm supposed to start taking the pills four days before the root canal procedure. The root canal is underneath a crown and I keep thinking that this never would have happened if I hadn't gotten the crown. I chipped a tooth years ago and I wanted the dentist to just smooth the little chipped part and seal it. Nope. He said I had to have a crown, even though only a tiny part of the tooth had broken off. I still think that tooth was basically fine. What do I know about dentistry though? I'm the guy who went fifteen years without seeing a dentist at all.

Tomorrow I get a haircut. Somehow it is much easier for me to make a hair appointment than a doctor's appointment.

Queenie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1814

Well, the news wasn't good at the dentist. I have extensive decay in one of my lower wisdom teeth and the tooth will have to be removed by an oral surgeon. This particular wisdom tooth has always been a problem because it came in at an angle and is pressing against my other teeth. The cavity on the wisdom tooth has spread to the adjacent molar and the dentist won't be able to tell whether this tooth can be saved until the wisdom tooth is removed. Evidently the location of the decay in the molar might make it very difficult to repair. I need to see an Endodontist as well, to see if telltale signs of a root canal problem in another tooth that showed up on today's x-rays needs further attention. So, that's three different teeth and three different dentists. I'm not looking forward to this.

On the plus side of things, the dentist I went to today was fantastic. Janet, who has had every dental problem imaginable, recommended him and as far as I'm concerned, he lived up to his "super-dentist" reputation. This guy, who mostly does complex Prosthodontic dentistry, was extremely knowledgeable and had an array of high-tech equipment that I didn't even know existed. Have you ever had a panoramic dental x-ray? You stick your entire head into a large machine which takes a 360 degree digital picture of your mouth. Digital x-rays are kind of amazing, since you see them on screen as they are being taken. You can blow them up quite large and see all the tiny little blood vessels that keep the teeth alive. I've never seen my teeth in such detail.

On my way home from the dentist, a message appeared on the instrument panel of my car that said "Service Required." I'd never seen this message before, so I stopped by the Land Rover dealer to see what it meant. It turned out that there was nothing wrong. The message was just a reminder that it was time for my next scheduled service. Evidently these messages are pre-programmed into the car's computer and appear when the car decides it's time to hand over some more money to the dealer. I went ahead and scheduled a service appointment while I was at the dealer. I've had Land Rovers for long enough to have learned that you ignore maintenance on these cars at your own peril. I'd much rather have a little sign on the dash remind me now, than have to call a tow truck later. At any rate, with three dental visits and a car repair, it looks like it's going to be an expensive month.

It was much warmer today, but it was also much cloudier. It looked like it was going to rain all day, which probably means the rain will just be delayed until it's time to take Dot for her physical therapy session tomorrow. Maybe it will just rain while we sleep tonight. That would make life a little easier.

I'll investigate dental insurance tomorrow, but I'm not expecting much. If you need anything complex done, dental insurance only pays a small fraction of the total cost. Every little bit helps though, so I'll see what I can find out. I got approved for physical therapy on my shoulder today as well. That will be one more doctor I need to add to my contact list. Oh, to be 25 again. I'm sure Dot thinks the same thing whenever she sees a squirrel. We're both doing the best we can to age gracefully, but as far as we're concerned, getting old sucks.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day