IS IT A PICNIC OR LUNCH?

Today I was supposed to go visit my foster kid and have a surprise picnic. Something got in the way of that and I got part way there and had to turn around.

When we spoke on the phone he told me someone told him were supposed to go on a surprise picnic. He told me he hated picnics. I asked him why? He said he just did. I told him we had a picnic when we went on his class trip and he had then. He insisted that was not a picnic. So I asked him to describe a picnic for me.

He said a picnic was people bringing a blanket to grassy area and putting it down and bringing a basket of food and putting it down on the blanket. Then the people sit on the blanket and eat.

I asked him what the field trip was. He said that was Lunch. Not a picnic. (On the field trip everyone brought their lunch and we sat at a picnic table and ate our food.)

He insisted that the field trip was a lunch but not a picnic but he liked the field trip lunch. But he hates picnics.

Okay. Best not to argue with the picnic expert.

Until tomorrow...

UPS

Today I was not supposed to be working.  I was going to use today to go to the doctor's, getting picnic supplies and cleaning my house.  Well, I got two out of the three things done thanks to my friends and family.  I texted my sister-in-law, half-sister and friend to see what they would bring on a picnic with a kid.  I got some good ideas.  I settled on sandwiches, chips, carrots, ritz bits (for a snack), watermelon, and chocolate chip cookies for dessert.  I am also bringing apple juice and water (lots of water). 

I ended up dealing with UPS and 1) a package that did not get delivered due to the crazy traffic around Washington DC and 2) a package that needed to be shipped here from Washington DC.  You would have thought I was sending a package to the moon.  I now remember why I can't stand UPS.  Fed Ex is so much better for overnight packages.  Their tracking is so much better.  Ground shipping is better with UPS. 

Anyway, my house is still dirty but I am ready for the picnic. 

Until tomorrow...

GOODBYE TO SUMMER

I can't believe the summer is almost over.  This summer went by so fast.  I expected my summer to be a certain way with my foster son being with me.  Instead it ended up another way with me visiting him and him living somewhere else.  I went on my trip back East by myself instead of both of us going. 

At the end of the summer there was a chance he would be coming back but that is not going to happen now.  He will be staying away for many more months to get the help he needs.  He may be moving a bit closer though which would help.

It is almost time to say goodbye to summer. 

Until tomorrow...

SHOWING UP

Today I rushed to be somewhere by a certain time to attend a function that I didn't want (or have time) to attend.  But I made the commitment and it was important for me to be there.  So I showed up on time.

The person who came up with the idea for and organized this function emailed to say he would not be coming.  No important excuse.  No, my car broke down, my kid got sick, my dog had to go to the vet.  Nothing.  Just an email that said "you wouldn't mind if I passed on the function, right?  I have something else to do."

So, now I am stuck going to the function and I am now in charge of running it and paying for it.  All for a function I didn't want to have anything to do with to begin with and it wasn't my idea.

I handled it and I made the best of it.  We all had a good time in the end.

My day was lost at that point.   Now I was far behind on the work I was supposed to be getting done.

I think that when you say you are going to show up for something, you should show up.  Unless there is an emergency, you should show up.  Dropping your responsibilities on someone else just ruins their day and puts them behind in their day.

Until tomorrow...

GOING BACK TO SEE THE DOCTOR

I haven't really mentioned it because I really thought it would go away but my wrist is not getting better.  Back in May I was given a steroid injection and it immediately hurt worse.  It has not gotten better.  It feels pain/aches if I have it in a certain position or if I move it in a certain way. 

I am going to see the specialist in two weeks to see what she has to say. 

Until tomorrow...

LUNCH WITH A FRIEND

Today I took my car to be serviced. The blinker was making this high squeezing noise. Of course once I got it there they could not hear the noise. When I picked up the car the noise was gone. Either the noise is dormant or the guy fixed it without realizing it. Well, they didn't charge me so...

I went to have lunch with a friend. She used to be a client a few years ago. Once she left that place of business we started having lunch. We get along really well. We found out that we are now working a few blocks away so we are going to meet again soon.

Until tomorrow...

HULU AND CLEANING THE GARAGE

For the past four days I have had a problem with Hulu.  I have been so in love with Hulu I tell everyone how much I adore it.  I am so happy I got rid of most of my cable and as soon as a few final channels are picked up by Hulu or are made so I can purchase separately, I will get rid of cable all together. 

For the past four days I have not been in love with Hulu.  I have been getting a Network Error every time I click on it.  At first I thought they were having an issue, so I would just watch something else.  It was Thursday late at night so I didn't think anything of it.  It continued into Friday and I thought okay they are still having a problem, I am sure someone has called in and complained, it will be fixed by tomorrow.  Saturday I was away all day and when I came home it still was not working.  I was too tired to do anything about it.  I was really annoyed now.

Today is Sunday and first thing I called.  The first customer service person spent an hour going over all the steps (most of which I already did on Saturday night by myself) but I am willing to do them with the person to show it didn't work. She insisted that my internet provider was not giving me enough Mbps (megabites per second).  I told her it was plenty a week ago why is it now not enough.  She could not answer.  She insisted that I had to disconnect all the Roku's that I had except the one I was watching and that would work.  While we were on the phone, I got it to work for a short time so we hung up and it immediately stopped working.

Call number 2.  I got a smarter more experienced customer service person this time around and she did not make me do the rounds of restarting and unplugging.  Instead she listened and agreed with me that it can't be my internet because in between phone calls I disconnected almost everything and it still didn't work so that theory didn't fly.  She agreed that it had to be the Rokus.  Some upgrade must have happened that caused Hulu to not work and I am the first person to complain.  I must watch too much TV, is that what she was saying??  No judgement. 

She elevated the problem and told me she would call me back before her shift ended.  I know.  I have heard that before too.  I really didn't think it would happen but it did!  She called me back to tell me that phone calls have been flooding in!  I was just the first.  I always wanted to be the first in something (probably not this).  Now the tech staff is taking my complaint seriously.  They should have it fixed in a few hours.  Yahoo!  It helps to be diligent, an advocate, a nag, a pain in the ass, whatever you want to call it. 

While I was waiting for the second customer service person to call me back, I started working in the garage to get my mind off things.  I was already doing laundry and changed my sheets.  I decided that this weekend I would work on my workbench.  When I moved in my house the previous owners left a workbench.  I thought what will I do with a workbench?  Well, it has become like a exercise bike and clothes.  Everything gets dropped on the workbench.  Papers, broken things, various nails and screws, mail, etc.  I took everything off the top and bottom of the workbench and organized it, cleaned it, threw stuff away and put stuff back.  I wish I took a before photo but just image two layers of junk on the top and more junk on the bottom.  Here is the finished product.

I didn't get so crazy as to organizing the screws and nails and such but that is a task for another day.  I am working on the macro not the micro right now.  Two sides of the garage done.  Now I have to work on the middle.  That will take a bit longer.  I figure if I work for 1-2 hours each weekend I will get through it in a month more.  I need to take a bunch to donate and clear out some space. 

Until tomorrow...

FOOD

My house was out of food. Not just "hey, I need to go food shopping." But more like I have nothing left to eat for breakfast. I was out of butter, mayo and peanut butter.

It was hard to make any type of nutritious meal unless I wanted dried beans or lentils with ketchup.

I went and got four bags of staples and now I can eat meals again.

I know not everyone has this privilege and I do not take it for granted.  There was a time years ago during the recession in the 90's when I could not find a job for a long time and my unemployment had run out.   I had to go down to the city's General Assistance office and ask for help. For a short time I received assistance money and food stamps.  It is a humbling experience and one I am most grateful to have experienced. I will never take food and the ability to have food for granted.

I am now dreaming up things I can make for dinner.

Until tomorrow...

THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK

I got up this morning and called the location where my foster kid was and made a complaint of inappropriate behavior.  They took the complaint seriously and are going to deal with it.  I feel better.

Why is it that professional people do not think before they speak?  I am not just talking about this instance but there have been so many lately that people just open there mouths and don't think before they speak.  I even read an article in the paper about this recently.  That some people feel they can say anything they want without thinking through what the consequences are or who they could be hurting or what they are saying could mean down the line.  I don't understand.

I started a practice a while ago.  Before I send an email where I am angry or upset, I write it and then I walk away.  I come back and read it before I hit send.  That way I take a minute before I send something that may hurt someone or I may not really mean.

Think before you speak, please.

Until tomorrow...

INTERESTING NEWS

I went out for tea with my friend S this evening.  We caught up and hung out at this lovely tea cafe.  It was a nice night so we sat outside.

About an hour into the evening I got a call from my foster kid stating he was going to be adopted by someone else.  Oh.  Okay.  It was a staff member of the location he was at.  Oh.  What?

My head blew off.  It is so inappropriate for a staff person to tell a kid this information. Plus she told him to keep it secret!  Adults in power do not tell kids to keep secrets.  Ever.

My whole evening took an unexpected turn.

Until tomorrow...

ANOTHER ROAD TRIP

I had to do another long drive today.  I had to leave very early to get to a meeting at school.  I attended the meeting at the school since I am the education rights holder for my foster kid, got to see him for a few minutes and then back on the road again back home.  It was a quick turn around trip. 

I have to come back in two weeks for another meeting.  While I was there, I got set up for online information so I can monitor progress from afar. 

Until tomorrow...

MET UP WITH A FRIEND

Today I met up with a friend.  She was the woman who watched my dogs back in the spring.  She is super interesting and fun.  She just returned from Rwanda and Tanzania.  The funny thing was all she wanted to talk about was Happi and Lucky.  How were they and what had they been doing?

All I wanted to hear about was her trip!  She told me some but I wanted to hear more.  I wish I could go!  A bit out the question these days.

It was fun into to catch up.  As a bonus she has agreed to watch the dogs in September so I can do a night away to see my parents.

Until tomorrow...

NEW CAMERA

I love my new camera.  The old camera worked okay but it didn't work as well.  I feel safer knowing the new camera is in place.  It is easier to see the area it is filming and it doesn't cut out like the old camera.  My old camera would go offline constantly.

The old camera is now in my office temporarily.  When the weather gets nice I want to put it in the backyard and see what lurks out there for a few nights.

Until tomorrow...

PROJECTS WITH MY BROTHER

Today was a very productive day.  With my brother B's help I moved my alarm sensor to another location that will, hopefully, not go off when Happi moves around.  It is no longer pointed at the stairs so it should be good.

Then B helped me install my nest camera.  It is replacing another security camera that is good but not as good as the nest will be.  The old camera is not supposed to be used outdoors and is not as good at picking up all the action.  The area the camera is in is outdoors but in an alcove so it is practically indoors.  There is no rain and very little wind.  Because I live in a moderate climate it doesn't get too cold or too hot.  I did buy an outdoor camera this time though.  The installation was a success and I can see clearly now.  Just to make sure no one steals it, I used zip ties to chain it to a little table and to the outdoor outlet.  Good luck trying to steal my camera.  Try to get a table through my metal gate.  I have had my old camera sitting on the table for years and no one tried to steal it.  I always had the cord wrapped around the table legs just in case.

The old camera will go for now in my office.  I am not sure what I will eventually use it for.  I may put it at the bottom of the stairs to monitor Happi when I am not home.  She still goes up and down but it is getting more and more precarious.

Thank you brother B.

Until tomorrow...

GNOME DAY

I went to the pottery place and got my gnome today.  He looks awesome!

This was one of the best painting jobs I have ever done. It was a really fun project.  I am really proud of this one.

Until tomorrow...

YOGA MATS

I found these yoga mats and thought they would help Happi to walk.  I was right.  They look funny but they sure do work.  She no longer slips and slides on the hard wood floors and the kitchen floors.

A small price to pay to not hear her slipping and falling in the middle of the night.
Until tomorrow...

UPDATE ON HAPPI

I spoke to the doctor about Happi today.  It was just an update phone call.  I told him how Happi is doing.  He seemed pleased.  I loved his quote:  She is a medical miracle.  She has been through so much and she is still so happy and chugging along.  He prescribes medicine and she reacts the exact opposite then how she is supposed to.  It baffles him every time. 

We decided that since she has become a professional pill spitter (she now spits her pills half way across the room when I give them to her) maybe I should cut down the pills.  I am almost stopping the suculfrate which I was giving 3 times a day.  I had stopped the glucosamine but then I started it up again when she started taking them again (they taste like liver, yum!).  But now I am adding Galliprant which is an antiinflammitory.  It makes her sleep.  Some times she gets very anxious for some reason we can't figure out and if I give her this she calms down.

Overall the urinary stuff has calmed down and since it has been cause by her stomach and that is better; all is good.  She is eating better and has put weight back on, still not her fighting weight but not like the skeleton dog she was there for a while.

Her ear infection is cleared up and that will not give her back any of her hearing and that is sad.  I still talk to her even if she can't hear me.  Some things she can hear.  I dropped a hammer next to her and she jumped up.  It was probably the vibrations.  But if I come home, she doesn't even wake up.

I know she is on the decline.  I want her to have a cushy end of life since her beginning was so traumatic.  She deserves that.

Until tomorrow. 

GARAGE CONTINUED

I decided to continue cleaning out the garage today.  I started with the freezer.  It was cramped and there was stuff in there that didn't need to be there.  I went through and found two giant bags of ice from a party probably more than a year ago.  I ditched them and boy was there lots of room in the freezer.  I moved a shelf up and made more space.  I found two things that were old and I tossed them in the trash.

Then I organized things by likeness.  It is so neat and clean now.  I even found an ice cream bar.  It was hidden behind something.  It made me so happy I decided to keep going.

I went to my exercise area and decided my foster kids boxes needed to be moved out so I could exercise again.  I went to the area I cleared out yesterday by putting all the stuff back in the car.  I cleared the rest of the stuff out of that area.  I moved brooms and mops over to the laundry area.  I moved step ladders near the regular ladders.  I moved some clothes to give away to the area where I have donation boxes.  Then I moved the foster kid's boxes to the cleared out area.  I took some things what were not boxed up and boxed them.

Now my exercise area is cleared out and I can go back to riding my bike again.

I know it is hard to see but it is behind the fan.  I have to move the fan upstairs.  There is a lot to clear out but this one space is clear and for now that is great.

Until tomorrow...

GARAGE CLEAN OUT

I have been wanting to clean out my garage for forever.  One thing lead to another and I could not do it because 1) the handyman was going to tear out a wall and replace it, 2) the electrician had to rip things out and put in a new meter, and 3) I got a foster kid who came with tons of boxes.

Today I decided that is enough.  I started with the pile of stuff I took out of my car last December when my car was in the accident and I had to empty my car to get it fixed.  I had two boxes of stuff that I took out and dumped in the garage. I went through it and decided what to keep and what to throw away.  I put the emergency kit back in the car where it belonged.  Extra water and the book for the car.  Some other stuff too.  Then I pitched everything else.  My trunk looks very organized and I will not die of dehydration.

Until tomorrow...

WHEN WE WERE KIDS

Remember when we were kids and about once every two weeks or so your parent(s) would come home and announce (probably on a Friday night) that the family was going out to dinner.  Going out to dinner was a special occasion.  We used to go to the Italian restaurant up the street on the corner.  I like the lasagna or ravioli, I think.  Anyway, it was a special thing to go out to dinner.   We would put on nice clothes.

It just doesn't seem to be like that anymore.  Going to a restaurant is not special anymore. 

I was speaking to my sister and we were talking about how kids currently are brought up to expect that they are going to go to a restaurant.  Not that it is a special experience. 

I took someone out recently who was a kid and they ordered a $20 entree for lunch.  It was giant.  The kid could not even finish it.  At that point I realized that I needed to watch where I take kids to eat.  Especially when the kid ordered dessert for $10.

I need to be more thoughtful as to where I take kids to eat and where I take kids to do activities.  There is a certain level of every time we go it has to be exciting and wonderful.  But I have learned that is unsustainable.  $30 lunches are unsustainable.  Going to amusement parks every time is unsustainable.  Just being together and having us time and making our own fun is sustainable.  Sandwiches in the park is sustainable. 

I can see now why our parents took us to the Italian restaurant once every 2-3 weeks.  First that was probably all the could afford but also that keeps it a special experience. 

Until tomorrow...

HANGING UP THE PHONE

I have someone who hangs the phone up on me on occasion. I know the person is upset and most times angry. I equate hanging up the phone to slamming the door. Both are rude.

I am trying to get the person to understand that there are more constructive ways to talk about what is going on rather than hanging up the phone or slamming the door. Talking about what is bothering you is better than shutting people out.

Until tomorrow...

LONG WALK

Today I took Lucky for a long walk. I needed to pick up Happi's medicine and thought it would be fun to walk there. Since I was walking I decided to take Lucky with me.  We had a great time walking there. We got the medicine and started back home. Lucky got thirsty. I gave her some water and walked further.

Almost all the way home we stopped walking and caught the bus. It was hot and Lucky had taken three drinks of water. She deserved a bus ride the rest of the way home.

Until tomorrow...

INVITATION

I was invited to an event tomorrow. I have decided to skip it to stay home with Happi. I see the decline in Happi and I feel like I want to spend as much time with her as I can. I don't want to regret not spending her last but of time with her as much as I can. Once she is gone, she is gone.

So I skipped the event. I would have been gone for 5 hours. It would have messed up her dinner time and medicine. There will always be other events.

Until tomorrow...

HAVING A HARD CONVERSATION

Today I had to have a hard conversation.  I had to tell a client that an employee was doing something that was inappropriate.  Not badly inappropriate but inappropriate enough that it needed to be corrected.  It was awkward for me to tell the client but it needed to happen.

Then the employee called me to talk about it with me.  I thought it would be incredibly awkward but it ended up being a real learning experience for the person.  They took the constructive criticism very well and asked for some clarification. 

The situation ended very well when it could have ended badly.

Until tomorrow...

FIGURED OUT THE ALARM

I calmed down and called the alarm company again today.  I got a very nice customer service person who was a problem solver.  She helped me figure out that both alarms were from the same place.  It turns out that Happi is setting off the alarm.  The sensor is near the stairs and I guess when Happi goes up the stairs when I am not home it seems that she is bigger and a bigger presence than she actually is because she is going up the stairs.  If you don't understand think of it this way: if you stand at the top of the stairs and look at a child at the bottom of the stairs and they look little but as they walk up the stairs they get bigger.  Well, a sensor doesn't know that a dog is a dog, all it knows is that something is getting bigger and coming closer.

So the way to fix it is to move the sensor to another location where Happi coming up the stairs will not set it off.  Much easier fix and one that makes more sense than "just don't set the alarm".

Until tomorrow...

ALARM AGAIN

I went for a walk today and once again the alarm went off in my house.  I don't know what is going on but it is super annoying.  I called the company and they can't seem to figure out what is going on and their intelligent answer is "don't set the alarm".  I got mad after the third phone call with customer service and I slammed the phone down and said they all idiots.

I spent hours trying to figure out what could be causing the alarm to keep going off.  I know it is Happi who is setting it off but I can't figure out how.  Dogs are not supposed to be able to set off home alarms so how can she be setting off the alarm?

The problem started after I had the new equipment installed.  Obviously the new equipment has to be the problem.

Until tomorrow...

PILL BUDDY

Happi has to take pills every day.  Up to 5 pills in a day.  She used to be such a good pill taker.  I could just give her the pill and she would just eat it.  Not anymore.  She is still good compared to Lucky who won't take any pills.  Happi is just more picky about taking pills.  She used to like Pill Pockets but then one day she hated Pill Pockets.  I tried Pillstachios but then she hated those and would not eat those anymore.

Now I have Pill Buddys.  They are all natural, non-gmo, no soy, no corn, no just about anything but mighty tasty.  They come in about 5 different fun flavors.  She loves the Banana and Peanut Butter.  But she also likes the Grilled Chicken, Grilled Duck, Peanut Butter and Apple, and Peanut Butter and Honey.  It makes it easier to give her pills when she has a variety of flavors and she doesn't get tired of one flavor.  I keep a variety and keep her guessing.  Let's hope she doesn't tired of Pill Buddy's for a long time.

Until tomorrow...

BIRTHDAY PICNIC IN THE PARK

Today was my friends birthday picnic. It was held in a botanical garden. I really wanted to go and I got up and went to the supermarket to buy food to take. These folks are not the sandwich and chips kid of picnic people. I already showed up once with a sandwich and chips and was embarrassed.  They all had champagne and Bloody Marys and charcuterie trays (on wood boards) and exotic cheeses and fancy bread.  Not a homemade pasta salad to be found.

This year I was not going to be called out. I bought containers that I needed and could use so I could bring small amounts of food. I brought an orzo salad, a wrap sandwich, olives, sundried tomato hummus, beet crackers, cherry tomatoes, and strawberries.  I looked fancy. I had tons of food and shared some. I stayed for my usual 45 min -1 hr when I don’t know anyone.

I went and sat in the park for a while and called my cousin. We had a nice talk and then I went home.

It was a nice day on a foggy and sunny day.

Until tomorrow...

POTTERY AND PAINTING

Today I went on a road trip and went to a place where I painted pottery.  There was all sorts of pottery at this place.  Plates, mugs, cupcakes that are banks, fairies, cats, unicorns (lots of unicorns), gnomes, and castles. There were big pieces and little pieces.

I chose a gnome to paint and my foster kid chose a Siamese cat. The kiddo finished his cat faster then I did because his cat was easier to paint. The gnome on the other hand was quite intricate and took a lot of time.

I hope he comes out good. I worked really hard on him, I will be going back in two weeks and we can pick them up. I hope he looks good after being fired.

Until tomorrow...

SHOULDER

Well, I think I have screwed up my shoulder again.  I am not sure what caused it.  It could have been lugging around luggage for a week or it could be carrying my backpack to get to my clients or it could be lifting Happi in and out of the car to get to her vet appointment or it could just be how I have been sleeping on it (especially on the pullout couch). 

Who knows what caused it?  It started bothering me on vacation but I didn't think much of it but yesterday it hurt a lot and today I was in severe pain for a lot of the day.  I didn't do much for the day to give it a rest.  I have to drive a lot tomorrow so I won't have much time to rest it.

Hopefully going on Orencia will help with the inflammation. 

Until tomorrow...

UPDATE ON HAPPI

The doctor called back with the results on Happi's tests from Tuesday.  They took blood and urine.

First, her ear infection has cleared up. It was not caused by anything caught in her ear. It was just a plain ear infection.

Her blood was okay but her urine showed her kidney function has gotten worse. Happi has always had wonky kidney function tests but since her test in January there has been change. Not in the good way.  She had gone from mild kidney function issues to just under moderate kidney function issues. There is nothing they can do about it so we just have to watch it. Nothing in particular causes it other than getting old.

She seems fine and the changes in her meds has made her more alert and eat more.

Until tomorrow...