Day 2794

There are three restaurants in the neighborhood that I go to a lot. One is a favorite of millennials. The next seems to be favored by middle-age teachers and health care workers. The third is a time machine inhabited by really old people who still prefer reading the morning paper to looking at their phone. Each of these groups is so completely different than the next that they might as well be living on different planets. Maybe the world was always this way, but I don't think so. We have really become a tribal society. Does everyone hang out with their own tribe because it has become too difficult to communicate with the other tribes? I don't know. I ate with the millennial tribe this morning. They seemed happier than the other tribes in the neighborhood, but maybe younger people are always a bit more optimistic. I had no idea what they were talking about, but the food was good.

Janet's birthday is tomorrow. Since I have renounced gift cards after receiving a fraudulent gift card for my own birthday, I needed to go shopping for real birthday presents. Shopping for people our age isn't always easy. For the most part, you've already got everything you need. I wanted to get Janet something she would really like, but since she is actively downsizing, I didn't want to add even more to the clutter. Hopefully, I did well today. I can see why gift cards are so popular. Gift cards are easy.

Maybe I shouldn't have bragged about Dash's health yesterday. Right after I finished writing my blog post, Dash threw up again. He seemed fine all day. He ate well, took normal walks, and didn't seem to be in any kind of discomfort or distress. Just like when he has vomited previously, he went to sleep around 10:30 PM, woke up about two hours later, and seemed very restless and agitated. Immediately after he threw up in the yard, he went back to sleep and was calm for the rest of the night. This seems to happen about once a week now. It is really odd behavior. The symptoms don't seem to be consistent with vestibular disease and if he were really sick, you'd think there would be other signs of discomfort. I'll talk to the vet again when he goes in for a Phenobarbital level check next week, but I don't expect any easy answers. These periodic and seemingly random vomiting episodes have been a problem for a long time now.

I never did buy any eclipse glasses while they were still available, so I guess I'll need to make one of those pinhole projectors out of an old cereal box. I remember doing this once when I was a kid. The last partial eclipse I saw was right around sunset, so it was possible to safely look at the sun through some thick haze on the horizon. If you are a regular reader, you might remember the picture I took. Monday's eclipse will be right around midday in Dallas. You don't ever want to be looking at the sun when it's high in the sky.

I never really made plans to see this eclipse. In my heart I was hoping that Dot would make it to her next birthday and I knew she needed me. She almost made it, since her birthday would have been on the 27th of this month. I never expected that Janet would be diagnosed with cancer either. She has always been much healthier than me. Life is full of surprises and you've got to stay flexible. You've got to stay hopeful too. There will be another chance to see a total eclipse in 2027. I won't even have to leave town, since Dallas is in the path of totality. Hopefully, we'll both still be around by then.

Lucy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 2219

Today was full of little surprises. I got a bill for something connected with last November's water leak repairs. I thought this whole episode was completely finished, but apparently some companies are even slower about getting their invoices out than I am. Hopefully, this is the last bill. I want to put this disaster behind me so I can be ready for the next one.

I discovered that I actually won something on the Powerball ticket I purchased last week. I only won $4 for matching a single number, but that was enough of an incentive to go to the nearest 7-11 and get a few more tickets for tomorrow's billion dollar drawing. I redeemed my $4 prize, added another $6 I had in my pocket and got five more tickets. You could actually make a pretty good documentary by going to a random 7-11 and interviewing people getting lottery tickets. There's always a line of people buying them when there's a big jackpot. I've noticed that even though the odds are impossible, everyone thinks they are going to win. You realize quickly that playing the lottery is a very regressive tax. It is always poor people who buy the most tickets.

My other surprise today was that I unexpectedly have some work to do. With a new website update and three new articles to write, I might have enough work to keep me busy for the rest of the week, especially if I'm not in a hurry. I wish the website jobs had bigger budgets and the writing jobs were more frequent, but I'm not complaining. I'd much rather spend my day writing than cleaning up dog poop.

I ordered a small adapter that lets me lets me use my movie lights using a different type of battery. I really don't need a V-mount to Gold-mount converter, but it didn't cost much, so I thought I could afford the indulgence. I don't have to worry about becoming addicted to drugs, or alcohol, or chocolate. I do need to worry about buying things I don't need. I love getting packages in the mail. My Dad had this same affliction as he got older. Maybe we both have the hoarder gene. At any rate, when I get bored, I go online and buy something. I seldom spend much money and rarely need what I buy. It's just something to do.

I didn't bother to listen to this evening's State of the Union address. I just didn't feel like hearing more platitudes about how great things are when the reality is quite different. I've never seen the country more divided in my lifetime. We can't seem to unite behind anything these days. My parent's generation united as one to win World War II. A later generation inspired by John Kennedy went to the moon. Now, we just argue with each other. This isn't really about Democrats or Republicans. It's about a great country that has dissolved into a bunch of ineffectual tribes. Self indulgent people are more loyal to their tribe now than to the country as a whole. This can't possibly end well.

I'm not a joiner and don't have a tribe. Maybe that's why I see things a little differently. If I win the lottery, I'm not going to tell you about it. I'll quietly continue walking my dogs and minding my own business. I'll probably always remain a somewhat detached observer, but it would be nice to observe a little more harmony in the world.

Suzie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1058

I went to get some lab work done this morning in preparation for my upcoming physical exam. On the way home from these mandatory blood tests, I drove by a new breakfast restaurant that I'd never seen before. It was odd that I didn't know about this place, since it was less than four miles from my house. I learned long ago however, that there are lots of thing I don't know about.

When I went inside, I was greeted by some very old people eating a late breakfast. They didn't look happy. Most were talking about last night's election results. "When do you think he's going to change the flag," said a white haired woman to her companion at the table next to me. "You know he's got his own flag." she continued. At the other end of the dining room I overheard a man say. "There's plenty of jobs. These kids today are just too damn lazy to work."

I'm a chameleon. I blend in easily at places like this. I blend in equally easy at restaurants where the patrons all sport tattoos, raise their own urban chickens, and have long discussions about sustainability. It's kind of sad. In a world that has gone tribal, I still haven't found my own tribe.

I'm not a religious person, but I feel more comfortable around Christians and Jews. Somehow, people that put their faith in a higher power seem much nicer to me than the secular humanists who have become convinced that they are the higher power. Although I strongly believe in the importance of family values, I haven't talked to my own family in years. On and on it goes. Although I have become very good at my chosen profession, it still hasn't stopped me from thinking that advertising is basically rubbish. It would be nice to believe in something, but I'm not sure what that would be.

In lieu of becoming a true believer, team player, or tribal chieftain, I have become a good observer. I see things that I think have meaning and I take pictures of them. I observe the world around me and write my observations down. I seldom make judgements about what I see. That's your job.

Maybe all this is why I appreciate the wisdom of dogs. Dogs are very good observers. Dot and Dash are extremely alert and notice everything around them. Lord knows what they actually believe.

Chase is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1046

I passed a polling station when I was running errands today, so I decided to take advantage of early voting. As usual, my first thought when voting was, "Whoa, if all these people ahead of me in line can actually vote, we're screwed." My next thought is often "Hmm, I wonder if these electronic voting machines are actually hooked up to anything?" Voting using a touch screen is still a bit disconcerting to me. Where does your vote go?  Once you are finished voting electronically, there is no proof that you did anything at all. At least when you buy something in a store, you get a receipt. I've never gotten a receipt for casting my vote in my life. It is all an act of faith.

While I was waiting in line, I saw at least five large red signs that clearly said No cell phones or digital cameras allowed within 100 yards of the polls. I also saw at least fifteen people checking their Facebook accounts with their phones within a few feet of the door that led to the voting booths. So much for that rule. There were also signs warning people not to engage in campaigning in front of the polling station. This sign seemed to be ignored as well. There was a guy holding a huge placard standing right by the front door, asking everyone to vote for his candidate.  It took me about 45 minutes to go through the line and press all the buttons on the touch screen voting machine. I'm done now, although I will continue to wonder if my vote will actually be counted.

I hope my guy wins, but I'm not expecting any miracles whatever happens. I've never seen the country as divided as it is right now. Whichever presidential candidate happens to win will still have to deal with the other half of the country who thinks he's the devil incarnate. Polarization leads to Paralyzation. I am increasingly convinced that we have lost the ability to reach a consensus on anything at all and are headed for permanent gridlock. It's kind of sad. The unified spirit that won World War II and took us to the moon has dissolved into petty bickering. Instead of unity, we have become tribal, with no loyalties beyond our own little tribes.

Hey, at least my new furnace works. It was forty degrees outside this morning and the house was toasty warm. The air doesn't seem to flow through the vents quite as fast with this new furnace, but the thermostat works better, so the net result is about the same. I think the cold weather is going to continue through the weekend. At least we don't have to deal with the "Frankenstorm" that is headed toward the East Coast. I'd hate to have a new furnace and no electricity.

For the second week in a row, I forgot to take the trash out to the street on Thursday evening. The only reason I managed to get my trash picked up today was that I heard the garbage truck banging and rattling down the street and rushed out to greet it with my can. I can take comfort that I've resolved one memory loss moment, but I still have another one to deal with tomorrow. The local health food store is giving cholesterol screening blood tests in the morning and I need to remember not to eat breakfast before I go in for my test. Sometimes I remember these things. Sometimes I don't.

Pearl is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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