Weird Day

I awoke at 3:00 a.m.and realized I was done sleeping for awhile. Not so the puppies who awaited dawn. They went out, came back in about 6:30, chilled, so we all went back to bed. Mid-morning awakening.  I decided to go to town just on a lark. McRib for me, double cheese plains for the dogs. Wal-Mart got a visit for forgotten items. Buddy was a little pill.:I don't know what his problem was. He can work the door locks and the power window on the passenger's side. I am taking the keys with me-always.

The Broncos stunk up a stadium in London, England so I didn't do my football time. I used to make a great meatloaf but I didn't succeed in making an edible one this year until today. I browsed the web for inspiration. Meatloaf and new potatoes and green beans. Comfort food. The loaf was spicy but the dogs didn't mind.

I spent quite a lot of time with the Humana 2011 plan for prescription drugs. What a racket. Back when the AARP was selling us seniors down the river, a clause was put in that you have to pay a penalty if you let your plan lapse. So we are over a barrel.  Just putting a pencil to to it, I could beat the cost of the new premiums alone by buying the drugs at Wal-Mart: $60 a quarter versus $118 per quarter for the premium. They have also upped the co-pays for the drugs. Of course you can't tell if you are going to need some expensive drug down the line, so you are afraid to tell them to stick it. The cost of my plan doubled last year and is a third more than that for 2011. No COLA from Social Security for two years, so I am going backwards. I need to do this stuff so I can take the Humana formulary to my doctor so she can write the prescriptions. Do I have confidence the new Health Care plan is anything but a big gift to the Insurance Industry? NO.

Happy Birthday Janet

Janet and Guy, her parents, Susie and Max, and down the river neighbor, me, gathered at the big Casino for a nice visit and delicious meal. Not really Janet's natal day but the day it is celebrated this year. It was relaxed and convivial, all were pleased with their food. Janet saw some good friends. The Casino was hopping-very busy. I surveyed the license plates and folks are coming from miles around. The gifts were well received but Janet put the fix in on the ticket. She bought! Glad I went and had a good time.

My blood tests arrived in the mail today- a day late. I went from about an A- to a B-. A few more problem areas this year. Most of those were barely out of range. Surprisingly, my blood sugar score was very good- well controlled- better than last year. Potassium, my nemesis. was low. Uric Acid pretty darn high- no more liver for me, less coffee, more water. Cholesterol-low, good cholesterol  also low. I have been religious about olive oil and fish oil. I can't budge this number. PSA was barely over the reference range. Saw Palmetto every day from here on out. My iron was on the low end of normal which surprised me because I have been taking iron supplements and B12. I am glad to know I haven't been overdoing those. Will make the Doc appointment Monday now that we have something scientific to talk about in addition to my neurotic imaginings.

Sure Happy It is Friday...

and 60 degrees and sunshiny and the wind isn't blowing. A blast of sunshine makes the spirits rise. Pecking away at departure stuff. It is a frame of mind. Remembering the things that must be attended before leaving and taking those few things (mostly toys) that are not duplicated in Florida. Then too, the nightmarish Part D Insurance for Medicare. The options are many. The insurance companies are gaming everybody. My little brother keeps coming up with horror stories and doom and gloom from his former colleagues at Blue Cross. The lastest, that I can't believe, is that you have to visit your doctor every 90 days to get your prescriptions re-upped. That would put me in a pinch.  I'll find out soon.  Blue Cross did say that my Part B premium would remain the same for the next year.

I have been processing less than cheerful news. Mom's chum and our distant relative, Velma Ward, passed on the 25th. She was in her 80's and had health issues from the time she left Casper to move to Salt Lake a few years ago. Gluten problems, I believe. I am sure she was glad to go. Quite a lot of pain the past months. She was a truly good person-a caretaker to all. A worthy life.  Cuz Jim's head cancer is recurring. His partner, Susie, is saying he is thinking of doing nothing. He is 74 and the first go around was grueling and painful and scarring. Tough call but it is his to make. It won't be too awfully long for many of us in this age cohort to be doing similar. Respecting decisions is important. Making the most of every single day (according to our own lights) is also important.

All is Forgiven

Today was blood test day. It was on the calendar but the late night munchies attacked and I had food at 11:00 last night making me think maybe Thursday would be better. I woke up about 10:00 this morning. So the 12 hour fast was still do-able. We trekked to Lander and I got the stuff done. Tick another one off the list.
Coming back to the crossroads, Mc Donald's had a big sign: "The McRib is Back."  O.K. McDonalds the boycott is over. You win. I read an article that said the content of them is unknown. Delicious, though.

Plunkett Road is nearly finished and very smooth. Nice job-we'll see how it lasts. Up by Thayne's I saw a huge coyote-or was it a wolf? Probably a coyote but easily the size of a German Shepherd. I stopped for a picture but my dogs picked right up on it and went crazy so I thought better of opening the door of the van.

Inside Day

It wasn't so much the 47 degree temperatures as the 35 mile per hour winds. It was chilly. So lucky we have been to have such a great summer and fall. It is just weeks until I wend my way southward. I think it is going to be about right. I have gotten serious: putting milestones to reach on my Google calendar. Florida may just save Buddy's life. He is pretty high energy but gets cold fast. He can let himself in. He can also destroy just about anything when he is bored. He needs to run. Honey is pretty much living on the bed these days while she heals. I had a phone conversation with the vet early Monday morning. Honey was bizarre and I thought it was her Clavamox. The vet thought it was aftermath of the anaesthetic. I put her back on the Clavamox and she is some better but I have to touch her very carefully. She will go into heavy duty scratch mode if I touch the wrong spot. It looks like somebody is putting cottonballs on the bed and the floor. Buddy needs his playmate and I want her well. 

We took a late trip to town. I called High Plains Power to find out if the Electrical Thermal Storage Heater season had started. They said "yes," but mine is not indicating the off peak time of day storage. High Plains is not fixing them anymore. I got another ceramic space heater at Wally World.  After I leave, the heat requirements are minimal but for right now, I need a little more than I am getting.

Though it was late, I stopped at 789 Casino and got my free lunch- a chicken fried steak patty, mashed potatoes, green salad and diced peaches. Just right, and I was able to eat most of it. Tossed the bun. There was a little old lady buying a second carton of Old Golds. She had played her $5.00 free gambling into $400.00 and was about to pass out she was so excited-she splurged. Bless her, a little abundance came into her life.  I played mine into nothing in record time. Even betting 2 cents and playing every possible line, can cost $4.00 in a single play. Easy come, easy go.

Flurries

The morning coffee on the deck days are dwindling to a precious few. It was cut short today by flurries of leaves. The gold is falling off the trees and I am glad- no wet snows on leafy trees, please. A hard frost is forecast for tomorrow night and it could precipitate either day. It was kind of a slow day. I took Honey off the Clavamox after yesterday. She was distressed-itchy, breathing rapidly, and starting and running like the devil was chasing her. She seemed happiest on the bed and I spent some time there petting and calming her- no it was not a naptime. The naptime took place in the easy chair with Buddy on my lap and the Broncos getting whupped. I started the second half, then the next thing I knew dead Billy Mayes was trying to sell me a rotary saw.

I am still off my chow. I am regarding it as an opportunity rather than an affliction. Cooked for the dogs but did not partake. Constant Comment tea is still a favorite even among all the exotics I have on hand. I am missing Audrey and Matt. Missing my old man, too. Picasa 3's new iteration has an amazing feature. After you identify pictures of people's faces, it searches your hard drive and collects all the pictures of them. Then you can make a movie or view them. Seeing my dad over the years was very nice.

And now...for the rest of the story...

And why this Oregon trip was the worst ever: We pulled out of Arapahoe last week and I made a McDonald's stop in Lander for a bacon egg cheese biscuit. Heading up South Pass I had about three bites and the darn thing was trying to come back on me. I filed the rest of it and drove on. I was not hungry but stopped at Denny's at the Flying J at Exit 99 on the other side of Salt Lake for supper. I ate about half of my chicken fried steak and gave the rest to the dogs. I could tell then I was a late arrival so I called the Motel 6 in Winnemucca-no rooms. We slept in the van in the parking lot of the Flying J in Winnemucca. Way before daylight we started across the 200 mile-no services, no gas, stretch from Winnemucca to Lakeview, Oregon. We stopped at a rest stop for the doggie's comfort. Then after we came down a six mile steep grade, I stopped at a place we usually stop to let the dogs run. They ran. I watched. We loaded up and near the highway I suddenly realized I was in trouble. No restroom but I hopped out, engine running, dropping trousers as fast as I could...but not fast enough. Underwear, trousers, socks, shoes, ruined.  What I had at my disposal were a partly Buddy-shredded roll of paper towels and a bottle of high potency Windex for auto glass. Of course I had a change of clothes. There I was 20 yards from the highway with my shirt-tail flapping in the wind-and nothing else, trying to clean up and change. Buddy decided to jump out of the van and run around on the highway. If I could have found the transmitter to his training collar, I would have lit him up like a Christmas tree.  Luckily, traffic was non-existent. Standing on the rough volcanic gravel in my bare feet raging at the dog and my predicament, I was a wild man. I considered just leaving the clothes but I double bagged them and we went on to Lakeview where I found a laundromat, opened the bags under water and continued my repairs. I was white as a sheet  and not feeling well at all. With clean clothes and a lost hour, we soldiered on to the Cedar Lodge and a long hot shower. I did not feel really well until yesterday.

Recounting  my tale of woe to brother Rich, he had one so similar on the same day it was eerie. He stopped for a breakfast sandwich at McDonald's, went traveling around Wyoming seeing his clients, and had to excuse himself from an appointment at a place that had no restroom, squat behind his car. I think I know what happened to those salmonella eggs. McDonalds is off the approved list.

Coming back, we stopped for the doggie's sake at the rest stop just this side of Wendover. Buddy had earned "never without a leash" status in Oregon. Walking the two dogs is like having a tug of war with Honey on one hand, and trying to yo-yo with the other while Buddy bounces everywhere. The rest stop dog area at that stop is rudimentary. It took exactly three minutes to get the leashes so tangled I had to lead Honey with the choke chain and carry Buddy back to the car. The hand crank flashlight I bought to aid breast cancer was verplunkt.  So there I was in the dog poo section at 3:00 a.m. in the morning with my cell phone for a flashlight, extricating the leashes. It took me 20 minutes in broad daylight in Evanston to separate them.

Aside from some obvious management issues, Buddy turned out to be a pretty good traveller, and I really do enjoy being on the road. The dogs are always ready to go, I love the sights, and the movement and enjoy being where we are going. Medford presents some challenges and I am wondering if Van modification or a small camper would be a good idea. The dog friendly Cedar Lodge is in decline and more expensive. I would like to stay longer. This event costs more than a month in Florida.  The dogs are non-grata at Eve's after the Clara contretemps.

Ah yes, the Clara story: Eve has an ill-tempered 14 year old cat: Clara. In her salad days she would perch on the refrigerator and jump on and attack passersby. She has mellowed and will allow some petting before she turns on you and bites these days. The first words I spoke to Eve were "Is Clara safe?" "She is around here someplace," Eve said. Someplace was discovered by the dogs and we saw a streak of orange bounding across the yard and up a tree.  There she remained for some ten hours after we were long gone. She bit Eve as she was coaxing her the last few feet from the tree. NO DOGS ALLOWED.

Catching, resting up

Both ways on the drive, I got skunked on pet-friendly motels. So on the way back I drove from Medford to Wendover, slept in the van for four hours at a Pilot truck stop, then caught forty winks at Exit 99 waiting for the Salt Lake morning rush to pass its peak.. So Friday morning we all slept until 9:00 aided by the fact the house and night were on the chilly side. But once up, we got moving. Honey had yipped and was limping  in Medford. I thought we were back to square one on the leg and I didn't want to wait until Monday. So off we went to the vet where we had to come back due to three ongoing surgeries.  I was glad we hadn't waited. Honey's cast had twisted and her dewclaw had made a sore on her leg. Washed, treated, and we decided another week with a supportive hard cast might be smart though the leg is gaining strength. Clavamox twice a day for the Honeybunny. As long as she was knocked out I had her rear end checked. Poor baby. She was so good and for once Buddy was helpful.  We are coming up on $1000.00 for this misadventure.

I shopped. We are set for a couple of days. The legs are a little swelly-not bad, and we all seem ready to sleep.

Oregon Visit Fall 2010

Click on the picture to go to the album.

House Painting

The front of Matt's house newly painted. A covered front porch will soon follow. Matt and Jerry finished the masking and painting of both the house and the garage. Once again I provided support services by child-tending (tough duty) and fetching lunch. Eve came by around 2:00 and we took Audrey to Bear Creek Park (lasted about 30 minutes there) then went to Eve's where Audrey snagged her friend Anna. She and Anna played and eventually ended up doing art work in one of Eve's work spaces.

Matt sprays the chimney-the capping event of the house project.

The girls creating. Eve and I visited on her back patio and were treated to the girls singing BINGO and other songs. They wanted an art judging. We were going "uhoh," but what they wanted was for us to guess what they painted. We had 500 chances. Matt called about 5 and we had him bring excellent Chinese take-out. (I happily paid). I got some hugs all around as I am leaving in the morning. I got the Van serviced so I am good to go. Happy days and I will put up an album of the trip when I return to Wyoming.

The doggies spent a lot of time in the van this afternoon. I bought them a meatloaf which should see them home.

Slices of Life

Audrey is chronologically a kindergartner. The rest of it is all over the place. She is tall and strong, kind except when she isn't. Smart about a lot of things, and certainly flexible. I adore her and she says she doesn't remember me being this much fun before...leave 'em laughing. I always say.

Matt is in the midst of painting the outside of his house. The spray washing of the stucco. taking the gutters down, priming the woodwork, and masking is done and one half of the house was painted today. I entertained Audrey and went after lunch for Matt and the guy he is paying to help. The helper guy brings his dog, so I got a dog Subway too. It really is moving right along. I told Matt I liked the color- reminiscent of butterscotch pudding. He was steamed- it is not a food color. His neighbor Jesse, the Cook thought it looked like peanut butter. I am now referring to it as an earthtone.

Pizza and parmesan chicken wings at chez Matt tonight. A neighbor gave him a $2000.00 Massage chair they thought was broken. Whatever was the problem, it is over. I saw a row of the same chairs at the Rogue Valley Mall that could be rented for a massage for two bucks a pop. It came at a good time. He was enjoying it after his labors. He is racing the weather to get the paint on before incoming moisture. I am hoping that moisture doesn't complicate my driving Wednesday. The visits here are always too short but life goes on for these people. Matt will be back at work on Wednesday and the next weekend is several days away. The Cedar Lodge is no resort. Need to be grateful for what we get. Seeing a slice of their lives is wonderful. Good friends and neighbors, busy lives, good people. Context for my mind pictures of their lives.

Oregon

The trip to Oregon was in beautiful weather, the scenery was gorgeous if you like the wide open spaces and I do. It will go down as the worst trip ever and I will regale with the sad tale when I have a full-size keyboard.

Meanwhile all goes apace here in Oregon. Namee and Audrey made Audrey's first apple pie today. Cheryl, Matt and Audrey, Eve and I had dinner tonight at Eve's- delicious parmesan chicken and pesto pasta, salad and apple pie. It was very pleasant- all charming members of nuclear families that exploded.

In other good news, Cheryl was re-called to Harry and David's- same job as before but as a "temp." Matt is face-lifting his home. Lots of work in progress. The weather here is about a month behind Wyoming' s: beautiful late summer days. More later...

Think I am Ready

It came together pretty smoothly-steady but not frantic. Stick some stuff in the car in the morning and we should be off. I'm hoping to maintain the same attitude for the trip.  I read about a diet in The Times of London quite awhile ago. A "shake" with leucine was a major part of it.. I finally located some but not in powder form: a capsule with branch chain essential Amino acids. I took a couple yesterday  and the same today. That is less than recomended but I was pretty energized by them. Interesting. You are supposed to get these from the protein, meat, that you eat. But as we age...

This trip is actually not a bad step because I am dang near prepared to go south. That is creeping up quickly. Matt said Jason is driving across Mississippi on his way home. Lori will fly. I'm glad they will be home before I arrive down there. Matt also reported that snow has not yet fallen in the high country so I should have clear sailing.

A note from Therese bore the good news that Rene's recent scans show that his brain tumor is about half the size it was.  He is feeling well though he tires. That is fantastic news. Perhaps we will have the season together. He makes me laugh. He can be so full of it-hold forth at length until it becomes clear he is having us on.

Waste of Time and Money

I called yesterday and today and finally got a message through to Morgan at the Vet's. I wondered if, since we were going traveling, the hard cast could stay on for another week. She thought it was time for the soft wrap. So I dutifully presented Honey at the clinic at 2:00. She was sedated and the old cast came off. Gunda, senior vet, thought a hard cast was a better bet. So a $45.00 cast was again put on the dog. It is a little cleaner than than the one that came off.

Departure slid to Friday, not entirely due to vet issues. After inquiring of Matt, I finally asked Eve about schedules. I like to maximize face time as time at the Cedar Lodge is not much fun. This schedule will unfortunately put me in Salt Lake for Friday afternoon rush hour. But Matt has Sunday and Monday off after working Friday and Saturday nights. Eve has Audrey overnight on Saturdays so that will work too.  This will be a test run for Buddy. He might need a car carrier, available in stores across the nation.

The rescue of the miners in Chile riveted my attention. Reality TV I could believe in and happy endings. Of course one of the miners had three women on the string all lining up for their share of benefits and spotlight. He might be wanting to head back in a few days.

More commiques from Winter friends: Andre, the retired cop and Nicole will arrive January 7. Greg and Lew will arrive a little before Thanksgiving. Their "mobile home" in the gated community got broken into-stuff taken, good time had by all. The police officers who live across the street missed it all. Since "Pop's" place is a victim of the horrible real estate market down there, Pop offered to let them move in on the golf course. Security is tight at that place. I suspect they will do it. That will take them completely out of my neighborhood. Maureen and Robert are just getting into the house they built in Quebec so they are probably not coming. Lise and Claude are going to be babysitting their grandson in New Brunswick while his son does a tour of duty in Afghanistan. So they will not be coming this year.

Preparing to Launch

As always, the ideal is giving way to the possible and the necessary. In prep for a Thursday departure to Oregon, things are coming together. Meds arrived by mail, the yard irrigation was drained and some outlets were closed off. The heat tape was turned on and the heater was adjusted for the pumphouse. I spent  time yesterday working on a previously dead traveling netbook computer. It was doing nothing in Florida, rendered that way by my own stupidity, aided by rambunctious dogs. I decided to give it a try before pitching it. I got some idiosyncratic action out of it and gradually worked it into a quirky but functional machine. That was satisfying but not really in aid of a road trip.

I felt better today than in several days-I lapped my potassium and I got perky. Maybe the silver did something. It does get absorbed and is an efficient anti-microbial and anti-fungal agent. Whatever, the good part is feeling better. These past two refills of potassium have been extended release. Perhaps they are not strong enough that way. Annoying to feel old because of an easily remedied mineral deficiency-if that is the problem.

As a worry-wart from a long line of worry-warts, I am now surveying efforts in view of a "blizzard of 49" while I am gone.  Tomorrow will be a busy day. Details, details done by a person who needs lists for details. Brother Rich called making his annual enquiry about campsite costs at John Prince. His son Justin is still struggling at finding himself. Rich can envision Justin in a pup tent just down the road from uncle Stephen. Stephen can envision himself being banned from the trailer park. Maybe if he came with a training collar?

Wealth Really IS in the Eye of the Beholder

 
This may be the Warren Buffett of the species phaenius vindex. Fully deserving of a place in the Forbes top 100 wealthiest bugs.

Florida friends are making reservations. Joyce and Gary called from Tulsa where they were trapped in their quarters over the multicar garage. They were laying low while Gary's son and his wife were having a row. They will be a little too close to my site for my comfort. Relative newlyweds, Joyce likes to play kneesy and spend Gary's money. They are nice and are certainly good to me but the "danger alert" signs are all there. I'm thrilled they have each other. Gary is repetitive and pretty boring. All of a sudden Joyce will just bolt and disappear. Grandma Mason used to call it "stewing in your own juice."

Home-made chili and football were the entertainments of the overcast fall day. Buddy likes TV time because it is laptime. Warm puppy in my lap makes for naptime. Honey has never shown any interest in laptime but I think she is getting a glimmer. Goodie was a 90 pounder who enjoyed laptime. Honey is welcome to try it though it tends to make my eyes bug out a little. 

My""silver ointment" for the legs arrived yesterday. It feels good. We'll see what it does. They are doing better. Though the chili was very light on salt, the legs are a little bulgy tonight. Gonna go get flat.

Running Up and Down the Road

We were at the Vet's by 9:00 a.m. My girl was complaining last night- she is the original stoic. She was not moving except a few steps at a time. I finally got her to the bed where I was able to get her more comfortable. Spent most of the night rubbing her tummy because that seemed to help comfort her. Ms. Morgan was not very sympathetic this morning. Her work was just fine, perhaps the rewrap had a little different angle...I broke out the pain meds this afternoon.

A little rain last night and a cool day today. I was zipless. Not feeling bad just vegetative. The "universal" antenna I ordered is designed for cellphones with no antenna jack. It comes with a piece of velcro and you stick the transducer on the phone with that. It Works! It is not a big gain but it is at least a bar more and the calls are much clearer. I'll tweak it a bit.

Blogger friend Denis is back from Elk Camp. You have to know these guys to read between the lines. It was a funny blog entry. Think "Grumpy Old Men" crossed with "Tea Party rally." They didn't even see an Elk and I think they were just as happy. They got all the liquor there but forgot eating utensils.

Something Finally Happened

USPS Mail and Fedex made their stops today. A little retail therapy going on here. The cell phone accessories (replacement charger, antenna, FM speaker gizmo) arrived and work as advertised. Mailed from overseas, passed through customs and here promptly. Honey was overdue for her checkup and I got the fisheye from young Vet Morgan because her bandage was dirty. I am doing the best I can, babysitting 24/7 and I know what Honey would do if locked up. Far more damage to a tender leg than the few steps we take to go out and come back in. Her cast was replaced, the lower joint is much firmer, the upper joint has a way to go. She had to be sedated, dropped a log and barfed in the vet's office. Buddy was concerned and mostly helpful. They both got their annual shots. Buddy needs his playmate. He is more than a handful when bored. He steals, climbs, and is owly. The stealing is really unkind to an old man. I keep thinking I am losing my mind: "It was here just a minute ago." Then I look at his cache spots and there my stuff is-usually worse for the wear. I sternly told him he was naughty today and he went to time-out- of his own volition. It is impossible to stay cross with him.

Brother Rich called yesterday and we had a date for dinner tonight. He called just as we were leaving the Vet's and said he would meet me at the Casino at 6:00. That gave me a couple of hours to kill. Went to Walgreen's and got my Flu shot. (free for old fogies, thanks to that socialistic program Medicare). This year's also protects against H1N1 which I missed out on last year due to it being out of stock. Bought the doggies some burgers to tide them over. Honey was hungry though still groggy.

It is raining again tonight. Presents a problem for Honey's bandage and me. Guy said he got 16 hundreths last night. Saw him at the vets. He couldn't talk. The walls have ears there.

Ambling on

Quiet days. Childhood neighbor and chum Marsha sent me the Steamboat Springs 50th reunion book. Lynn and Marsha did a bang-up job on it. The self-submitted bios were a riot! They were very candid: "My wife found a love note from a lady I was having an affair with-that ended that marriage." Ann Hoelscher who drew a picture of me taking a whiz and left it for me in Gertrude Campbell's Algebra class, stayed true to form- what a life! But she is settled and happy in Parachute, CO. "Wichie Wight the wabbit man," who I used to help skin his rabbits, is a famous heart surgeon and professor at Vanderbilt, University. (He was an heir to the F.M. Light and Sons Western Haberdashery). Clela, who as County Clerk in Boulder many years ago, issued the first/last Colorado, and probably national, same-sex marriage license, is going to California to participate in a documentary with the still-together couple. Still a free spirit. Lots of memories and a group picture that, without the labels would have meant nothing to me. Most people have acquitted themselves quite adequately. Several obits. This was a very different group than attended the reunion I did. The great jocks then, are fatter than I am. Love it.

We are having a serious thunderstorm as I write this. The wet is welcome- I think most of the crops are in around here. I haven't been up the road since the 30th. I will hope there is nothing that will be ruined.

Matt Skyped tonight. I saw my sweet gorgeous Audrey. I am so anxious to get up there and see them. This bit of weather reminds me that I had better get busy because fall/winter is due at any moment. We have been coasting on glorious days. After a trip, it might not look like this anymore.

Is the World Wobbling on its Axis?

Honey was raising Tophet at 3:00 a.m. I put on my Crocs and went out leaving the dogs in and safe. The police lights were blinking and the ambulance came. As predicted, the carnage has started up right away-a vehicle accident right in front of the house. I looked for information on Wyoming websites today but there was nothing, as usual. But the 3:00 a.m. sleep interruption or a planetary wobble made the day seem (to me) completely out of synch and everything was difficult and my attitude was poor all day long. I felt old.

I was in Nubbinsvile in the supply department. I am going to go roving so I shopped with that in mind. Nothing that can sprout or wilt. The poor doggies got on my nerves-I didn't do anything other than be crabby. Buddy without his play time with Honey gets into mischief. He is such a puppy. Our schedule was screwed up. I didn't nap until 4:00 and then only for 15 minutes. Then we went to town and I also bought dinner for us. Too risky to chance  fixing anything. With Indian payday, Wally World was out of many things and there were not enough checkers. Crab, crab, crab. Good sleep tonight I hope.

What a Croc!

To the erstwhile and intrepid deliverers of goods, USPS, FEDEX, and UPS, I now add JANET. She was greeted with Honey's usual ill-mannered barking. She was delivering some Crocs shoes. They were a birthday gift but I required a more jumbo size than were stocked. Where she found these I do not know but I have chased around the Internet looking for some in my size and drawn blanks. Inspired by the new shoes, I got out my Black and Decker podiatry tools, gave myself a pedicure, donned right size compression stockings, and my new Crocs which I find very comfortable and cool. This is a great gift. I think she had in mind they be would good for Florida and the bathhouse. I think they are great right here until the first snowfall. Then they will be put to use as intended.

I did order some stuff from the web's cell phone shop. The charger for my "Boulder" phone-my main everyday phone was erratic. The charger would click on and off. I plugged and unplugged, etc. Then I noticed the cord felt a little rough. Then I saw chew marks. I wonder who could have done that?  Verizon wants $30.00 plus for a replacement. The Cellphone shop wanted $2.99.  We'll see.

Otherwise it was mostly doggie supervision today. Honey is being very good but she is getting impatient to romp a little. The Tramadol is making her owly. We are just about off all meds.

My kindness to the Lucas newlyweds was rewarded with a homemade postcard picture of the newlyweds with the words "Thank You," emblazoned over it. The only writing that was on it was my address. I wasn't invited to the shindig, but I wanted to do something. Ember is really starting to look like her mom-very matronly.. I shall make a point of mentioning it when next I see her.