July 01 2007

I did my last Jeep wave and we took our last ride in the Jeep yesterday.  She's gone. I now have a new (new to me) Ford Escape. Never thought I'd own a Ford, and it's orange! My first grown up car. My first car with automatic transmission, my first car with power windows. I thought it may have been my first car with four doors but my 1976 yellow Honda Sportswagon had four doors. I did my research and homework and went through the grueling process of buying a car, and it sucked. I'm glad it's over. I love my new car...the car dealer, I have different thoughts on.

July 03 2007

I've been working overnights this week, something I'm not accustomed to doing. Since Saturday, its been work, sleep, zombie, work, sleep, zombie, repeat, repeat...

Right now, I'm in the zombie phase, Duncan and Kaleb are behind me in the sleep phase.

And remember the old saying, "A bite of chocolate a day helps keep the high blood pressure away".

July 04 2007

Kaleb The Dog
1992-2007

Yesterday she was a little sick. We thought she just had a tummy ache because she threw up a couple of times. This morning when I went to let her out, she didn't want to get out of bed. She was lying in strange position. I picked her up and took her out but she couldn't stand up. I worked with her but she could walk or stand up. It was then when she started to seizure. I grabbed her and ran upstairs yelling for Duncan. A minute later we were in the car on the way to the emergency vet. The vet, who was great by the way speculated on what it could be and our options. We knew what we had to do. I now know why they call it putting them to sleep. She explained what would happen. All was calm and she was gone, the whole while we petted her. She fell asleep.

I was 27 when I got this dog. I'm 42 now. She's seen me through a lot and I'll never forget this dog that was such a substantial part of my life. She was my buddy.

July 05 2007

Yesterday, I was awake for 35 hours by the time it was time to go to bed. I slept like a baby. Tonight, when I hit the sack, sad thoughts immediately ran through my mind. I couldn't just lay there so I got up and wrote this. We haven't decided if it's best to go ahead and get rid of most of her stuff or wait. Her bed is empty. I put my head in it today and uncontrollably lost it. It's hard when the house is empty. It's rarely ever been empty before.

July 09 2007

We took off this weekend to relieve the stress. On Friday and Saturday we went to Toronto and on the way home Sunday, we made our way to Jamestown, NY, home of Lucille Ball, The Lucy-Desi Museum, and The Desilu Playhouse. You know we love Lucy, so this was a special treat. The museum was mostly the history of Lucy and Desi while the playhouse contained authentic set reproductions and along with a history of how the show was produced in a revolutionary new way that changed the way TV was made. Toronto was beautiful and I can't wait to go back but we went down to the beach and it was crowded with people and dogs and they were having so much fun, I think it brought me down for a good part of the day. Maybe some pictures when I have a little time. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take any inside of the museums.

It was a little strange coming home to an empty house today.

July 10 2007

I'm so pissed at myself. I lost my dad's military dog tags that I've worn around my neck for many years. When I got home from work today, I noticed the broken chain around my neck. After a painstaking search, nothing.

July 13 2007

I almost moved the picture on top of the page, but I couldn't, not just yet, though things are becoming more normal...I guess. The Emergency Vet called yesterday and left a message. I suppose Kaleb's ashes are ready. I think we'll spread them, or at least part of them in Reedy Creek Park, where she spent a lot of her kidhood. They have a dog park now. Back when we lived in Charlotte, we just walked the trails leashless because she just didn't go too far ahead. She would run ahead then run back with the look on her face, "Why are you so slow?" Then do it again. This is a time when being at work is good as it gets the mind off the process. At home you see too many things. All things being, many of the things do make me smile instead of cry.
note: This picture of Kaleb was on top of the main page when this entry was written

July 17 2007

Kaleb came home Friday. She's sitting on the coffee table but she's been very quiet for some reason. I think she wants out of that box. I always wondered why people kept the ashes of their loved ones around the house instead of spreading them but I think I understand now. We still plan on spreading them but I think it's a closure thing to keep them around for a while, a comfort feeling. What I will never understand is how my aunt (my mom's sister) lost the ashes of my other aunt (her other sister). It still makes me a little mad.

Very few pictures of our trip to Toronto due to the fact that I forgot our camera twice during our most productive excursions. We arrived Friday night and spent most of the day Saturday walking and driving around. We spend some time at Lake Ontario and then had lunch in the gay area of town at this great cafe. I'm sure we'll go back in the not too distant future.

On the way back Sunday, we stopped in Jamestown, NY and the Desi-Lucy Museum. Jamestown is a beautiful old town in Western New York where Lucille Ball is from. Their kids have opened the museum dedicated to telling the story of Lucy and Desi. The Playhouse is dedicated to the story of the genus behind the making of I Love Lucy including life-sized replicas of the sets both of the New York apartment and the Hollywood hotel room they stayed in. It also included a set where you could do Lucy's part of the Vitameatavegamin commercial, so I did.

I walked out this morning and got in the car and it seems strange to drive this big car just to run a couple of errands. And it's really not such a big car any way. It's been such a busy month, I've forgotten to enjoy my new car. It's my first grown up car and only my fifth car ever.

July 19 2007

Duncan doing Vitameatavegamin. Happy birthday to you because I love you. Hope you're having fun in the city.

July 20 2007

So there's possible good news as a couple of fishing buddies claim to have invented a way to trap greenhouse gases at the source. This is a great idea if it's on the up and up. Besides that, these days, it seems individuals just don't get credit for inventing new ideas and gadgets because the large corporations always get the patent for the inventions of their employees. People like Thomas Edison, Charles Steimentz, Marie Curie, Alexander Graham Bell, Henry Ford...

In other good news, Gay Hater (and hater of everything else) Coy Privette was busted for prostitution.

Growing up in Charlotte, it wasn't hard to learn to be disgusted by the lavish lifestyle Jim and Tammy Bakker lived while old people were giving over their whole retirement checks and living in poverty because Jim told them it was what God wanted them to do. Over the years since the fall of their empire, Tammy Fay, now Messner has only preached that all should be loved and treated equal. She has reached out to all groups and people. I guess from the comments she has made over the years, I grown fond, but not a follower, of her. It's sad to see how the cancer has almost taken her life. I love the fact that she's still putting on those gosh darn eyelashes because it's what she does. Here's a clip from her appearance on Larry King Live.

July 22 2007

I didn't think anything could make me want to watch golf but Sergio Garcia may change that. And so long  Tammy Faye.

July 23 2007

In my hometown, I had no idea Repo Records closed in 2005. I knew Athens and Andersons closed. South 21 on South Blvd is closing or is closed. Newsstand International, closed. But hey, The Penguin's still there, but for how long?

July 26 2007

I thought I'd refinance my car seeing how I really thought I could get a better rate. With everything that's happened this month, I put it off a while. I actually did lock in a point and a half cheaper. They still have to do all the paper work but besides there being fraud, credit report problems, car to loan value too high, etc, etc, it's a done deal. Oh yea, the car cannot be a Daewoo or a Suzuki. They don't do loans on Daewoo's or Suzuki's.

It was a beautiful day yesterday for doing some work in the yard, so I did. I was digging up a tree with the shovel, and while standing on the shovel, my boot got caught on it as I went to step off. Full throttle fall, flat on my ass. I just sat there by myself and laughed.

July 28 2007

We were eating at one of our favorite breakfast joints this morning when this guy came in and I swear, for 10 minutes, screams his conversation about his run in with the cops with his breakfast companion. Everybody in the place was looking at him including the waitresses. One walked by and asked us sarcastically, "Enjoying your breakfast?" I was just waiting for Duncan to get up and tell him to shut the fuck up. He didn't, and surprisingly, no one else did either.

July 31 2007

Kaleb with her first Christmas bone.

Kaleb the lap dog; Kaleb busting it with her fried Misha.

Kaleb and Hildi; Kaleb and belly.

OK, OK, I updated the Kaleb page to include the whole death thing. You would not believe how long it took me to write that paragraph through all the blubbering. I didn't see that coming so I scanned some puppy pictures for your viewing pleasure and to make me feel better. Besides, I had to wait for my site to come back up. It's been down for some reason. I for one am glad this month is coming to an end. It will end tonight with The Simpson's Movie.