Tag: dogs

Posted on

No New Dogs

(Originally posted in Facebook on June 17, 2019)

First things first – no new dogs.

I went back and forth about it on Friday. One minute, I was in the car, ready to go to the animal shelter. And then the next, I was back in the house, having talked myself out of it.

I made a list of the pros and cons of getting another dog. M and I talked about it and he suggested just going *to look* at the dogs in the shelter. But I knew if we went to look, there was NO WAY we would come home without one.

It finally came down to – things are just too uncertain right now. With his health, my job, his job . . . really everything. Until things settle down, I don’t need one more thing to take care of.

Even though I would love it.

Friday night, we got a new set of shelves to try to organize M’s clothes and they needed to be put together. M has always been the builder, the one who read the directions and told me how to hold things and where to fit tab A into slot B. This time, he couldn’t do it. He read the directions, but couldn’t make sense out of them. So it fell to me to do it. I don’t know how we did it, but SOMEHOW, we got the shelves put together and didn’t kill each other in the process.

Then Saturday, he had to work, so I spent the day organizing his clothes. I really had a good time doing that and was so happy with the way everything turned out. Then, when he got home, we planted some perennials (flowers that will come back every year) in a flower bed that I had originally planted 20 packs of zinnia seeds in and only 3 plants sprouted up. Very annoying. So I moved the 3 plants and put in plants I won’t have to think about again.

Yesterday, I spent the day relaxing and binge-watching the first season of Outlander on Netflix. Yes, I’ve seen it before – more than once. But it’s SO GOOD!!

M has the day off today, so he wanted to get some new pillows for his bed. I asked him to pick up a couple of things while he was at the store. When he was writing down the extra things I needed him to get (dog food, bread) I had to spell the words in order for him to write them on his list.

There are days I think things are – if not getting better, then at least staying the same – and then there are days I think things are rapidly declining.

Posted on

Happy Birthday, Sweet Girl!

(Originally posted in Facebook on June 5, 2019)

Yesterday was a great day! I had a couple of errands to run after work, but I had marked them on our GIANT wall calendar and I texted M about them as I was leaving work so he was aware. I had also made sure he had dinner foods in the fridge, so he could handle all that without me.

By the time I got home, it was only 7:30, but he was already in the shower. When he got out, I told him I had thought about taking the dogs to the frozen custard shop – and he already had his shorts and t-shirt on before I could finish the sentence. He was ready to go! Suggest a break in his keto-type eating and he’s in!

We got small vanilla cones for the dogs (and yes, large chocolate cones for the humans) and everyone had a great time. Our younger dog is 3 years old today, so she suffered through me putting a birthday hat on her head in exchange for the frozen custard. I think she’ll forgive me soon.

It all went well – M was focused and helpful with the dogs. He even got out of the car (without me asking) and helped me back out of a parking spot when a truck beside me was too big for me to see around it .

He and I also had a calm discussion about our finances and how we’ll handle things when he isn’t able to work anymore. He didn’t get snippy and start blustering about “what do you mean, I’m not going to be able to work anymore?” It was actually a productive conversation. No concrete plans, but we have a direction.

I’ll take every good day I can get. 

The picture is of the birthday girl, enjoying her treat.

Posted on

Making a Break for it

(Originally posted in Facebook on May 31, 2019)

I was late for work today. It wasn’t a big deal, but I hate that. I had been ready to walk out the door . . . all I had to do was put one of the dogs into her crate for the day (she has separation anxiety and will chew the furniture if I leave her out) when I looked in the backyard to call them inside and they weren’t there.

???

I walked out the front door and there they were, running from the side yard, into the front yard – like a couple of nutters. I asked them what they thought they were doing, but they had no answers for me, so I brought them in, then had to go and check on the gate for the backyard. It was locked, but it was locked without being latched, so it had opened and they were free to roam.

Now, I know I haven’t used that gate since we got back from our trip. It’s probably been six weeks or more since I’ve gone around the side of the house through that entrance. I know the dogs didn’t do it, so it’s safe to say who did. But if I bring it up, I also know what M will say:

“I didn’t do it!”

And he’ll be all offended that I’m even suggesting that he did. So . . . do I tell him my interesting story from this morning or do I just keep my mouth shut? What is that saying – discretion is the better part of valor? Or do I need to say something about *we* need to be more careful?

Maybe something else interesting will happen today.

The photo is one of this morning’s escapees, contemplating a future jailbreak.

Posted on

Clean up on Aisle 5

(Originally posted in Facebook on May 3, 2019)

I left work yesterday, feeling so good and happy – it was GREAT! I took everyone’s advice (my brother, A, my co-workers and some of you here) and I went on Chewy.com and ordered supplies for my dogs. Boom! Free shipping and their supplements are on the way!

Then I went on Walmart.com and ordered groceries. We’re going out of town this afternoon for our niece’s graduation, so I scheduled the shopping to be ready when we get back Sunday afternoon. We’ll swing by, pick it up and it will all be done. Wow – it was so easy! The app even knew what we usually buy so it made suggestions and I just picked quantities. FABULOUS!! I’m going to schedule another one for the day we get back from Alaska, so we’ll have groceries bought that I didn’t have to schlep through the store to get. Boom, again!

And last night was better with M, believe it or not. When I got home from work, the laundry basket for our dirty clothes wasn’t in the bedroom, so I asked him to bring it up from the laundry room. He said it was full. I went downstairs and sorted the laundry into the baskets in the laundry room (whites, darks and mediums) and he said “I could have done that.”

Yep.

I just kissed him and took the basket upstairs and went on with whatever I was doing.

He started to drive me crazy with questions about our upcoming trips.

“When are we flying to Seattle?”
“What time are we leaving tomorrow?”
“What day are we going on the cruise?”

I can tell that getting out of his routine is starting to worry him. I also realized I’ve not done a good job of keeping our calendar up-to-date. So I got to work and updated the detailed calendar so he has all the info in front of him.

If you’re at home Sunday evening and looking for something to watch (and the Braves game is over!) take a look at CBS 60 Minutes. There’s going to be a story about Frontotemporal Dementia. I saw the preview and read a synopsis about the report . . . it’s as though the reporter had been in my house and was telling our story. Here’s a link to the preview: http://bit.ly/2GYlIRM

Posted on

Happy Puppies

(Originally posted in Facebook on April 25, 2019)

Yesterday was SUCH a beautiful day, although very warm, so we took the dogs and went for a walk as soon as I got home. We tried a different route that had more sun than our usual walking route, but it was a shorter walk. One of the pups had a harder time in the heat and really seemed to be suffering when we got home – I was worried about her for a few minutes! She laid on her side and panted, but didn’t get any water for the longest time. I got some wet paper towels and tried to cool her off by placing them on her belly and feet – and then getting more cold water on them when they got hot. Eventually, she got her breath and drank some water and finally seemed to feel better.

I told M that I think we need to wait until the sun is closer to setting before we take them for a walk, if the temperatures are above 80 degrees. This little mutt is only three years old, but I don’t think she handles heat very well. Like her mother – ha!

We noticed it was looking dark in our refrigerator, but the light at the top was working. Finally, I pulled everything off the bottom shelf and realized there was also a light down there (how fancy!!) and THAT light had burned out.

When I got home last night, I saw that M had found the instruction manual for the refrigerator, had taken the light apart and had removed the burned out bulb – it was sitting on the counter. I was really impressed – this is the kind of thing he used to do all the time! I asked him if he had been able to replace the bulb.

No. We didn’t have any bulbs that size.

Never mind, he had just been to the drug store to pick up his prescription . . . which is right down the road from the hardware store, where he could have gotten a new bulb.

Then he asked me, “What size is that thing beside the house?”
Me: What thing beside the house?
M:The thing we bought the other day.
Me: What thing are you talking about?
M: You know, the thing we bought to cover the thing.
Me: The tarp? The tarp we bought to cover the trailer?
M: Yeah. How big is it?
Me: I don’t know. What difference does it make?
M: I’m going to take it off the trailer and cover the Jeep with it. The Jeep is getting those oak things all over it.
Me: No you’re not. The Jeep is fine. Take it to a car wash and pay $5 to get it clean. Or we’ll buy a new tarp for the Jeep.

Keep in mind, the Jeep is 20 years old and we use it to haul the trailer. That’s it. Why he’s suddenly so worried about how it looks, I don’t know.

Posted on

It’s A Doozy!

(Originally posted in Facebook on February 25, 2019)

What does it mean when you sum up your weekend by saying to yourself “well, the most important thing is that no one was hurt” ? I think that’s your indication you had one doozy of a weekend!

Friday was very much like Thursday for M, as far as back pain and headache pain were concerned, but he did do a better job of staying on top of his medicine and eating, so he was in better shape when I got home from work. I also got out the heating pad for his back and that made a tremendous difference. Friday and Saturday were miserable days where we live – cold and rainy – and then late Friday, M started vomiting and couldn’t keep anything down through Saturday afternoon. I think he must have had some sort of stomach bug. He spent both days on the couch in front of the TV.

It looked as though Sunday was going to be another miserable day spent the same way, but he had been feeling better and had been eating since the night before. As I looked out the window, I could see patches of blue sky, and I almost didn’t know what they were, for a moment – it had been so long since we had seen them!!

Then my mother called – in a panic. She was across town, but had just remembered that she had left something cooking on her stove and would I go check it? I live two minutes away from her condo, so I jumped in the car and went over. As I opened the door to the building, I could hear the smoke alarm from her third floor condo as I was on the ground floor. I ran up the stairs and when I opened her door, the smoke was so black and so thick, I couldn’t see anything inside the room. I ran inside to the kitchen, took the pot off the stove, turned off the burner, then reached for my mom’s Yorkie, that was there in the kitchen. He was scared, of course – with the smoke alarm blaring, the smoke billowing all around him and me running in to grab him – and he bit me on the thumb. Stupid mutt! I finally got him by his harness and got him out into the hallway where we could get some fresh air and called 911.

The fire department was great and brought in fans to blow the smoke out and by the time my mom got there it was much better, but the whole top floor of her building stunk to high heaven of that burnt metal pan. This isn’t the first time she’s left something cooking on the stove. This isn’t the second or even third time . . . so we have now thrown the breaker on the stove so she can no longer use it. She’ll tell you she doesn’t cook, but she boils chicken for that dear, dear dog of hers and then forgets about it. Never mind there’s a grocery store within walking distance that cooks chicken every day that she could buy for the dog.

Even though there weren’t flames with this incident, the smoke damage is so extensive throughout her condo, mom isn’t going to be able to stay there until it’s professionally cleaned. The floor is sticky, the counter is sticky – and it’s all just from the smoke. And the smell – ugh! When I walked in the house from my mother’s, I just about knocked M down, just with the smell from my clothes. I changed clothes and brushed my teeth, because I had that horrible taste in my mouth – and last night, when it was time to brush my teeth before bed, my toothbrush had that horrible smell on it. Yuck!

I offered to have my mom stay at our house, but I knew she would be worried about her dog with our two rambunctious 40 lb rescued mutts. They’re as sweet as sugar, but they do play rougher than a seven lb Yorkie is used to. So that leaves my dad’s house. Although my parents get along relatively well for people who were married 51 years and then divorced (don’t ask) they do have several bones of contention, and they are in the middle of one right now. So I had to get both of them alone and tell them “Look, I have all I can say grace over right now. My plate is full. I can’t take anything else. I need you two to handle your business and get along. If you can’t do it, then I’ll do it for you and I can promise you, when I’m done, everyone will be unhappy.”

By the time we all went to bed last night, mom and dad were both at dad’s house, everyone was getting along, everyone was (relatively) happy and then M went to work this morning. Do I expect all this good fortune to last? No.

Am I enjoying this peace for a moment. Oh, yes.