Day 2569

Sometimes I feel like the bar that's being set for me keeps being raised a little higher every few weeks. Last night I found myself cleaning up Dot's poop in the kitchen at exactly the same time Dash was throwing up in the bedroom. It's a three ring circus around here. Needless to say, I didn't get to watch very much of the Dr. Who Christmas Special. Lord knows what makes Dash throw up, but it happens from time to time. Usually Dash has an upset stomach when he eats something bad he found in the yard. You might ask why I don't find the dead things first and get rid of them. I would, except that the yard is covered by a million Oak and Elm leaves that have fallen from our trees. I won't be able to find anything in the yard until Spring.

I made an appointment to take Dash to the vet, because when I was checking him out after he threw up, I noticed a small mass in his throat. This feels like a fatty lipoma to me, but since Dash has already had thyroid cancer and lost one lobe of his thyroid gland, I don't think I should let this one slide. It is always possible that another tumor is developing in the remaining part of his thyroid. I worry too much, but that is one reason why both dogs are still alive. I may be guilty of ignoring my own health, but I never ignore the dog's health.

Yesterday evening was far too distracting to sit down and watch the Dr. Who Christmas Special, although it was playing on both televisions. I got the general idea that this was a Superman and Lois Lane story wrapped around a typical alien invaders on Christmas Day story. I didn't think I'd like this one, since I'm getting tired of Peter Capaldi, but from what little I saw, the script seemed well written and clever enough to make me want to go back and watch the show again the next time I find some quiet time.

I'll never get used to Texas weather. After our recent cold spell. I really wasn't ready to start using the air conditioner again. It seemed to go from cold and dry to hot and humid almost overnight. I've had the air conditioner on for two days now. Go figure. At least the yard is finally drying out. I didn't need to clean the dog's paws nearly as often today.

Today must have been a holiday for people who have regular jobs. The park seemed really crowded for a weekday. At first I kept thinking "what are all these people doing skipping work," but I finally realized that since Christmas was on a Sunday, that offices were closed on Monday instead. Maybe if you were lucky, you got Friday off too. I haven't had a paid work holiday for decades. Of course there are those who think all my days are holidays, but they would be wrong.

I got an REI sale catalog in the mail and of course the one thing that caught my eye was something I'd never, ever use. It was a GPS satellite tracking device that lets you text people and send emergency messages when you're off the grid and far away from a cell tower. I haven't been off the grid since I was in college and if I had gotten in trouble, I would have been out of luck. Cell phones and GPS trackers weren't even invented yet.

I'm hoping for a quiet, uneventful day tomorrow. One can always hope.

Dash is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2568 - Christmas

It's been a very quiet Christmas. Dot and Dash were both sleeping soundly when I woke up, so I just stayed in bed until they started to stir. I need all the sleep I can get. I get up several times each night to see if Dot had pooped in her sleep, and then I change the Puppy Training Pads I've strategically placed under her if necessary. This usually works pretty well, unless she wakes up when I'm cleaning her up. It's amazing how soundly a dog can sleep. I wish I got that kind of sleep. I need it. My cold is finally getting better, but when Janet called to wish me a Merry Christmas this afternoon, I immediately started coughing again. I guess it was because I haven't used my voice in several days.

Yesterday Dot was eager to walk as soon as she'd finished her breakfast. Today, she wanted to go right back to bed as soon as I'd taken her outside to pee. Dash wasn't in a hurry to go anywhere either, so I ate my own breakfast. I thought about fixing myself something a bit more festive than my usual fruit smoothie, but I knew that bananas would probably get the dogs moving again. I was right. As soon as the dogs had finished sharing a banana with me while I drank my smoothie, Dash was ready to walk. It was still a grey, dreary day, but it wasn't nearly as foggy as yesterday. I probably would have forgotten it was Christmas if it weren't for two strangers who wished Dash and I a Merry Christmas as we passed them on our morning walk.

Dot was finally ready to go around 10 AM. It takes longer to walk Dot to the end of the street now than it takes to walk Dash a mile and a half. I wonder how long we can keep doing this? Each month Dot gets a little slower, but I can tell that she still enjoys the short walks. I wish the entrance to the park was a little closer. After all these years, Dot still loves to smell things in the park. There are so many animals that call the park home, that I'm sure this area is quite a sensory experience for a dog.

I've got to figure out how to give Dot a good bath. She's starting to smell like pee, despite my best efforts to clean her up. Janet thinks once of those mobile grooming trucks that come to your house might be a good idea, but I'm not sure if these people have much experience dealing with an injured dog. Dot's physical therapy vet could give her a bath, but it's such a long drive. Dot would probably poop in the car and get herself dirty again before we even got home.

I can remember when I sent out tons of Christmas Cards each year. They went to clients, co-workers, friends, and just about anybody I had an address for. It wasn't always the holiday spirit. Like many designers, I thought Christmas cards were a cool way to show people how creative you were. It was fun to print up something new and original every year. Times have certainly changed. I sent out exactly zero cards this year. I didn't receive many either. I still put a tree up, but I'm starting to wonder why.

I'll tape the Dr. Who Christmas Special this evening to watch later. This is Dot's restless time of the day and I've got a feeling that I won't be watching much television. All in all, it's been a calm and relatively peaceful day. It just doesn't feel like Christmas.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2567

Today was certainly different. Janet got up real early and went to the airport before I was fully awake. I vaguely remember saying goodby before I went back to sleep again. When I woke up, I noticed that I had done a terrible job cleaning up Dot when she pooped during the night. I guess I should have turned the light on, but I didn't want to wake anyone. At any rate, I failed to clean her completely and the poop had dried on her fur and blankets. It took a lot of time and a lot of wet rags to clean her properly.

Our new routine still starts by getting Dot outside to pee as soon as I can, but after that it gets more complicated. I give the dogs their morning meds and then feed them their breakfast. Dot gets her walk first and then I fix my own breakfast. Both dogs like to eat slices of banana while I have my morning coffee and drink my smoothie. Dash is lazy, but barking for bananas usually gets him energized enough so that he's ready for his own walk when breakfast is finished. When both dogs are back at the house, I wash the dishes and then go outside and see if I can find where Dash has pooped in the yard. If I don't do this, it is inevitable that I will step in the stuff when I take Dot out late at night. Today was somewhat of a work in progress, but I was amazed at how long everything took without Janet's help. By the time I had finished the complete morning routine and was ready to turn the computer on for the day, it was almost noon.

Once both dogs were sleeping, I took a quick shower and ran to the store, since everything will be closed tomorrow. The first thing on my list was a big box of puppy training pads. We are running through these things at an alarming rate. Now that Dot's incontinence is getting worse, I must use five of six of these things a day. The weather is so wet and humid that pee isn't the only problem. Both dogs track water and mud into the house every time they go out. Cleaning Dot's paws was always a two person job. Since she can't stand up properly, one person has to hold her up while the other cleans the paws. Did I mention the house is pretty dirty.

I hope I can refine my plan a bit in the days to come. I thought I'd try writing the blog in the morning when the dogs are sleeping, but that never happened. The walks took a lot longer than I expected and I needed to go to the store. When Dot is in her evening restless period, she is constantly whining to get up, wandering around aimlessly, and falling over if I'm not nearby to steady her. Consequently, I'm writing the blog one sentence at a time this evening.

Today was one of those foggy days that I love to photograph. Everything looks so ghostly in a thick blanket of fog. Dash had no interest in turning his morning walk into a photo excursion unfortunately. I grabbed a few quick shots with my phone, but that was about it. The sailboats on the lake are often quite beautiful in a thick fog, but I couldn't get near the sailboats with Dash. He just wasn't interested. Sure, I guess I could have gone back on my own later, but there wasn't enough time. There is never enough time these days. It took over an hour just to clean the poop off Dot this morning before we had breakfast. Hopefully, I'll wake up tonight before she has time to make a mess of herself again.

There's enough food to last until Janet gets back. I doubt that I'll have many work assignments between Christmas and New Years either. That leaves plenty of time to see if I can perfect caring for one sick dog and one crazy dog on my own. I still need to give the dogs their evening meds and then try my best to get Dot to pee outside before I put her to bed. If I can't get her to pee around 11 PM, she won't make it through the night.

The Dr. Who Christmas Special is tomorrow. Maybe I'll watch it. Maybe I won't. This is the first year in a long time that I'm not all that interested in Dr. Who.

Dash is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2566

Janet and I decided to go out for an early Christmas dinner before she leaves for the holidays. We went to Knife to try their burgers. Knife is basically a steakhouse, but after a well known food critic wrote that Knife's hamburgers were in his opinion the best in the entire world, I've been curious to try them. I'll have to say that I wasn't disappointed. These burgers were amazing.

I've learned not to check the pet cam when we are trying to do something enjoyable away from home. It always spoils everything. We had a relaxing and very enjoyable dinner, but I wasn't surprised to see that the house was a disaster when we returned. Dot is completely unpredictable now. When she poops, it might be ten hours before she goes again or ten minutes. I thought we had a chance this time, because she'd pooped about an hour before we left the house. It wasn't meant to be. My poop forensics abilities were able to determine that she'd heard a noise outside and pooped while she was struggling to get up and investigate. It's so much easier when Dot poops while she's asleep. This time she stepped in the stuff and tracked the mess all over her penned in area in the hallway. Three blankets and a large waterproof floor protector all needed to be hosed off and thrown in the washing machine. Dot needed quite a bit of cleanup herself.

Janet had a vacation day today, but it still seemed like a normal Friday to me. I checked to make sure the trash had been picked up, went out for my regular Friday morning breakfast, and then returned home to finish writing my last article before the Christmas holidays. I wrote the article quickly enough, but then I discovered that my client hadn't been receiving my mail all week because their IT department was blocking me again. This happens every couple of months and it is infuriating. Guys, how many times do I have to tell you that I'm not a spammer. I'm sure that there are a few spammers using Bluehost servers, but you don't have to block the entire hosting company to catch them. To make a long story short, it took more time to successfully send the article than it took to write it.

This has got to be the worst weather for fighting a cold. It's cold and damp outside and warm and dry inside. I'm constantly taking Dot out without adequate clothing, because there isn't time to bundle up. At least I've got a bunch of cough drops now. I'm surprised that the dogs haven't caught colds too. It's really nasty out. If Dot didn't need me, I'd probably spend the entire holiday weekend sleeping. It's almost certain that she's going to wake up at 5:30 AM tomorrow morning though, just like she always does. If I don't get her outside by 5:31, there will be pee on the floor.

I hope it dries out and warms up a bit tomorrow. There are too many wet leaves on the floor and too many wet paws on the bedspread. It would be nice if I quit coughing too. At least I didn't cough during dinner tonight. Dinner was definitely the high point of the day.

Ziggy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2565

I had to do some last minute Christmas shopping today, so I used my free time while the dogs were sleeping to make a quick trip to the mall. I'll have to remember that early mornings are a good time to go to the mall. Even though it was only a few days before Christmas, the crowds weren't that bad. I had no trouble finding a parking place. If I had waited until this afternoon to do my shopping, parking would have been impossible. Sad to say, I'm still not feeling the Christmas spirit. I navigated my way through the holiday shoppers and mall displays filled with thousands of Poinsettias as quickly as I could. My time is limited these days.

Dot was just starting to wake up when I returned and there was no poop on the floor, so I considered my trip a success. I should have gone to CVS and bought a giant bag of cough drops. I should have gone to the Container Store and bought some new wrapping paper. I should have done a lot of things while I was out, but I just didn't want to clean up any more poop.

Since I had already squandered today's productive time, I had trouble finishing my one remaining article. I literally had to write the thing one sentence at a time. I don't know why Dot is so active in the afternoons now. She sleeps from the time she returns from her morning walk until about 1 PM. After that, she tries her best to stay on all fours for the rest of the day. I think it's great that she's trying to walk around; I just wish she was more successful at it. To keep Dot from injuring herself, it is really essential that I have her back at all times. I follow her around, steadying her rear legs by holding up the rear of the Help 'Em Up harness. Dot is showing signs of dementia. Sometimes she just forgets where she is. Other times she is alert and seems like a young dog trapped in an old dog's body. I'm learning how to adjust to these changes and hope that she is too.

Caring for Dot has got me wondering what will happen to me when I get really old. Humans without strong family ties are pretty much on their own. It's bad enough now, and I'm still pretty healthy. I often feel like I am operating without a safety net. What would happen if I had a heart attack or fell off the roof? Nobody would even notice. Even if I managed to call 911, I worry that the dogs might escape or get taken to the pound when the EMT's arrived. With that in mind, my goal while Janet is away is just staying alive.

I wish I could shake off this cold. It has lingered far longer than I thought it would. I still haven't taken any antihistamines. I just try to remember to keep a few cough drops in my pockets in case I need to talk with someone. The cough drops won't cure anything, but they do seem to prevent violent coughing spasms. It probably doesn't help matters that I race out of the house every morning in my underwear, trying to keep Dot from peeing on the floor. Once I see her start to wake up, there just isn't time to get dressed. I was successful this morning, but the odds are about 50/50 that we won't make it to the door.

I guess I'll finish writing my article tomorrow. I don't think there's much else on the agenda. I'm going to try my best to go out for breakfast in the morning. I've had to skip my weekly breakfast outing for several weeks in a row due to bad weather or dog emergencies. A tasty meal and an hour or two of peace and quiet can make a big difference.

Two sisters are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2564 - Winter Solstice

Today was the shortest day of the year, but it sure seemed long to me. I've just about given up hope of ever getting anything but the bare necessities done. I wonder sometimes when I ever had time to run a busy and successful company. I have to remember that the dogs were young and healthy then. Back in the day, I even had time to play in a rock band, compose and record songs in a home studio, and spend weekends building a fashion photography portfolio that would end up launching me on a whole new career. In those days I had no dogs at all. When I'm feeling sorry for myself, I sometimes miss the freedom I once had, but I wouldn't trade my life with Dalmatians for anything. Dot and Dash are my best friends. My purpose in life is to keep them as safe and healthy as I can. They don't know it, but their purpose in life has been to save me. Let's just say that life was kind of shallow before I was introduced to the joys and sorrows of sharing life with a dog.

The days will start getting longer now, but I don't think I'll notice anything for a while. If I remember correctly, sunsets will continue getting shorter for a while and daylight will slowly increase with an earlier sunrise. The only thing I like about the short days is that it's easy to capture some nice sunset shots. Dash hates walking in the dark though, so he's not happy. I have to walk Dot first, so she'll be tired and sleep when it's time to walk Dash. If I reverse the order of things, Dot tends to get anxious and there's a good chance she'll poop all over the place. I feel bad that Dash gets short changed sometimes, but what are you going to do? We're all doing the best we can.

I paid my property taxes today. I think that's the last big bill of the year, so I guess I survived 2016. I hate that expenses keep going up, while my income keeps going down. It kind of takes a lot of the fun out of getting old. My only hope for 2017 is that the stock market rally will continue. Events can easily change things, but there's a good chance that the rally could continue. I think lower tax rates and fewer regulations will help businesses of almost any size.

I think the bird that poops on my car every Winter has returned with several friends. There is more bird poop on the car in the mornings now than there ever was before. These birds don't seem to be frightened of my rubber snake either. There's not much you can do about pooping birds. You can't catch them. In the city, you can't shoot them. I don't think you can reason with them either. I'd build these guys a nice birdhouse if they'd just leave my car alone.

I may have to write my blog in the mornings while Janet is away for the holidays. Evenings are Dot's active time and she hates being left alone. Sometimes Janet sits next to her on the floor and watches movies on her iPad. Other times she walks her up and down the hall while I'm writing. Janet had to work real late tonight and it was kind of a preview of what's to come. Dot didn't like me being in another room and writing at all. We'll figure out a solution. There's always a solution.

At least it was warmer today. We didn't have to bother with all the cumbersome dog coats.

Willow is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2563

I'm exhausted. My cold should be over by now, but it still persists. By Texas standards, the cold weather should be over by now too, but temperatures were still in the teens when we woke up this morning. I feel like I'm in some weird kind of boot camp. I get up early and go to bed late. In between, I clean up pee and poop, do laundry, and tend to the needs of a crippled dog who seems to have more energy than I do. It's very tiring.

I thought I'd try to write my remaining article right after breakfast, when Dot and Dash typically sleep. This was a good idea, but I guess I didn't write fast enough. Dot woke up before I finished and the last paragraph took longer to write than all of the preceding paragraphs combined. I didn't have a lot of luck with Dot today. She pooped while I was getting her food ready and was so excited to get to her bowl that she stepped in the poop and tracked it all over the kitchen. After I got this mess cleaned up, I thought she'd be safe for a while, but when I returned from walking Dash, I discovered that she'd pooped again.

I got a letter from Social Security informing me of my 2017 cost of living adjustment. I'm going to get an additional ten dollars a month. $10? What kind of cost of living adjustment is that? I don't know why they even bother. I'm almost certain that it cost the government more than $10 just to inform me of the news. I wish that Social Security didn't even matter, but it does. It matters to most people my age. As I grow older, I'm sure it will matter even more in the future.

I eventually did manage to finish my article and send it off to the client. I paid a few bills that were stacking up on my desk and that was it. The day was gone. I think I'm caught up now, so maybe tomorrow will be a little easier. I always think that tomorrow is going to be a little easier, but usually I'm wrong. I try my best to relax, but I'm not very good at relaxing. Today I thought I'd try some controlled breathing exercises while I was helping Dot wander around in the back yard. One channel of my brain was calm and serene, but there was still a back channel that was silently screaming "For the love of god, can you hurry up and pee. I'm freezing out here."

Tomorrow is the shortest day of the year. I guess that's why I've been taking so many sunset pictures lately. It's dark when we start on our morning walk and it's dark by the time I finish taking Dash on his evening walk. There was a pretty sunset tonight, but I liked the early morning picture of Dash in his Winter duds better. I suspect that I'll be taking more sunset pictures tomorrow evening. There really isn't enough light to photograph anything else.

I can't believe that Christmas is this weekend. I'm dreading Christmas this year. Janet leaves to visit her family soon and I'm still trying to figure out how to manage the dogs morning and evening routines myself. Janet has made me a labeled packet of the dog's pills for each day she is gone. That will help. I've been practicing walking Dot by myself. She's even slower without Dash to follow, but she is willing to walk by herself. That's good too. I'm already an expert at cleaning up poop. I guess we'll be fine.

Lexi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2562

I feel like we're embarking on a journey to the South Pole each time we get ready for our morning walk. There are so many layers now to ward off the cold. Dash wears a snug black sweater under his red service dog harness. Dot wears a modified puffy coat over her Help ‘Em Up harness. Both dogs have fleece lined hats that actually fit properly on their heads, so they don't immediately shake them off. It's always easier to dress the dogs first. I wear a lightweight technical climbing jacket under a heaver goose down coat. I'm not sure what Janet wears, but she looks warm. I have to remember to pee before I pull on the compression pants that go under my regular pants. I hate that compression pants don't have a fly. My hiking boots go on last, so I won't track mud through the rest of the house. This all might seem a bit excessive, since the temperatures aren't below zero or anything, but you have to remember that we're Southerners.

I"ll be glad when warmer weather and a sense of sanity returns. I don't know about you, but I've had enough of this polar vortex. Everything seems to take longer when it's cold. There are so many leaves on the ground now that I have to drop brightly colored plastic markers when the dogs poop at night, so I can find the stuff the next morning. The outdoor faucets are frozen, so it's gotten a little harder to clean Dot up after she's made a mess. On a more positive note, there's hardly any condensation on the windows this year. The dehumidifier is really doing its job. The furnace is running constantly, so I think I made a good repair. Even though the thermostat says the temperature is normal inside the house, I still feel cold most of the day. I'm just not a Winter person.

I had a couple of articles to write today, but I only managed to finish one of them. Before Dot got sick, I could easily finish four articles in a single day when it was necessary. Those days are gone. When Dot wakes up from her morning nap, she tries to stay on her feet the rest of the day. Sometimes she barks when she needs help and other times I just find her stuck in a corner somewhere. I have to remember to gate her out of bathrooms with tile floors, because she'll immediately fall on the slick surface. For the most part, I try to walk behind her and hold her up while she meanders around the house. She likes her independence though, so when she's feeling strong, I still let her try to walk on her own. If I ignore her for even ten minutes, she's almost certain to poop or pee on something. It makes for a busy and somewhat stressful day.

After a multi-million dollar ad campaign featuring Hollywood celebrities, protests in major cities, and even death threats, only two electors failed to vote for Donald Trump. Meanwhile, seven electors tried to defect from Hillary Clinton. Jill Stein's expensive recount effort actually ended up netting Trump hundreds of additional votes in Wisconsin. I really don't understand why it is so hard for some people to be pragmatic and accept reality. You lost. Contrary to what some might think, the Electoral College wasn't created to prevent Donald trump from becoming president. It was created to prevent a few people in large population centers from imposing their will on the entire country. The Electoral College is a good thing. Without it, many states wouldn't have a voice at all. I'm happy that the people of Vermont, North Dakota, and Wyoming have a voice. We need this balance. Lord help us if the people of San Francisco ever started making the rules for everyone.

The election is over and I'm ready to move on. I'm also ready for this nagging cold to be over. When I was running errands today, a checkout clerk asked me if I wanted a printed or e-mail receipt and when I started to answer it triggered a horrible coughing fit instead. It was embarrassing to say the least. Since I couldn't speak, I just grabbed my bag and ran coughing from the store. Here's hoping that the weather will be warmer tomorrow and my sore throat, cough, and chest congestion will miraculously disappear.

Ranger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2561

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

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

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

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

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

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

Alvin is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2560

The weather couldn't have been weirder today. The temperature was warm and humid this morning. I even turned on the air conditioner for a while, because it was almost 80 degrees. Everything changed around 1 PM. After that point the temperature started to drop swiftly. I think it's been dropping at last five degrees an hour all afternoon. Add the wind chill effect from a really stiff wind and you've got some nasty conditions. It is supposed to get colder for the rest of the night, with single digit temperatures around sunrise.

Not surprisingly, the dogs don't like this weather at all. They enjoy cooler temperatures, but dealing with a polar vortex is another matter entirely. Dot dutifully walked to the end of our street, seemingly perplexed by the sudden change that had taken place. Dash wouldn't go outside at all. I don't blame the dogs for their reluctance, but it sure would have been nice if they'd both pooped. Now we've got to deal with taking them out in the back yard over and over again as the temperature drops even further.

I washed the car this morning while it was still warm. I don't know why a clean car is such a big deal to me. Maybe it's because it's one of the few things that is still under my control. A clean house is hopeless these days, but a clean car is still possible. I did change the sheets today and washed three rugs that Dot peed on this morning, but the house is far from clean. We're in the process of changing our rug configuration. In the future, all rugs will be small enough to fit in the washing machine. The really large area rugs are simply too hard to clean. In the Summer you could take these large rugs outside and hose them off. They would be dry again the same day. It's a different story now. If I tried to clean a rug outside now, it would remain damp for the rest of the Winter.

I wish I knew who was selling my cell phone number to telemarketers. My land line has been inundated with telemarketers for years, but until recently my cell phone has remained relatively immune from this nuisance. The older I get, the more telemarketing calls I get. I'm sure people think that once you reach a certain age, you will become senile enough to fall for their ridiculous sales pitch. I'm still sharp enough to realize that these people aren't my friends. I rarely answer my phone at all.

My cold is getting worse.Today I had a sore throat, chest congestion, coughing, and a runny nose. As colds go, this is pretty much the whole nine yards. Janet thinks I should start taking antihistamines like she is, but I don't think they help much. At best, antihistamines mask some of the symptoms, but they don't make the cold go away any quicker. Time is the only thing that cures a cold. I'm trying to be patient, but time seems to be moving pretty slowly. I'm ready to start feeling normal again.

Every time the weather gets bad, I start to worry that something is going to break. It would be a disaster if the washing machine broke and I needed to go to to the laundromat to clean Dot's bedding and a house full of rugs. I'm hoping that I did my furnace repair properly. I'd hate to wake up to a cold house tomorrow morning. I don't want the pipes to freeze either. I can't believe that I used to live up North. I don't think I could do it anymore.

Duke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2559

Why do car problems always take place at the worst possible time? When I got in the car to go to breakfast this morning, I got a big surprise. I pressed the starter button and nothing happened. The engine didn't turn over at all. I immediately knew that this was going to be a bad day. Dot had an appointment with her oncologist today and it can take months to get an appointment with this woman. I definitely didn't want to cancel. There were several other appointments today as well, but Dot's visit to the cancer center was the big one.

When I talked with my service guy, he seemed fairly convinced that it was just a bad battery. He sent a technician over to the house to see if he could get the car started. If we could get the car moving, I could drive up to the dealer and get a new battery installed. I called the cancer center and they were nice enough to reschedule my appointment for later in the day. I rescheduled or canceled my other appointments as well and started to think that this day might have a happy ending anyway.

While I was at the Land Rover dealer, I got a call from UPS and they said they had found my package. This was good news too, but I wasn't sure if I'd have time to drive down to the service center today. Dot's appointments at the cancer center often take a very long time. Walk in emergencies at the dealership often take a long time too. It was a busy, hectic Friday and they had to work me in. Eventually, they discovered that the battery was the only real problem, so I bought a new battery and was on my way.

When I got home, I resumed cleaning the rugs that Dot had peed on when I was trying to get her out of the house this morning. Everything has to be just right if I have any chance of getting her outside without an accident. Last night she peed too early. She really needs to pee at 11 PM, and last night she seemed to think that 9 PM was a better time. I wish I could explain to her that she just can't hold it that long.

I thought I'd have time to run down to the UPS service center and pick up my package before taking Dot to her appointment, but a major accident along the way foiled my plan. I saw four fire trucks and two ambulances, although I wasn't close enough to see what actually happened. The road was blocked in both directions. After waiting about ten minutes, I gave up and drove over the median so I could exit the mess and get out of the traffic jam. This was a very bad wreck, but I didn't see much compassion on the faces of the other drivers. You could tell that like me, they just wished the fire trucks had pulled over to the side of the road.

I used my GPS to find an alternate route to the UPS service center and when I got back home again, I was only ten minutes late. I quickly packed Dot in the car and we were on our way. Dot doesn't travel well these days. I dread driving with her, because she often panics and tries to escape. Since she can't move very well, her struggles usually result in her getting stuck somewhere. I try to drive in the far right lane, so I can always get off the road quickly if necessary. I'm worried that someday she'll accidentally manage to unlock one of the car doors while we are moving.

There was good news and bad news at the exam. Dot has a new tumor in her liver, but like the other existing tumors, it appears to be growing very slowly. Her liver still functions normally. Most of her blood chemistry looked good, but the doctor was worried that the muscle atrophy in her left rear leg was getting worse. She said we need to keep Dot moving and encouraged me to continue our slow walks each day.

The day was very hectic, but I guess it wasn't that bad after all. My car works, Dot's oncologist said that Dot is good to go for at least another two months, I finally have my package, and all the soiled rugs are clean and back on the floor again. I still have a bad cold, but maybe I can get some rest this weekend.

Hannah is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2558 - Blogiversary

Today didn't go well. It was cold when I woke up this morning and I quickly discovered that the furnace had gone out. Perfect timing, since the temperature is supposed to be in the low teens this weekend. It's really hard to get my HVAC guy to make a rush service call at this time of year, so I decided to try to fix the furnace myself. I always watch what the repair guys are doing when they come out to the house. I'm certainly no furnace expert, but I have learned a few things over the years. One of the most common reasons that a furnace goes out is a dirty flame sensor. I got out my tools and of course I couldn't find the right ones anymore. The utility room seemed a lot smaller than it did the last time I attempted a furnace repair. I felt too old to do this sort of thing anymore.

Eventually I got the cover off the furnace, but I didn't have the right tool to remove the sensor. The prospect of spending the day in a very cold house with two demanding dogs wasn't very appealing, so I tried to come up with a creative solution. After some experimentation I discovered that I was able to reach my left hand behind the panel where the flame sensor was attached and feel the sensor itself. I got a small piece of sandpaper and used it to polish the sensor probe. Although I couldn't see what I was doing, it felt right. After struggling in the small room for about forty minutes, I put the furnace back together and turned on the heat. The furnace lit like a charm and I saved $100. I wish I knew more about furnaces. There are hundreds of things that can go wrong, but I am only capable of fixing two of them.

UPS lost the package that I was supposed to pick up today. This is the third time this has happened this year. I redirect the packages to a convenient customer service center about four miles away so I won't have to wait for the UPS man all day. According to the UPS website, this process is foolproof, but the website lies. I'll get an e-mail saying my package is ready to pick up and then when I arrive at the will-call desk, the package isn't there. This drives me nuts, because the people at the service center are never in a hurry to find the package. I've never lost a shipment entirely, but sometimes it takes them days to track down the missing package. I've never received a good explanation for why this happens so often.

Janet had to leave for work really early this morning, so had to walk the dogs myself in the morning and then again in the afternoon. This takes a really long time, since Dot's walk is so slow. I could easily spend all day walking these dogs. Even though I took Dot outside again and again, she still managed to make a mess in the house. At least we still had running water so I could do laundry. There was a big water leak at the other end of our street and some of my neighbors have had their water turned off all day.

My cold is getting worse. I've added nasal congestion and laryngitis to the sore throat I had yesterday. Basically, when you add a bad cold to all the other problems I deal with on a daily basis, it makes for a pretty bad day. I had three articles to write today, but I only managed to finish one of them because the dogs were constantly interrupting me. There wasn't even the usual sleepy period this morning. They kept me busy all day long.

Tomorrow is probably going to be even busier than today. I still have two more articles to finish and I know I'm going to continue fretting about the lost package until I get an acceptable answer from UPS. Dot has a big exam at the cancer center too. We'll be doing an ultrasound scan, x-rays, and some additional blood work. I"m almost certain that Dot will poop in the car.

I hope I still have time to go out for breakfast tomorrow morning. I need a little time to myself and another Big Boy breakfast sandwich like I had last week sounds really good.

Jasper is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2557

Sometimes it's embarrassing to explain how I spend my day. Even the big events can be kind of trivial. Spelling errors always bother me. Especially when I make them myself. This morning I noticed a glaring spelling error in yesterday's blog post and I wasted hours trying to correct it. You'd think it would be easy to just correct the error and update the blog. Well, nothing is easy with me. Every time I publish a post, it is time stamped and syndicated to my various social media accounts. Correcting the blog itself would not correct the way it looks on Facebook, Twitter, or anywhere else. I had to figure out a way to erase all those links and then publish a new version with yesterday evening's date. Heaven forbid that it looked like I skipped a day. Does any of this even matter? Of course not. Does it matter to me. Apparently so. I finally got everything looking exactly the way it should and now the unfortunate spelling error never even existed. Morning wasted.

I've definitely got a cold now.  Once you catch a cold there isn't a lot you can do. There are hundreds of cold remedies on the market, but I find that very few of them help at all. You've just got to let the cold run its course. A lot of people take antihistamines, but I hate the way they make me feel. My head feels like it is going to explode after I've taken antihistamine pills. Cough drops provide mild relief from a sore throat, but if the sore throat is bad, you can go through a bag of cough drops in a day. That's a lot of sugar and menthol. I don't have a fever, so I'm hoping this cold won't be too bad. The weather certainly isn't helping. It was nasty again today.

I got a package from B&H this morning. Last week I'd ordered two small items that could have easily fit in the same envelope. Only one of the items arrived. The other is being shipped separately and apparently I have to sign for it. Why? It would have been so easy to dump both items in the same envelope. Since I hate waiting around all day for the UPS guy, now I've got to drive down to the UPS service center and pick up the shipment myself. UPS drivers rarely leave packages at the front door anymore, since there are people who follow the brown trucks around and then steal the packages. I'll be glad when Amazon perfects drone delivery. Maybe they can use military grade drones and just shoot the package thieves. I don't think anyone would mind.

I thought I'd have Pad Thai for dinner tonight. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew I had enough reward points at Pei Wei to get a free meal. When I went to pick up my dinner, I discovered that my points had expired. Damn. I must have looked really disappointed because the guy at the register looked up my account on the computer and told me he'd give me the Pad Thai for free anyway because my points had only expired a few days ago. What a nice surprise. For a few short moments I felt like humanity wasn't doomed after all.

Dot had lots of accidents today. I always thought that poop was the big problem, but now I'm discovering that pee is actually harder to clean up. When Dot pees inside, it soaks through everything it touches almost instantly. I did a lot of laundry today and spent some time scrubbing the floor as well. I'm hoping that Dot's oncologist can give me some advice on controlling incontinence when we go for our cancer recheck on Friday.

Maybe a good night's sleep will conquer this cold. It's not very likely, but I can always hope.

Lance is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2556

We didn't make it to the back door this morning, so there were a lot of rugs to wash. This one was my fault. I knew Dot had to go as soon as I woke up, but I failed to make sure that the back door was already open before we made our race for the back yard. Slowing down just a little to give Janet a chance to open the door was all it took and Dot peed all over the place.

I'm learning to get everything done in the morning now. After their morning walk, Dot and Dash will still go back to sleep for a few hours. Today, I used that time to take my invoices to the post office and run a few errands. I left the house before I took a shower or even turned on the computer. I really didn't know how long I had.

Maybe it's the Tramadol pills that are giving Dot a little more energy. Maybe it's something else. I'm glad to see her moving around more, but it sure keeps me busy. I've tried to let her wander around the house on her own, but it doesn't work very well. Dot is still very unsteady on her feet and she usually falls within a minute or two if I am not supporting her rear end. Since her incontinence has gotten worse, she also tends to leak a lot. Whenever she falls, there is usually a puddle of pee on the ground when I lift her up.

I've thought about trying a doggie wheelchair for her, but they don't work very well for larger dogs. Our first Dalmatian used a wheelchair during his last year, but he was always tipping it over. A wheelchair is terrible for a dog that likes to alternate between walking around and lying down. You spend all your time hooking them up and detaching them from the contraption. A wheelchair might be good for longer outdoor walks though. I'm almost at my wits end and am willing to try almost anything.

I think I'm coming down with a cold. I rarely get sick, but if I do it's almost always during the holiday season. Everyone seems to have a cold in December. Even though I do my best to avoid people, there is inevitably someone coughing or sneezing nearby. So far, I've just got a mild sore throat. Hopefully, that's as far as it goes. I'll see if I can shake this one off.

The large format printer is clogged again. I wish I could bring myself to just throw this albatross away. I have a lot of compassion for old dogs, but it's hard to be sympathetic to an old printer. At some point I'm going to realize that I get nothing in return for all the expensive ink and maintenance I pour into this relic. I need to find a twelve step program for people who are attached to obsolete gear. Keeping all these things running is getting ridiculous.

Cookie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2555

I can't keep up with the weather. It's cold again. Maybe I just imagined wearing shorts yesterday. This morning's walk saw the return of warm coats and gloves. The dogs seemed to enjoy the brisk weather, but I was just perplexed. What happened to yesterday?

Dot and Dash seemed determined to test my patience today. Dash barked constantly while I was trying to eat breakfast. He woke up Dot, who had been sleeping peacefully and then she started barking too. Meals used to be relaxing, but not anymore. In the morning they want me to feed them treats and in the evenings I have to be careful the Dot doesn't pee on everything. It's a three ring circus.

It took me most of the afternoon to get my December invoices out and finish a very modest amount of online Christmas shopping. Once Dot wakes up after her morning nap, she is determined to stay moving for the rest of the day. Since she can't move very far without my help, I am constantly walking her up and down the hall with periodic excursions outside to smell things. I don't know why Dot is so restless now. She doesn't seem to be in pain or anything. Actually, she seems pretty happy as long as I attend to her, but she sure doesn't want to take an afternoon nap anymore.

Eventually the dogs get tired, but I almost always end up getting tired first. My work has always required long periods of solitude. Without this peace and quiet, my writing lacks focus and the code I write often doesn't work at all. Even though I'm not nearly as busy as I used to be, it's still hard to concentrate these days.

I never did find time to go to the post office today, but at least the small stack of invoices is ready to go. Years ago, I bought a humongous box of Number 10 envelopes. I jokingly told a friend that when this box was gone, it would be time to retire. Guess what. After doing my invoices today, there are only two envelopes left. Is the empty envelope box trying to tell me something? It probably really is time to retire, but then what would I do? Taking care of Dot is exhausting. I don't have the energy to start anything new. For the time being, work provides an essential link to a world that I have become detached from. Deadlines and clients remind me that there is still a world beyond cleaning up dog poop.

I wonder if Mark Cuban is feeling silly after predicting a huge stock market crash if Trump was elected. So far, the Trump rally has been pretty substantial. It's certainly helped my portfolio. If things could continue like this for another year, I might finally get back to even. The crash of 2008 was devastating for me and I still haven't recovered all I lost. I'm a realist though. I don't expect miracles. The market will continue to remain volatile. Dot will continue to grow older. And I will continue to slowly work my way toward Day 5000. The key to all of this is to just keep moving.

Savannah is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2554

It's hard to believe that yesterday I was wearing a down ski jacket, gloves, and a wool hat. Today, I'm wearing shorts. The temperature actually got up to seventy five degrees this afternoon. That's Texas weather for you. You never really know what to expect.

I never know what to expect anyway. With Dot, every day is full of surprises. Today, her urinary incontinence was worse and she was leaking everywhere. She hardly pooped at all though. Go figure. I've got to come up with a better way to clean her up after all the frequent accidents. When I help her up now, my hands usually end up smelling of pee. We've increased her Incurin dose, but it doesn't seem to be working. I'm afraid there may be nothing more we can do.

I went to the gym earlier than usual this morning, in hopes of having time to do other things when I returned home. It didn't work out that way, but at least I tried. The gym is never very crowded on Sunday. There was a man putting his young son through what appeared to be a fairly punishing workout and several old people who seemed to be moving in slow motion. Everyone seemed very determined today. I wonder if I appeared determined to them? Probably not. I don't think I appear determined to anyone.

Maybe Dot thinks I'm determined. I hope so. I do everything I can to keep her comfortable. Mostly this means making sure that she always has dry, clean bedding when she poops or pees in her sleep and helping her up and guiding her slowly around the back yard whenever she gets restless. On a good day, I think she still feels like a normal dog. This experience has made me realize that I wouldn't be very good at providing hospice care for a human. Dog accept what you give and seldom complain. People always complain.

I complain a lot myself, but by now you probably realize that I don't mean any harm. I'm just baffled at the choices people make. Don't they realize how much easier life would be if they all just did things my way? I get frustrated at people, but since I'm not really around other people all that much, my frustration seldom goes beyond talking back to the TV. Sometimes hitting the heavy bag at the gym helps too.

I'd better hop on the Amazon.com site tomorrow and get my Christmas shopping done. If I wait much longer, I'll have to pay extra for Fedex delivery again. At least my Christmas list is very short. It probably won't take me ten minutes to get my shopping done. I don't know why anyone goes to the mall anymore. Online shopping is so much easier. It would take me longer to find a parking place at Northpark than it does to take care of everything with a few clicks on the Amazon site. You don't have to wrap the packages either.

I hope Dot feels better tomorrow. She seems exhausted today. I think today's unexpectedly warm weather caught her by surprise.

Emmitt is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2553

Everything was crowded today. Traffic was slow. Parking lots were full. And stores were extremely busy. Apparently, a lot of people haven't discovered online shopping yet. I wasn't even Christmas shopping. All I had to do was get gas, stop by the storage warehouse, go to the post office, and do my grocery shopping. From now through Christmas, these simple errands are going to take a lot longer.

I picked up Janet's puffy coat while I was at the storage warehouse and brought it home. There were some winter coats of mine there as well, but they were too heavy and bulky. I wonder why I ever wore those coats. The lightweight down jackets I wear now are so much better. I've finally learned to dress in layers on cold days. Instead of one humongous, heavy winter coat, I wear several much lighter ones. I wonder why it took me thirty years to learn this?

We got to sleep in a little later today. It was only an extra hour, but it seemed to make a difference. It always helps when Dot doesn't poop during the night. Today, she waited until I was getting her up for breakfast to do her business, which was actually very convenient. Everything landed right on a nearby puppy training pad, which I quickly rolled up, bagged, and threw away. Small saves like this are all it takes to make me think I'm going to have a good day.

A lot of yesterday's unfinished business got taken care of this morning. I wrote a letter to my sister and finished all the website updates that I had started yesterday. I had no trouble uploading the new files to the server today, so apparently the  problem that practically took down the entire hosting company has been resolved. This must have been a really major service outage. I checked around midnight, just before I went to bed last night and all the sites were still down. Somebody stayed up late and fixed things though. Everything is fine now.

I don't know how you Northerner's do it. The temperature hasn't even dropped below freezing yet and I'm already in full Winter mode. I've got a little ceramic heater under my desk to keep my feet warm. I wear sweaters around the house. I'm always checking the furnace to make sure it is running smoothly. The dogs seem to enjoy the cold weather, so I have to make sure there's a warm coat near the back door when I take Dot out to pee. Winter has barely begun and I'm already looking forward to Spring.

I wonder if I can avoid vacuuming tomorrow? I'd rather go to the gym. Actually, I'd really rather download Arrival and watch it while the dogs are sleeping. The movie isn't available on iTunes yet, so I'll probably just stay on schedule and do my Sunday chores. Heaven forbid that I would ever drive to a theater and watch the movie on a big screen. I'll just wait.

Princess is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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