Day 1545

Did you know that Amtrak has a writers residency program? They'll send selected writers on a free long distance train trip, and all the writer has to do in return is write about the experience. Hey, I'm in. I love train travel and writing about a train trip would be a piece of cake. Probably 10,000 other writers thought the same thing when they heard about this, but I filled out the application anyway. I think Amtrak is only going to pick 24 writers for the travel grants, but what do I have to lose? Like most government websites, the Amtrak site was a bit buggy. When I hit submit, my application just disappeared. I have no idea if it actually went through, since there was no acknowledgement of any kind. We'll see.

I'm back to doing my full workout at the gym. This doesn't mean my shoulder has healed completely. It's tolerable though. I figured that if I didn't get back on schedule soon, I'd lose everything I'd gained. I can already tell that I've got some work to do. My hour and a half at the gym seems a lot harder now than it did when I was going three days a week. Better something than nothing has always been my motto. As time permits, I'll try to work my way back to three visits a week.

The weather was beautiful today. I kept thinking "this time Spring is here for sure" for most of the day. I've been fooled before, however. Once or twice, we've had snow this late in the year. Hopefully, we won't get another freeze now. Trees are budding everywhere and I'm starting to see wildflowers in the park. It's definitely time to rake the leaves in the backyard, or better yet, get someone else to do it for me. I think I'll opt for the second option this year.

I thought for sure that  I would have heard the results from Dash's pathology report by now. I'll find out what is going on next week. It wouldn't be the first time a doctor had simply forgotten to tell me something important. I'll have to admit that I've been a bit reluctant to bug the vet about the results. Dash seems so much better after the surgery that I'd like to think he's out of the woods now. It would be a huge disappointment to discover that the surgeon hadn't gotten all the cancer and Dash still needs radiation or chemotherapy.

I can't say that I'm a real fan of Daylight Saving Time. Why do we need this time change at all? The time is just what is is. Pretending that it's an hour earlier doesn't really change anything. Before the time change, the sun was coming up when I woke up in the morning and I still had a chance to photograph some cool looking sunsets on my evening walks with Dot and Dash. Now, it's dark again in the morning and way too light in the evening.

In case you think nothing pleases me, I was pleased with dinner tonight. Janet cooked steaks and they were delicious. Dot and Dash seemed a bit miffed that they didn't get a big steak too, but we've learned the hard way that people food isn't good for them. I think they'll survive.

Val is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1103

If Christmas is for kids, then I guess it is Christmas memories that are left for the adults. My own memories are a bit muddled at this point, but I still have a few. I remember playing Joseph in a live nativity scene at some point in the distant past. I remember my parents taking me to visit an old German woman who was a friend of theirs. The lady decorated her tree with real candles. Even though I was very young, I distinctly remember thinking "why hasn't this house burned down yet?" I remember getting an electric train for Christmas when I was a young boy. I have no recollection about the type of electric train or what happened to it. I'm sure my mother gave it away. There is just a vague, pastel memory of waking up one Christmas morning and finding a train under the tree. Later in life, I bought another electric train, but lost interest almost as soon as I got the train working and discovered how much room the layout took up in the living room.

One Christmas, shortly after being hired at my first real job I took a real train home for Christmas, I rode the Great Northern Empire Builder from Seattle to Chicago and then changed trains to take the legendary Santa Fe Super Chief the rest of the way home. It was an epic journey through Glacier National Park, the frozen great plains, the Chicago city center and the American heartland. I think it was the last time I went home to Arkansas for Christmas. It's hard for me to tell anymore whether I'm remembering the way things actually were, or the way I wanted things to be. I remember one Christmas in Alaska when Dad took us to cut down our own Christmas tree. We came home with a magnificent 16 foot tall pine, but I can't remember whether the tree came from deep in the forest or if my Dad just cut down one of the neighbor's trees by mistake. I remember Janet and I going to a comedy club in Las Vegas on Christmas Eve once and listening to Rich Hall tell us that spending Christmas in Vegas was a lot like spending Halloween at the Vatican. We don't do that anymore.

Christmas in recent years has been pretty low key. Most of the presents under the tree are for the dogs. Dot and Dash know that the gifts are for them and have even learned how to open them. Even though they are just looking for something tasty to eat, they remind me of little children on Christmas morning. They attack each package with wild abandon, and gleefully accept the treats inside. It's fun giving presents to dogs, because they are always appreciative.

I tried to keep my weekend errands to a minimum today because the traffic is horrendous. I picked up some things for the house at Home Depot, and got a few more essentials at Sam's Club. I didn't go anywhere near the shopping malls. I'm going to avoid the shopping malls until well after Christmas.

Daisy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day