Day 2920

I spent the day trying to stay warm. Last night's forecast was right. It did end up raining for most of the day. It was a cold rain too. The temperature was in the high 30's, but the wind chill made it feel below freezing. I stayed home and fixed pancakes and sausages this morning. I kept hearing rolling thunder off in the distance. Thunder often triggers Dash's panic attacks and it was pointless to leave the house for a breakfast that I probably wouldn't like anyway. Actually my pancakes were quite good. I should stay home on Friday mornings more often.

Around noon it looked like there was going to be a break in the rain, so I took Dash for a walk. For a dogs that is terrified of rain, he certainly doesn't seem to mind walking in wet grass. We should have had plenty of time before the next storm cell arrived, but Dash was even slower than usual. He wasn't having trouble walking. He just likes to smell things. We ran out of time on the last half mile of our walk and got soaked. I kept telling Dash to hurry up, but he seems to have no idea that rain is approaching until he actually gets wet.

It was bad enough getting caught in the rain once, but the same thing happened again on our evening walk. This time I was almost certain that the rain was over, but another rain cell popped up out of nowhere as we were approaching the house and we got soaked again. Note to self: a down jacket is great in cold weather. Not so good in wet weather.

After I dried Dash off a second time and changed my clothes again, I didn't feel like leaving the house anymore. I needed to go to the grocery store, but luckily Janet said she'd pick something up for dinner on her way home from work. I don't feel like I accomplished much today. Even with weather radar on my phone, I managed to get caught in the rain twice.

Janet and I decided not to exchange gifts this Christmas. There is nothing we need and it seems silly to keep getting things that don't end up being used. Our house is way too full of clutter as it is. We'll get something fun for Dash. He loves food gifts. We probably should have done this a long time ago. Adults can spend a lot of money but it's almost impossible to recreate the sensation of being a kid at Christmas. Christmas is for kids and dogs. I guess it's not surprising that my favorite Christmas memories are childhood memories. I know Christmas is an important religious holiday, but I haven't been inside a church since my Dad's funeral. To me, it mostly seems like a time when people are slightly nicer to each other.

I'm having problems with my new website project. It's not the layout that has me stumped. I can think of plenty of cool designs. I just can't think of a solution that would genuinely improve my client's business. Unless you're in the business of selling things online, a website isn't really a game changer. Sure, you've got to have one, but it will never matter as much as what your customers say to their friends about you. Word of mouth is still the best advertising. I'm going to give this a lot of thought. My client certainly deserves a website that makes a difference. If I had the answer, I'd probably build one for myself too.

I can't wait until it gets warmer again. I know people who love snow and bundling up in sweaters. I'm not one of them

Two sisters are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2919 - Winter Solstice

It didn't seem like the shortest day of the year. It didn't seem like the first day of Winter either, since the temperature was over 70 degrees. Truthfully, it didn't even seem like Thursday. Instead of the sunset walks we used to take at this time of year, we take mid-afternoon walks now. I split Dash's dinner into two parts these days, since I've discovered that he's more likely to eat all his food that way. We walk between the 3 PM early dinner and the 4:30 PM late dinner. I eat much earlier now as well. By the time the sun sets at 5:30 PM, our day is already finished. I kind of miss the old sunset walks, but it is much easier to just let Dash do what he wants. With this new early-bird schedule, there are no worries about chance encounters with a pack of coyotes either.

Today was uneventful. I didn't bother to go up on the roof because it is supposed to rain all day tomorrow. I did buy a pair of pants though. Every Christmas I get a gift card from a local menswear store that says if I spend at least $100 they will take $50 off the price. This always seems like a bargain and I inevitably go buy something whether I need it or not. I didn't need another pair of pants. I didn't need shirts, socks, or shoes either. This just shows that I am as susceptible to marketing as the next guy. I bought an overpriced pair of pants I don't even need because I was convinced I was getting it for half price. I'm sure the store still made a decent profit on the transaction.

The neighbors who own the dog that bit me are doing some remodeling on their house. I watch the workmen come and go with trepidation, since they inevitably leave gates open and I worry that the dog will escape. I hate having to worry about aggressive or loose dogs. The neighborhood is full of them. There are two German Shepherds who haven't realized yet that they could easily jump over their low fence. There is a dog who was sweet as a puppy, but has become increasingly territorial as he's grown older. This wouldn't be a problem if the dog's owner didn't leave him out in their unfenced front yard in the mornings without a leash. There is one street that is so full of barking, nervous dogs that I won't even go down it anymore.

I wonder if the city realized what it was getting into when all these ride sharing bicycles arrived. There are literally hundreds of abandoned Limebikes in the park now. I think I counted almost thirty on our walk today. Downtown there are areas where sidewalks are completely blocked by these rental bicycles. I guess the concept is popular because I see people riding these bicycles all the time. I just don't understand why they are abandoned in such strange places. If you leave your Limebike under a tree in the park, where do you go from there? I don't like bicycles in general, but the Limebikes are the worst. This is just a new type of littering.

The forecast doesn't look good, but I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow. If it's a rainy day, Dash won't get a morning walk and I probably won't be able to go out for breakfast. I"m already trying to decide whether to fix pancakes, make an omelette, or have a bowl of oatmeal and fruit. I'm becoming more and more like Dash. All I really think about is food.

Willow is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2918

There always seems to be more bills to pay in December. Instead of spending my time with Dreamweaver and Photoshop today, I found myself staring at Quickbooks. It looks like I survived another year, but I still hate paying all these bills. Since I was thinking about financial matters anyway, I began wondering whether this new tax bill was going to be good or bad for me. Depending on who you're listening to, this bill is either the best thing since sliced bread or one of the seven signs of the apocalypse. There is no middle ground here. In our polarized society, you either love something like this. or you hate it. Actually understanding the bill doesn't even seem to matter.

At first I thought the bill was going to be terrible for companies like mine because I heard that a lot of common Schedule C deductions were going away. Then I heard that small businesses could take advantage of new pass through provisions that would tax business profits at a much lower rate. That would be good. Who knows. It's all speculation at this point. I won't really have a clear idea of how this affects my own business until I start doing my 2018 taxes in the Spring of 2019. I'll be over 70 then and probably won't even have any clients, so I doubt that it matters much.

I finally got some feedback on the website project I finished a few weeks ago. The client likes it. That's a relief. Without this project hanging over my head, it will be a lot easier to throw myself into my new website project. I'd like to do something bold and original, but I think the client would be better served by just picking a readily available website template tailored to their specific industry. There are very sophisticated templates available now that cater to the needs of just about every type of industry. You don't need me anymore. Jeez, what am I doing? It's become way too easy to talk myself out of work.

The weather was much better today. It was foggy this morning, but there was no rain. Foggy days are great for photography, but I really didn't have the time. I had bills to pay, prescriptions to pick up at the pharmacy for Dash and myself, and a dog crate to find in the storage warehouse. Janet had loaned the crate to a friend of hers and they wanted it today. Since the large collapsible metal crate got relegated to the storage warehouse after Petey died many years ago, it was buried under tons of other stuff by now. I did manage to find the crate, but it would have been easier to buy Janet's friend a new one.

I took a raggedy pair of jeans to the tailor this afternoon to get some sturdy knee pads sewn on. These pants are so worn that I should have thrown them away a long time ago, but they are still my favorites for walking the dogs. When the pants are repaired, they will be a perfect match for the old rubber boots that I've repaired using shoe goo and tire patches. Never say die. Years ago, I had a client who was one of the best menswear retailers in the country. He would be embarrassed to see me now. I have gone from sartorial splendor to a haphazard hobo look. Ugly but serviceable. That's me these days.

I don't have any plans yet, but I'm sure tomorrow will be just as exciting as today. I really need to find a good book to read.

Lexi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2917

What a dismal day. It started raining last night and it still hasn't stopped. Since today's rain was accompanied by thunder and lightning, Dash immediately went into panic mode. Whenever he hears thunder, he looks for a place to hide. Sometimes he tries to hide under a table. Other times he tries to crawl into a closet. Since Dash's legs are weak and he falls easily, I have to block all the potentially hazardous places. Our dogs have always seemed to think that Janet and I cause the rain and get mad when we don't make it stop. Dash is reluctant to go pee in the rain. He'll go to the back door over and over again, but won't go outside until he can't hold it any longer. I lost count of how many times I opened the back door today.

I had errands to run, but I postponed them until tomorrow. I didn't want Dash to freak out and hurt himself while I was gone. Even if Dash loved the dismal weather, I doubt if I would have left the house. I'll do just about anything to avoid driving in heavy rain. I kept checking the weather radar, hoping for the rain to stop, but it never did.

Actually there was a short break in the rain around 4 PM this afternoon and I thought I could take Dash for a walk. I forgot how slow Dash has become though, and the rain started again before we were able to make it home. We got soaked. Getting wet irritated me but it didn't seem to bother Dash. Since there was no thunder to frighten him, he just kept poking along, smelling every bush he passed. Oh, well. Dash needed a bath anyway. When we got home, I dried Dash off with a bath towel, threw his harness and my clothes in the dryer and cranked up the heat. Pretty soon we were both warm and dry.

I think we got over three inches of rain today. When we were walking this afternoon, I noticed that the lake was very high. Many low areas were flooded and several piers and boat docks were under water. I wasn't really aware how common wet weather was in December until Facebook started putting all these "memories" on my timeline. When I re-read these old blog posts, it seems like I was always complaining about rain in December.

I halfheartedly tried to find something to watch on Netflix this afternoon, but I couldn't find anything interesting. I read an article about new trends in website design and realized that that wasn't very interesting either. Ultimately, I dealt with my cabin fever the same was Dash does. I took a nap.

My mind wanders on days like these. I've started wondering why there is this huge panic about net neutrality. People talk about net neutrality like it's been around forever, but these rules have only been in place for two years. I've been on the Internet since the early 1990's and during most of that time there were no net neutrality rules. I can't recall that any big changes occurred two years ago. If anything, I probably had more choices back in the Internet dark ages than I do now. What has changed it is that people have become addicted to their life online. If you scare them by saying it might go away, they panic. To me, this panic is just as irrational as Dash's fear of thunder. Sure prices will go up. Prices always go up. My auto insurance, my storage warehouse rent, and my cable bill are all more expensive than they used to be. That's life. I have a feeling that five years from now, the Internet will still be here. It will be faster than ever and there will be a lot more choices than there are now. Just don't expect it to be free. Things you've become addicted to are never free.

I hope it dries out tomorrow. You guys may worry about net neutrality and tax cuts. I just worry about roof leaks and storm phobic dogs.

Ranger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2916

Today was kind of dull compared with the drama of yesterday's power outage. Minor disasters always get my adrenaline pumping. That being said, I'm glad the power has returned. It was another damp, grey day, but at least the lights were on and the furnace was working. My tolerance for cold weather seems to decrease with each passing year. I remember much colder Winters when I first moved to Dallas, but I complain a lot more now. It would be fine with me if I never see snow again.

I tried to get started on my new website project today. I looked at sites the client liked. I looked at their existing site. The longer I looked, the more I began to realize that there was nothing wrong with the existing site. Hmm. This might be a problem. It's hard to fix something that isn't broken.

I got another e-mail from Avid saying that my Pro Tools subscription was about to expire. I renewed the subscription again even though I can't remember using Pro Tools at all last year. It's really hard to turn loose of things that used to be the foundation of my business. Realistically, I may never use Pro Tools again because nobody hires me to write jingles or produce commercial music anymore. Oh, well. I'm ready if the need arises. I feel the same way about my large production printer. I keep buying ink for the monster, even though it is much more cost effective to get large posters printed online. Keeping these memories alive is getting expensive.

A friend in the neighborhood told me that he and his wife still remembered a Christmas card I'd sent them years ago. It had to be many years ago, because I haven't mailed out cards for over ten years. Times have certainly changed. Janet still gets a few cards from friends and relatives, but I just get those cards that your dentist and insurance agent send out. When we got our first Dalmatian, I used to make photo cards featuring Spot. Everybody liked Spot. Over the years the mailing list got smaller and eventually disappeared. Christmas is pretty low-key these days. We'll get Dash some fancy dog treats and have a nice Christmas dinner. Then I'll put the tree away until next year.

I hope it warms up soon. During cold spells, I feel like hibernating until Spring like a bear. I used to want to move to Wyoming, but I'm convinced that I could never handle the Winters. I went to high school in Alaska, so I'm familiar with cold weather. I just don't like it anymore. I always use to wonder why so many old people moved to Florida when they retired. Now I know.

I'm not sure what I'll do tomorrow. I'll probably stare at the computer for a while, hoping to come up with an idea for my new website project. The weather app on my phone says it's going to rain. That's not welcome news. I'm not going to even bother to go up on the roof again until the sun comes out. I may be stupid, but I'm not that stupid.

Alvin is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2915

Our power is out. I'm better prepared than I used to be, but power outages are always a hassle. It doesn't help that it's cold outside today. I can already feel the temperature dropping in the house. We're got lights this time. During our last power outage I discovered that the LED light panels I use for video production will run for a long time on Anton Bauer batteries. They're really bright too. I've got backup power for the laptop and phones, along with an alternate source of WiFi. If they restore the power tonight, everything is fine. We've had power outages last as long as four days though, so we're not out of the woods yet.

The main problem I've had so far is that I forgot my Google password and couldn't access my Blogger dashboard from the laptop. I didn't want to reset the password because then I would have to use the e-mail on the laptop to confirm the new password and thousands of messages stored on the server would come flooding into my mailbox as soon as I opened it. Luckily, I have a pretty hefty backup battery, so I fired up the big desktop computer for a while, just so I could retrieve my Google password. I probably expended twenty minutes of battery life by doing this, but now I'm online.

Before the power went out it was a fairly normal day. We walked Dash, ate breakfast, and did our Sunday chores. I had plenty of time to go to the gym and wonder about the meaning of life while I exercised. Whenever I go to the gym I become very aware of how repetitive everyday life is. It always takes me 62 minutes to complete my workout. If I took me 66 minutes, I would think something was wrong. Much of my day is this way. I brush my teeth the same way every evening. I go to bed at the same time. The same ingredients go into my smoothie every morning. Everything is as familiar as the steady pace I maintain on the treadmill while I'm at the gym.

Dash is the wild card. Something is always changing with Dash and this is probably why I worry so much. Does it mean anything if his poop gets soft or his appetite changes? Dash has so many things wrong with him that I'm sure that everything I observe means something. You'd have to be a highly trained vet to intrepret these subtle clues though. Most of the time I'm just guessing. Today Dash seemed fine. He ate all his breakfast. He had lots of energy on his walks. Actually, Dash is pretty consistent. There are just occasional moments of raw panic when something goes wrong.

I don't know why I thought we were through with power outages. Tonight was a reminder that just because things are going smoothly doesn't mean that problems won't return. Problems always return. When I got a new roof I thought I'd never have roof problems again. That honeymoon didn't last long. The sad fact is that sometime when I least expect it, the car won't start. Someday another water pipe will break. Someday, I'll be rushing Dash to the emergency room again. That's just the way life is.

I took some satisfaction in how well prepared I was tonight. We weren't sitting in the dark. The oven didn't work, but we had plenty of vegetables and Janet fixed a delicious salad for dinner. My backup power sources worked perfectly. After dinner, Janet watched Netflix movies while I wrote tonight's blog entry. If it wasn't for the fact that the entire neighborhood was completely dark, it was just a normal Sunday evening.

Hopefully, our power will be restored soon. I've got plenty of sweaters, but I do like a warm house. I wonder if I could make my smoothie using the backup batteries. Maybe not. That Vitamix is one powerful blender.

Duke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2914

The weather turned nasty today. As the day progressed, it continued to get colder and around mid-afternoon it started to rain. Since it rarely snows in Dallas, this is how I remember Winter. There is something about a cold winter rain that is particularly miserable. It's hard to warm up on days like this. Since Janet doesn't like me to crank up the heat, I'm walking around the house wearing a wool skullcap and duck down camping booties. I need to find the little ceramic heater I keep under my desk in the winter. The little electric heater works like gangbusters but I've become reluctant to use it as I grow older. I'm much more forgetful now and I'd hate to start a house fire by forgetting to unplug the thing when I go to bed at night. Dash is also a problem. He likes to sleep under my desk during the day and I don't want him to inadvertently burn himself. For the moment, the wool hat is doing a fine job of keeping me warm.

What's the one thing you should never do on a rainy day? Maybe you should avoid washing the car. Well, that's exactly what I did this morning. In my defense, it wasn't raining earlier in the day, but I kind of knew the rain was coming. What can I say. I like a clean car. I'm definitely less likely to go anywhere tomorrow. The car will probably just sit under the carport until everything is dry again.

We had a nice walk this morning, but Dash and I got caught in the rain on our afternoon walk. We should have made it home before the rain began, but I keep forgetting how slow Dash has become. Dash used to speed up when it started to rain. Now, he just keeps poking along, smelling every wet bush along the way. Rain must intensify smells, because Dash spends a lot more time smelling things on rainy days. When we got home, I dried Dash off and threw our wet gear in the dryer. I still haven't warmed up yet.

One of the many things I dislike about winter is that it's much harder to find the dog poop in the yard. The poop blends in with all the leaves on the ground and just disappears. When Dash goes out at night, I have to mark the spot with a colorful piece of plastic. Otherwise, I'll never be able to find it in the morning. There's always one surefire way to find poop in the yard. Just wander around the yard for a few minutes and it will inevitably wind up on your shoes. Yes, I got dog poop on my shoes today. It kind of fit the mood of the day.

I used to watch movies on cold winter days, but the only thing I'm even vaguely interested in seeing is Bladerunner 2049 and it won't be available for streaming until sometime next year. Remember how excited I used to be about Dr. Who? I'm not even interested anymore. I didn't watch the last season at all and I doubt that I'll watch the new season either. I don't know if the show has changed or I have changed, but the writing seems terrible now. The show doesn't seem whimsical or inspired. It just seems stupid. Of course, the shows I do watch seem stupid too, but I just use them to go to sleep. Nothing puts me to sleep quicker than an old episode of Perry Mason or The Twilight Zone that I've seen ten times already.

If the weather clears up, I'll go to the gym tomorrow. If the weather gets worse, I'll take a nap with Dash. Sounds like a plan to me.

Hannah is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2913 - Blogiversary

I have no idea why I sat down on this day in 2009 and started a blog. On my very first post, I promised to write something new everyday for at least six months. That initial six months came and went and I just kept on writing. I can't imagine stopping now. So far, I haven't missed a single day. Blogging for 3000 consecutive days now seems within reach and if I'm lucky enough to live that long, I still hope that I'll have something to say on Day 5000. It's been a long journey. Priorities have changed. Aches and pains have increased. Several beloved dogs have gone to the Rainbow Bridge. There are fewer observations about work and more ruminations about social security. I'm growing older, but unfortunately I don't feel any wiser. We all learn from our experiences, but few of us learn enough.

Dot and Dash were young and healthy when I started writing. Now only Dash remains and he is quickly becoming old and frail. Surprisingly, my own health is actually better. I had Hepatitis C when I started blogging and now I don't. Sovaldi wasn't even invented yet in 2009, so occasionally waiting for a cure is the right thing to do. I no longer travel to Europe to work on ad campaigns for international corporations. Truthfully, I no longer work on much of anything. Blogging isn't popular anymore, but that doesn't seem to matter. I'm sure I'll keep on writing even if nobody is reading.

Today was a typical Friday. I took Dash for a walk after Janet left for work and had to change course on the way home after another encounter with a loose dog. Why are there so many loose dogs now? This dog might have been friendly but I wasn't going to take any chances. I've been bitten too many times. So has Dash. I still go out for breakfast on Friday mornings, but I've never found a replacement for the now defunct restaurant that got me started on this ritual. My appetite isn't what it used to be. The first few bites this morning were delicious, but I couldn't finish my meal. I need to find a place that will let me order from the children's menu.

The small compact camera I always carry while walking the dogs broke today. This was frustrating because there are no camera repair stores in Dallas anymore and I knew that sending the camera back to the manufacturer for repair would cost more than buying a new camera. I had nothing to lose, so I tried to fix the camera myself. I carefully disassembled as much as I could and looked inside with a watchmakers loupe. I saw a tiny sliver of plastic that seemed to be blocking an electrical connection. Using the smallest pair of watch repair tweezers I could find, I carefully removed the plastic and put the camera back together again. Amazingly, it works.

Dash is still doing well. He has more energy now and has even started getting me up in the morning like he used to. I don't think we'll ever be able to get him to eat dry food again, but that's OK. We've found a way to keep him eating and that's all that counts. He hasn't thrown up recently and there seems to be fewer vestibular incidents. Let's hope this trend continues.

I haven't been to the gym recently, but maybe I'll find time this weekend. This time of year is always pretty hectic.

Jasper is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2912

I'm done with the roof for a while. I applied the last of the elastomer coating this morning. I've applied twelve gallons of the stuff so far. I'm guessing that it would take about thirty gallons to cover the entire roof. I've sure I'll end up buying more of the stuff at some point, but now isn't the time. You're not supposed to apply the coating in cold weather and the stuff is very expensive. Whatever I've done so far is going to have to survive until Spring.

If I knew what I know now, I would never have selected this type of roof. It was designed for commercial and warehouse buildings. Old houses in an area filled with large trees are much different. My house has settled over the years and the roof is no longer completely level. Whenever it rains, the low spots fill with standing water. In the Fall, Oak leaves from the backyard trees fall into this water and stain it a dark brown. I'm convinced that the tannin in the leaves causes some sort of chemical reaction that causes the elastomer material to break down and eventually disintegrate. There was a reason that the house originally had a tar and gravel roof. The old tar and gravel performed much better than the new high tech roof solutions people recommend now. Unfortunately, very few people know how to do a tar and gravel roof anymore. They might not even be allowed these days. The tar might be a fire or environmental hazard and the gravel that covers the tar and provides extra insulation adds a lot of extra weight to the top of the house. Tar and gravel roofs, like asbestos, have fallen out of favor.

Although I managed to patch a few more marginal areas on the roof without ruining my clothes, that was about all I accomplished today. I did a little research on my next website project, but I'm not ready to commit to a design. This new project makes me nervous because I think the client is expecting too much. Websites can make it easier for customers to find you or learn about your products, but they can never fix a flawed business plan.

Dash has had several good days in a row. This often lulls me into thinking that he's cured. I know that the vertigo and nausea associated with vestibular disease will return at some point, but for the moment everything is normal again. Dash has a good appetite and isn't as picky about his food. He seems to enjoy taking walks again. This is all good. I have no idea what is happening with the blood clots inside his heart, but at least he's breathing normally at night again. I'm sure that the partial tear in his cruciate hasn't completely healed, but the knee brace seems to help. There are so many things to worry about with Dash that it's no surprise that one of my favorite things is to just take a nap with him and forget about all the medical issues for a while.

I did see some meteors last night. I didn't have the patience to sit out in the cold for long enough to see many, but the meteors I did observe were quite bright. They were also quite fast. If I blinked, I might have missed them. They always say to observe meteor showers you should find a place where the sky is very dark and there are no street lights or passing cars. Then you should let your eyes adjust to the darkness for twenty or thirty minutes before you begin observing. Like that's ever going to happen. If I sat out in the park for thirty minutes at night, I'd probably be eaten by coyotes. I usually run out in the back yard for five minutes and if I don't see anything, I give up.

I've take the trash out to the curb and give Dash his evening pills. Usually Janet gives Dash his meds, but she's at an office Christmas party tonight. My little office doesn't have parties, but I did have an extra cookie for dessert tonight.

Lance is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2911

I spend way too much time dealing with some minuscule website problems just to avoid going up on the roof. The weather was perfect. I just didn't feel like dealing with the messy elastomer today. I'll probably regret this later because we don't get that many really warm days in December. Maybe I'll deal with the roof tomorrow, or maybe I'll just decide that it's already good enough to survive the winter.

Dash had a great day. His appetite was good. He was eager to go on a walk. And there were no signs of vertigo or dizziness. You never know from day to day how he's going to feel, but I'm always happy when he has a good day. The only problem we encountered today was another loose dog we saw on our walk. Dash usually notices these dogs before I do and we change our route to avoid them. It's a shame that so many people refuse to keep their dog on a leash. You can't even talk to most of them. They're convinced that they are doing the right thing.

I can't decide whether to go out and look for meteors tonight. This is supposed to be the best night for viewing the annual Geminid Meteor Shower. If I lived in a place with dark skies, the Geminids would probably be spectacular this year. I live in Dallas though and the light pollution in town is terrible. I've only seen one or two meteors the entire time I've lived here. You never know though. Maybe I'll see something when I take Dash out to pee just before we all go to bed.

Today was so uneventful that I looked forward to taking the water bill to the post office. I could pay almost all my bills online, but I still like going to the post office. I haven't even started shopping yet, but there was already a long line of people waiting to mail their Christmas packages. I dropped my envelope in a mail slot and left. I may enjoy mindless trips to the bank and post office, but I hate standing in lines.

I couldn't find anyone to talk about my newly completed website project, so I just went ahead and launched it. I've done this before and it usually takes clients at least a week to even notice that something has changed. Sadly, websites aren't a big deal anymore. They're kind of like Yellow Pages ads used to be. Eventually I'll get some feedback on the site. Hopefully, everyone will like it. It's always nice when people appreciate something you've spent weeks putting together. So, what happens if people hate the new site? Who knows. I guess I could always put the old site back up.

I tried to think what to get people for Christmas this year and I'm coming up with nothing. My mind's a blank. It's too bad that I have no faith in gift cards anymore. Gift cards used to be such an easy solution but I don't think I'll ever buy one again after we got scammed last summer. I asked Janet what she wanted for Christmas and she said she'd like me to clean out my office. That's about like asking me to grow wings and fly.

Cookie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2910

I think I'm finished with my website project. I haven't shown it to anyone yet, so maybe being finished is just wishful thinking. Let's just say it looks nice, it works, and if the universe was fair, I'd definitely be finished. I have mixed feelings about work these days. I enjoy what I do and still like to stay busy, but I'm so close to retirement that it's getting harder to stay engaged. Does this stuff even matter anymore? I'm not sure.

Dash had me worried today. He was fine until right after lunch and then he abruptly became disoriented and started drooling. For a while I thought he was going to throw up, but he didn't. This was definitely a vestibular event, but it wasn't a severe one. I convinced Dash to take a nap with me and pretty soon he went to sleep. When he woke up a few hours later, he was fine. I wish I knew what triggered these vestibular events. He can go for several months without having any problems at all and then there will be periods where he gets disoriented almost every day. Luckily, his recent episodes don't seem to last more than an hour or two.

I was reluctant to leave Dash today, but there were prescription that needed to be filled. I picked up my own meds first and then went to the vet to get pills for Dash. I'm always worried that Dash is going to throw up right after I give him his pills. Timing is everything now. We've learned that he's more likely to throw up at night, so we've started give him his evening meds earlier. In the morning, we observe him for a while before feeding him anything to make sure he is stable. It's all a bit complicated, but Janet and I are getting better at anticipating when the next vestibular event will occur.

It's still too cold to go back up on the roof, but I managed to get quite a bit done today anyway. Breakfast was a failure again. My morning smoothie still has a weird, thick jello-like consistency. Is this week's fruit not juicy enough? Are the bananas too hard? Have the programmed settings on the Vitamix quit working? I can't figure this out at all. Maybe I'll just fix myself an omelet tomorrow.

Does anybody really know what a bitcoin is? The insane increase in value of these things recently has got me wondering. Is it a scam, or is it the future of money and banking? I still can't understand what a blockchain is and why it is so important. They say it takes a tremendous amount of computing power to make a bitcoin transaction. The whole process apparently uses up so much energy that bitcoin is supposed to be bad for the environment. If this is true, why are people in California fascinated by these things? Are bitcoins even real? Nothing tangible even exists. My own investments seem boring by comparison, but I don't think I'm ready to buy a bitcoin. I'm still getting used to Paypal.

I'll probably start on my next website project tomorrow. I don't have the job yet, but I'll have to put together a proposal. It would be tempting to utilize some of the things I've learned on my current website project before I forget them again. Then there's Christmas.  I haven't even started Christmas shopping. It's hard to shop for people my age and older. We don't really need anything.

Emmitt is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2909

I'm always puzzled when consistency produces inconsistent results. This morning I made my morning smoothie the same way I always do. I dumped the same ingredients into the same Vitamix and turned it on for the same length of time. This time instead of something that resembled a milkshake, I got something that resembled Jello. How did this happen? I debated whether to dump the stuff into a bowl and eat it with a spoon, but decided to just add some more water and run the mixer again. It was a small thing, but I wondered about it all morning.

I wish everything was consistent. There is nothing consistent about taking care of Dash. Every day is full of surprises. It's quite a challenge to get him to eat regular meals. Ever since his last bad vestibular seizure, he's been a very picky eater. We have to keep at least five brands of dog food in the house, because you never know what he'll eat on any given day. He'll eagerly eat something for several days, and then all the sudden, he won't touch the stuff. We've learned to give him a little bite of something before we fill his bowl, because you never know. I think he still has a very healthy diet, but it gets confusing. Today he loved his breakfast, but wouldn't eat the same thing for dinner. If he refuses something, we'll set it aside and see if he'll eat it later. Our refrigerator is full of food waiting for just the right moment.

I got a letter from the government today saying that there will be a cost of living adjustment to my social security payment next year. This was the first increase we've gotten in several years. I was all excited until I read the fine print and discovered that I'll be getting $25 more every month. $25? You're kidding me. I'm sure that will take care of inflation. It still kind of bugs me when I hear politicians call social security an entitlement. Like most people my age, I've paid into social security for my entire working life. It will still be quite a few years before I've taken out more than I put in. Unless I beat the family longevity average, I may never take out more than I put in. It's a shame. If we'd been given the opportunity to take that money that was deducted from our paychecks every month and invest it ourselves, most of us would have done a lot better.

I need to get serious about eliminating sugar from my diet again. I did really well for almost three years, but gradually my sweet tooth has been creeping back. Wheat and grains are almost as bad as sugar because they are converted to glucose so easily by your body. My problem is that I love bread, pasta, pancakes, and almost anything made from grain. I've explored Ketogenic and Paleo diets but they seem way too extreme for me. They are also a lot of trouble. There should be more healthy eating restaurants where you can explore delicious, sugar free low carb meals without a lot of trouble. Maybe these places already exist, but I just don't notice them because I'm too distracted by pancake houses and barbecue joints.

I took a ridiculously small check to the bank today and send out my December invoices so I'll get some more ridiculously small checks next month. I'm glad I had some good years, because this is no way to run a business. I don't know how young people in my line of work survive these days. Everybody thinks they're a photographer or filmmaker and a host of things that used to be lucrative for creative people like me are now expected to be free. If I had a kid I'd tell them to learn how to repair robots. That's where we're headed.

A loose dog in the neighborhood chased Dash and I last week. The owner came running after the dog and nobody was hurt, but now Dash won't walk down that street anymore. Sad. Little by little, our world keeps contracting.

Savannah is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2908

The Christmas tree is up. It's a small tree and all the ornaments are Dalmatians. Periodically new ornaments are added and occasionally ornaments are removed. Most of the Dalmatians with angel wings are now sitting on top of the little urns on the coffee table that contain the ashes of Spot, Petey, Greta, Mindy, and Dot. We don't put presents under the tree anymore. Once the dogs realized that many of them contained treats for them, they wouldn't leave the packages alone.

Before I could deal with the Christmas tree, I had to remove all the equipment from yesterday's photo shoot. I put away the things that had a place in the office and took the rest of the stuff to the storage warehouse. Every time I visit my storage space, I  realize that the day is coming when I'll have to come to terms with all this clutter. The warehouse has become a black hole that sucks up everything I can't figure out what to do with. There are a few treasures here and there, but most of the stuff is old equipment that isn't useful anymore, but will never be collectible either. It will take an enormous amount of energy to clean this place up and I'm not sure I'm up to the task.

With all the Santa Paws gear out of the way and the Christmas tree in place, I realized that the house was very dirty. I spent the rest of the day vacuuming, changing sheets, and cleaning dog blankets. Dash's protective boots were starting to look threadbare, so I repaired them too. The house doesn't really look much better, but at least I tried.

When we took Dash on his morning walk, there were lots of people preparing for the BMW Dallas Marathon. This used to be called the White Rock Marathon, but I guess everything has a corporate sponsor now. I'm not a runner, but this was definitely a beautiful day for a race. It is almost a tradition to have terrible weather for this marathon. Our house is fairly close to the course and we've watched runners compete in pouring rain many times.

When I returned to the park for Dash's afternoon walk, the same crews that were setting up things things this morning were tearing everything down again. By tomorrow morning, all the signage, rest stations, and temporary parking will be gone. I like the park best when nothing is happening and all I hear are ducks quacking. Our walks are really the only time when Winter weather is welcome. Our dogs have always liked cooler weather and I like the fact that the bicycles virtually disappear. On nice days there are bicycles everywhere and I have to be careful that we don't get run over. On chilly days, Dash and I have the park to ourselves.

Dash didn't have a Cerenia pill yesterday and he still seemed completely normal today. This is good news. I'm sure that Dash will have a vestibular episode again, but maybe he can catch a break and enjoy a few months as a normal dog. This disease never really goes away, but the symptoms can subside for months at a time. Dash is lucky that he still seems to be able to recover from these periodic episodes. Some dogs don't.

I'm not sure what I'll be doing tomorrow. There are lots of things around the house that still need attention and I'm not finished with my website project either. There are fresh strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and bananas for my morning smoothie, so I guess we'll start there.

Princess is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2907

Another year of Santa Paws has come and gone. Today was a big success and I'm pretty sure that we photographed even more dogs than we did last week. We had a several very large dogs today, one cat, a very well behaved baby, and a chinchilla. I don't think I've ever seen a chinchilla before. They have large ears and look like someone tried to breed a rabbit with a rat.

We photographed quite a few Dalmatians today. Dalmatians are very photogenic, but they have lots of energy. Every year I always have at least one photo of a Dalmatian flying through the air trying to escape from Santa's arms. A nervous Husky was the only dog who peed on the backdrop this year and nobody knocked anything over. I operate the strobes on low power now and move the lights in a little closer to get the same exposure. By babying the equipment this way, maybe I can squeeze one more year out of it.

I was pleased at how well things went this year. We've been doing these Christmas pet pictures for almost a decade now and there are few disaster anymore. We've definitely learned how to photograph dogs. I'm not as nimble as I used to be but I feel foolish even mentioning my somewhat minor aches and pains. Our leader had knee replacement surgery last week and it didn't seem to slow her down a bit. Every year I wonder how much longer we can continue doing this. Judging by how well things went today, I think we'll be back next year.

I feel bad about leaving Dash at home so long when we do these photo shoots, but there is no other alternative. Janet and I are both needed at these events and Dash hates riding in the car. He seemed fine at home today. There were no vestibular events and every time we checked him on the baby monitor, he was just sleeping on the bed. It was a very long day, but Dash still got a walk just before sunset. It was amazing he got a walk at all today. Janet left for home earlier than I did, but we both got caught in a horrible traffic jam on the freeway. There was an accident and it took over an hour to inch our way past the wreck.

The photo equipment is still piled up in the hallway, but I'm going to get organized tomorrow and take it all back to the storage warehouse. I don't do many photo shoots anymore and there's a good chance that this stuff won't be needed again until next year. As soon as I get all the clutter cleared away, it will be time to put up the Christmas tree.

I doubt if I'll make it to the gym this week. I might not even make it to the grocery store. There's so much to do that I don't even know where to begin. Maybe Dash will let us sleep in tomorrow morning. That would be nice. I think I'll sleep well tonight. I'm very tired.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2906

It was so cold this morning that we decided Dash needed a sweater in addition to all the regular gear he wears on walks. I'm surprised he could move after we got him all bundled up. The sweater went on first. Then the Ruffwear harness was placed on top of the sweater. The knee brace attached to the harness and then came the socks. Finally, the rubber boots were placed over the socks and Dash was ready to go. We had to adjust several straps so all this would fit properly, but Dash took it all in stride.  He doesn't resist wearing this gear at all. I think he realizes that he is more sure footed now and that he can walk with more confidence. I hope he appreciated the sweater too, because it was only 28 degrees this morning.

I didn't go out for breakfast this morning because I had a meeting scheduled. I was a little worried about leaving Dash, but he slept well last night and had a lot of energy this morning. There were no visible signs that he was still having problems with his vestibular disease, so I decided it was OK to go.

It was kind of weird to have a business meeting again. I used to do this almost every single day and now it's all becoming a distant memory. The project sounded interesting and I hope I get the job. There is a website involved, but it's really more of a rebranding project. After a while my brain kicked into gear and I started spitting out ideas. It was almost like old times again. The meeting lasted a lot longer than I though it would, but when I got home Dash was fine. He woke up when I opened the front door, but it was obvious that he'd spent most of the morning sleeping on the bed. It didn't take him long to let me know he was ready for lunch. I'm really glad he's finally getting back to normal.

I was hoping to finish my website project today but that didn't happen. My morning meeting threw me off schedule for the rest of the day. By the time I fed Dash, took our regular afternoon walk, and did a few errands around the house, the day was over. I was feeling good that it was Friday and the long week was almost over and then I remembered that we've got another Santa Paws photo shoot tomorrow.

Most of the equipment is already packed and ready to go. All I had to do today was recharge the camera batteries. I'm glad that we didn't get snow like the Southern half of the state. I've got a long drive in the morning and it's going to be a lot easier on dry roads. I'll need to remember to dress warmly. Santa always gets hot inside his heavy red suit, so that means I'm almost always cold. I'm used to cold though. Both Janet and Dash like a cold house. I'm just the opposite. I'm wearing a jacket now and wishing there was a furnace vent under my desk.

The doctor I saw earlier this week called with my test results. Everything is fine. I've had some major health problems over the years, but most of them have been resolved. I wish I could say the same for Dash. He has a fabulous team of doctors and we do everything we can, but our little guy has never really been healthy. We think he probably came from a puppy mill, but like any rescue dog, we'll never know his early history. Dash might not have been dealt a good hand at birth, but we're doing our best to make sure he stays in the game. He's happy and comfortable now. We've all just got to keep taking things one day at a time.

Willow is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2905

It's supposed to freeze tonight. This isn't supposed to happen in Dallas, but here we are again. The Farmer's Almanac predicts a cold, snowy winter this year. I hope they aren't right. Cold weather is infrequent, so I'm usually not well prepared. I remembered to take the battery out of the electric lawn mower and bring it inside. One year I forgot and the battery was destroyed. I remembered to set the faucet on drip in the greenhouse for the same reason. One year I forgot and the pipes broke.

I really didn't want to go up on the roof today because it was so cold. I remembered what can happen when ice builds up on the roof though, and reluctantly cleared away all the standing water. It was a miserable job, but the good news is that the patches I've made recently appear to be solid. I wish I'd used up all the elastomer material now. The small amount that is still in the container probably won't be usable after a freeze. There used to be potted plants I would bring inside for the winter, but they are all dead now. I guess I'm as ready for cold weather as I'll ever be. I just hope that we don't have a power outage this winter. Some of my worst memories are of sitting inside a freezing house for four days, waiting for the power to be restored after an ice storm.

Dash woke us up last night to go outside, but luckily he wasn't sick. He just needed to poop. Even though he slept well, he still seemed a bit shaky this morning. He took a shorter walk than normal and didn't eat all his breakfast. Often it takes quite a while to fully recover from a vestibular event. When Dash is agitated of frightened, he doesn't like to be alone. I usually curl up with him on the bed until he relaxes and goes to sleep. Then I sneak off to the office and try to get some work done before he wakes up again.

I did some more work on my website project today. I suppose it's time to show something to the client, but I know as soon as I take that step, the fun is over. No matter how beautiful or functional I think things are, clients always want to change something. I didn't spend a huge amount of time selecting images for this project because I know that they are probably just placeholders. Pictures are so easy to change that they are never sacred. The best thing about this project is that the client wants to manage things themselves. When I hand over the keys, I'm probably done.

I finished all the left overs yesterday, so I made some pasta with whatever I could find in the refrigerator. I'm always surprised how tasty my desperation dinners are. Whole wheat noodles, Italian sausage, carrots, cucumbers, and tamarind sauce actually go together quite well. I'm too lazy to be much of a cook, but when I make an effort, the results are usually delicious.

I've got a rare client meeting tomorrow morning. I wish Dash had fully recovered by now, but as of this evening he seems a lot better. We'll see how he is in the morning. If he's shaky, I can always cancel the meeting. There just aren't any projects that matter that much anymore. Dash comes first. I hope Dash is feeling good tomorrow. It would be nice to make a little extra money.

Humphrey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2904

I can't resist taking a picture of Dash next to a fire truck. I have no idea who was being carried out on a stretcher, but it happens a lot in our neighborhood. We're all getting older.

We had our own medical emergency last night. Dash experienced a severe vestibular event and we were up half the night with him. In the past we have taken him to the emergency room when he has one of these episodes, but there is little if anything the vets can do. Now that we recognize the symptoms, we just try to keep him calm and ride it out. The vestibular episodes almost always start the same way. Dash will wake up during the night after sleeping calmly. Usually we will immediately notice that he is drooling. Since drooling is sometimes a precursor to throwing up, I'll take him outside. If he doesn't throw up and seems disoriented and unsteady on his feet, it is often the start of a vestibular seizure. Dash drooled a river last night and was very agitated for about an hour. When he started to calm down, we got him to lay down on a rug in the living room and I curled up next to him. I could tell his breathing was becoming more regular and in about fifteen minutes he fell asleep. I stayed with him until the drooling completely stopped and he seemed normal again. Then I eventually went back to bed. Later that night, Dash woke up and came back to bed with us. He was fine. I was tired the next morning though. I didn't get much sleep.

Vestibular disease is scary, because there is so little you can do. We keep a supply of anti-nausea pills on hand in case he shows signs of vertigo, but the pills don't take effect immediately. The main benefit of the Cerenia pills is if the vestibular events last for several days. The last time we experienced an event this bad was during the summer. Today Dash was completely normal. He ate well and took both of his regular walks. The vestibular disease never really goes away, but episodes like Dash experienced last night are infrequent. We've got enough to worry about with his heart problems. I hope he doesn't have another seizure for many months.

The weather was chilly again today, but there was no rain. I didn't go anywhere because I wasn't completely sure if Dash was back to normal yet. I'd hate for him to have a seizure when I wasn't there. There was plenty to do around the house. I returned to work on my website project and made a lot of progress. I think last night really tired Dash out because he slept a lot today. I always let sleeping dogs lie. It's the only way I get anything done. The website is looking pretty good now. I'm just about ready to turn it over to the client.

I had to renew a domain today and had a real problem turning off the auto-renew feature on my account dashboard. I hate auto-renew because very often I don't want to renew something again. At any rate, when I renewed the domain, my credit card information got captured by the website and all of the sudden I was a perpetual customer again. Damn. It took sitting on hold with tech support for almost an hour before I was able to talk with someone and get the problem resolved. A word of warning. If you sign up for Sirius XM radio, don't ever check the box that lets them auto-renew your subscription. They make it so difficult to leave that you're practically a customer for life.

I'm hoping I can finish the website tomorrow. I'm also hoping that Dash is back to normal. Sometimes the vertigo can last for several days. We gave him another Cerenia pill to help him sleep calmly tonight. I won't need a pill to get to sleep. I'm so tired that I'm falling asleep right now.

Emma is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day