Well, technically I never went anywhere; my computer, however, did go somewhere, but it was more of a metaphysical journey than an actual one. Perhaps last week’s belated offering of The Dimmer Switch can explain it better:

Via Con BIOS, Old Friend

Yes, my laptop is no more. It has ceased to be. It’s expired and gone to meet its maker.It’s rung down the curtain and joined the choir invisible. It is an ex-laptop. But! I still have my wife’s laptop, right? That’s what I thought last week, right up until it stopped working for me about two paragraphs into last week’s offering on Wednesday night. Oh, it would work for a little while… sometimes twenty minutes, sometimes three hours, but eventually it failed without fail, leaving me in a computerless lurch. I’ve never felt so cut off from the world than I did right then, no computer to deliver me instant news, instant messages, instant entertainment. How bad was it? I actually had to use the yellow pages to order a pizza. What is this, the 1950s?

After many days of tinkering, I finally figured out the issue with the wife’s computer late Sunday afternoon. I had to go to the office earlier today, so I picked up my spare work laptop and brought it home (I did check a work email from home to justify the need as work related). After some searching into the problem, I discovered that the culprit behind my wife’s computer’s ailment was… the RAM chip I removed from my old laptop. I’m sloshing by on just 212MB, instead of a Gig, but at least it’s running.

On Friday we went to Kings Island, formerly Paramount’s Kings Island, which was the end of the week destination for my daughter’s MS Camp. We didn’t have to meet her there until 5pm, but since we bought a full day’s admission we took Mags over around noon so she could ride some rides. She’d never been to Kings Island, so it was quite an experience for her. We spent five hours in Nickelodeon Universe (formerly Hanna-Barbera Land) where she rode everything we would let her, including one I probably shouldn’t have.

There are two roller coasters in the kiddie park of KI, one’s a tiny little thing, the other has some teeth. It used to be called The Beastie which was a kiddie sized version of The Beast (the park’s marquee coaster). It’s now called the Fairly OddCoaster, with the only reference to the cartoon show being the ride’s name and the fact that the coaster employs both a green and pink coaster. We sat and watched it run a few times and she told me she wanted to ride it.

“Are you sure?” I asked.
“Yes.”

I should’ve known better, but knowing her she would’ve thrown a fit if I didn’t take her on it. So I did. She was fine in the line (I kept asking her if she was sure she wanted to ride it. “Yes,” she said.), and she was still excited when we got into the car. Going up the hill she was fine, but down the hill? Well, to say she freaked is an understatement. She screamed bloody murder. I kept trying to comfort her the best I could on a creaky wooden coaster going 40mph. She never cried, but she came pretty damn close. Funny thing is, later in the day after we’d picked up her sister, she insisted on riding it again.

“Are you sure?” I asked.
“Yes.”

Second time? Pretty much the same result. She screamed, but she wasn’t as freaked out as she was before. Now all she talks about is going back and riding it again. She has no fear.

(I on the other hand was 17 when I rode it for the first time.)

On the second trip, I purchased the photo of us going down the first hill with her screaming, mostly because it’ll be damn funny to show to people when she gets older.

Well, besides fighting with computer issues and cleaning a few stalls, that pretty much sums up the weekend. Enjoy your Monday, hope to see you Tuesday.

Not much else to report, just the usual humdrum Monday. I’ve been researching syndicates again for publication opportunities and have expanded my search to include some lesser known syndication opportunities, like crime syndicates (word on the street is the Gambino family is looking to hire a new humor writer for their monthly newsletter, maybe I should apply). The submissions go out later this week, so I should expect to see a fresh batch of rejection letters over the next couple of months and possibly a horse head in my bed. On second thought, maybe I should pass on the crime syndicate.

Speaking of horses, how about some pictures? I realized the other day that although I’ve written a little about them I really haven’t introduced the herd. So let’s meet the girls:

First up is Sassy:

She was the first of our gang. She’s technically a pony, so she suffers from what I like to call “Small Dog Disorder”, which basically means her attitude is 2 feet and 2000 pounds bigger than she is. She pretty much runs the show out in the pasture, herding the other two around as she wants and taking her pick of grazing spots. Her name suits her since she can be a little tempermental at times when she doesn’t want to work, but she gets super jealous whenever we’re working with anyone besides her.

Next we have Lily:

She was a rescue horse of sorts. The previous owner basically abandoned her at the barn where we boarded Sassy. This was after the girl rode her into a barbed wire fence, splitting Lily’s face wide open. She’s healed up nicely now; you can only see the scar if you know to look for it. She’s pretty athletic under the saddle so when you get on her she really wants to go.

And last we have my baby, Misty:

I’ve mentioned her story before, but here’s a little more about her. She’s about 18-ish months old and another rescue horse. When we got her she was a lot thinner (I’d say she’s put on at least a hundred pounds since we got her). She didn’t even know how to take a treat from my hand when we first got her, but she’s since learned the skill and noses at my pocket in anticipation. She was very timid at first, but now that she’s gotten used to us and is getting fed on a regular basis she’s very lovey dovey. She likes to rest the side of her face against my chest, which is quite different from having a horse rub her face against you (the first is a sign of affection, the second is disrespect since she’s basically using you as a scratching post).

Here’s a few shots of them in the field together. Misty and Lily tend to pal around together in the field, although they don’t have much of a choice since “the boss” herds them around:

Well, that should do it for today. Have a good Tuesday.

Yes, it’s still there, although we’ve probably used up 75% of the pile. I topped off every flower bed with an additional wheelbarrow full of mulch to help use up as much of it as possible, so now each bed is covered with at least 5 inches of mulch, if not more. The neighbor has committed to help use up the last of it, so hopefully I’ll be able to pull my car all the way up into the driveway tomorrow.

Saturday, I finally went to see Iron Man. I know, I’m about a month behind on my movie viewing schedule. I was quite pleased with the film. Tony Stark is basically Bruce Wayne without all the self-loathing, brooding nonsense. Plus he actually makes his gear and doesn’t just pilfer the good stuff from his company. Also, unlike Batman, Spiderman, or any of the other superhero types, Iron Man doesn’t just battle other guys in masks (granted, the final fight scene was against another guy in a suit). Iron Man takes on terrorists! That’s all sorts of awesome.

I was also pleased with the minimal screen time of Gwyneth Paltrow. Besides being able to pull off a very believable English accent, I’ve never understood her appeal. She’s a less talented, slightly more attractive version of Lisa Kudrow, but with more famous parents. She was the worst thing in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, and anyone who’s seen that film will agree that that’s quite an accomplishment (the film had a great premise, but was utter krep). I made sure to stay all the way through the end credits to view the ultra secret ending, although I’ll be quite surprised if they manage to make an Avengers movie. How many years has the Justice League movie been promised without anything to show for it.

Father’s day was good. After church we went to the barn to spend some time with the herd. Everyone got to ride today, including me. I managed to keep my poise this time in the saddle, even working up the courage to do a little galloping. Basically I learned how to rise in the saddle with the gallop to help keep my hips under me so I don’t flop around like a muppet.

After the barn we went to my parents house for a cookout and some back yard games. They had a new ladder ball game which we played until someone got the bollo caught in the tree (wasn’t me). After that we played some Texas Hold ‘em, with me being the big winner at the table (I won 8 bucks; we don’t play high stakes amongst family). Then it was home to tackle the mulch and get the girls ready for bed.

Big day tomorrow. My eldest daughter goes to MS camp, which is a day camp for children with parents who have MS. They do the usual camp type stuff (canoeing, ropes course, swimming), but they also do some activities to help them understand what it means to have MS. They learn about fatigue and balance problems and do some activities that helps them “feel” what it’s like to have to deal with these issues. It sounds interesting and she’s both excited/nervous about going. I think she’s concerned they won’t let her do everything because of the cast, even though we have a doctor’s note which clears her for all activities (the cast is even waterproof).

Lastly, my computer may be dead. I managed to get all of the information off of the hard drive, but when I tried to reinstall Window’s on the computer it crashed on me again. It may be a power supply issue of sorts (or not; really I have no clue). So I’m still squatting on the wife’s computer until I can get mine sorted out. This may be the motivation I need to finally get off my keister and actually pursue some paying writing gigs to parlay those funds into a new home computing system that I badly need. Here’s hoping.

Well, here’s to a good Monday. Have a good one and I’ll see you Tuesday.

Laptop status: still broked. I managed to get the hard drive out and installed into a portable drive so I could back up all of the vital information (i.e. my entire iTunes directory), but I hit a snag with my external DVD burner. It too seems to be broked. I can get it to connect and all that good stuff, but when I try to get it to burn a DVD it acts like it can’t see the disc. Any disc for that matter. To be honest, I’ve had it since Christmas and have never used it, so it’s possible that it’s always been broked.

So instead of making DVD backups of my hard drive I copied most of the important stuff onto my wife’s computer. It’s over 15G of data that I have to back up so transfering has been slow, especially since my wife’s computer has some auto-sleep mode that I can’t seem to override. So I have to babysit the entire process, returning to the computer and shaking the mouse every 30 minutes or so to keep it from going into hibernation mode (update: I figured out how to turn that off, thankfully).

The giant pile of mulch? Still there. We’ve already covered all of the flower beds and tree skirts with the required allotment, but there’s still quite a bit of mulch that’s still blocking the driveway. Options are to either try to wash it all down the storm drain (yes, I’m kidding) or go back around and give each bed an additional covering. The extra layer might serve as a motivator for the trees, let’s them see what happens to trees that don’t cooperate.

More news on the bone breakage front, this time from my daughter. Apparently during her soccer game Monday night she took a ball off her pinky finger. She didn’t mention it until late that night in a very “oh by the way” fashion. She jammed it pretty good; it was very swollen and turning purple around the joint, but she was moving it pretty good and she said it didn’t hurt so we just figured it was jammed, nothing more. She worried about it much of the next day so my wife decided to take her in and have it x-rayed to be sure. Verdict? Broken. The doctor put her in a splint and referred her to a hand doctor, whom she visited yesterday. The hand doctor confirmed the broken status and fitted her with a waterproof cast (We opted for the waterproof cast since her birthday is coming up in a couple weeks and she’s having a pool party). It’s a lovely shade of hunter safety orange and she’ll be wearing it for at least the next month.

Well, that about does it for this week. If I can work around the computer situation I’ll be doing the meerkat summary later tonight. Otherwise have a good weekend, see you Monday.

This brings me to week 8 of Project 52. Despite a few hiccups, we’re still rolling along pretty smoothly.

Speaking of hiccups, my computer died last night. When I turn it on it does nothing; no noise from the hard drive, no clicking and whirring to indicate that any processing is taking place. I can’t even get to the blue screen of death, so you know it’s serious. For the time being I’ve co-opted my wife’s laptop, but I’m pretty sure she’s gonna want it back. A new computer is a remote possibility at this point, so my fingers are crossed that I can get my old machine limping back to life.

The ol’ lappy is at least 7 years old, which translates to about 147 in computer years. It’s been through 2 hard drives, multiple RAM additions, and more virus scares than I care to remember. I’m holding out hope that I’ll be able to revive it, but the prognosis isn’t good. I’m going to try taking out the hard drive and installing it into a portable one in order to back up any files that I want to save (remember kids, always back up your work) and then try formatting the damn thing out.

Besides computer woes, I finally got around to watching Juno last night. I liked it, but there was something about the film that bugged me. Maybe it’s just me, but the indie movie format is getting quite redundant. You probably know what I mean: quirky characters with eccentric tastes who speak in overly clever banter, and every segue features quirky indie music from the late 70s/mid 90s. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy the film, I just felt like the movie tried to be more clever than it really was.

Oh well, enough for today. See you tomorrow, hopefully on my old laptop.

This was blocking my driveway when I arrived home from work today. A big honkin’ pile of former tree components, shredded, dyed, and flavored to taste like cyprus.

(That’s my car in the background, dwarfed by mulch mountain.)

Wasn’t expecting any mulch deliveries today, so imagine my surprise. Turns out my wife and the neighbor’s wife were in cahoots and they scheduled the delivery without our knowing. So my regularly scheduled evening of doing practically nothing was preempted in order to turn that giant pile of much into many smaller piles distributed around the yard.

After the mulch-a-thon, we headed to the barn to see the girls including the newest member of our brood, Misty. Alas, my plan to name our latest quarry was thwarted by my oldest daughter who had actually named the horse before we bought it. The previous owner had asked her input on the name and she had chosen Misty. Granted, I could have trumped her and renamed the horse what I wanted to call it, but that seemed like a dickish thing to do. Plus, Misty really is a good name for her:

She’s a little timid but she’s not skittish or jumpy. I groomed her up a bit and did the whole horse whisperer thing (no, not really). There were quite a few people at the barn so I took her out back to groom her in order to keep her calm. She’s only 18-ish months old, so she’s got that mix of part curiosity, part fear of new experiences. Love the color though:

Right now our only plan is to try to bulk her up, get her back to health, and then work on the training aspects. The previous-previous owner was already riding her, it will probably be a year before we even consider saddling her up.

Speaking of saddling up, I have some other writing to tend to this evening, so I’ll wrap this one up here. New Dimmer Switch on Thursday, so see you tomorrow.

I’ve been dieting for about 6 weeks now and I’ve lost almost 30 pounds (I can’t imagine what the game would’ve called me then!). I’ve been doing the Atkins diet, or at least my own interpretation of how the Atkins diet should work. I realize I’m about five years behind the whole “low carb” craze, but I understood how the Atkins diet worked and why it worked. I was basically at a point where I needed to lose a lot of weight, so I went with a diet that I knew would work.

While I did follow the Atkins plan, I wasn’t stupid about it. When most people think of Atkins, they picture three meals of steak and eggs with a side of bacon and a stick of butter, and there are people who do lose weight dieting like that, but it’s extremely unhealthy. I was quite sensible about it, and I ate more lettuce than I did meat over the course of my Atkins experience. I finally decided to end the Atkins phase of dieting due to the severe muscle cramps I was getting. Even though I was taking a multivitamin, I still wasn’t getting enough potassium and such to prevent cramping in my calf muscles. After a week of waking up at 3am with severe pain in my calves, I decided it was time to eat a damn banana.

Since I’m still not finished dropping pounds, I decided to phase off the low carb and into a more conventional calorie maintenance diet. Well, after one day of splurging.

Went to the barn again tonight to bring in the girls since it’s probably going to thunderstorm tonight. Sassy had wriggled out of her halter again, so I had to loop the lead rope around her neck to get her inside. Lilly just ambled into her stall, no issues. Night and day, the attitudes of these animals. When we got Lilly we hoped that some of her laid back persona would rub off on Sassy but it hasn’t. Basically, Sassy just pushes her around in the pasture, which is quite a feat considering Lilly has her by at least 18 inches at the shoulder and a good 700 lbs. She’s just too easy going to push back is all.

Oh, and speaking of horses, we might be getting another one. Funny thing how that works. This time last year I had zero horses, with no intentions of buying horse one. Less than a year later I have two and am looking into the possibility of a third. She’s an 18 month old blue roan mare, and despite not having the best start at life, she’s a beautiful animal with a great temperament. Another boarder at the stables purchased her with the intent to bulk her up, train her and sell her at a profit (aka Flip this Horse), but met with a few unforeseen financial obligations and can’t afford to keep her. We also can’t afford to keep her, but my wife’s mother also was taken by the horse and wants to help out. So technically it will be her horse and we’ll just train it, ride it, and look after it.

I’ve claimed dibs on naming her if/when we actually go through with this. I’m leaning towards either Trillian or Zooey. Yes, they’re both from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Trillian from the book, Zooey from the actress who played Trillian in the movie). Pretty much all of my other science fiction based names were vetoed. Willow was in the running until my wife figured out it was from Buffy.

Well, that should wrap things up for tonight. See you tomorrow.

Yes, I realize I went against my own advice by giving my wife exercise equipment for Mother’s Day, but after reading up and watching some demos online, I thought it would be good therapy for her MS. Besides weakness in her arms and legs, loss of balance is another problem that people with MS have to contend with. The Wii Fit has many balance games which I thought would be good for her.

After we opened it, my wife was the first to try it. In the first part, a little cartoon balance board guides you through the initial analysis of your center of balance, your weight, and your BMI. The information provided was very revealing about my wife’s balance issues. After her both girls registered and got their weights and BMI information. Then it was my turn.

When I stepped onto the board, the cartoon version of the board let out a little “Oh!”, as if surprised by the added weight. After a few questions it revealed my weight and BMI. “That’s overweight!” the little voice said as my WiiMii bloated up to more accurately reflect my appearance. How fun, a video game just called me fat.

I did the yoga and strength training exercises, and I have to say that thing can really kick your ass. The board tracks your balance as you hold yoga poses and perform strength training exercises, so you can see your balance shift as you try to keep your balance within a certain threshold. The only downside to the Wii Fit is its still a game, so most of the features are locked at first, requiring you to progress in the games to unlock more features.

Saturday we were invited to a surprise birthday party. Well, not just a surprise birthday party, a surprise 40th birthday party. A surprise, Star Wars themed 40th birthday party. It was the mother of a friend of my eldest daughter. We didn’t know the family that well, but I was intrigued by the prospect of a Star Wars birthday party so we went. We didn’t dress up or anything (I told everyone I was dressed Jedi casual, it seemed clever the first 5 or 6 times I said it), but pretty much everybody else did. There were a few Darths (Vader only, no Mauls or Sidiouses), a few Luke Skywalkers, a Princess Leia, and two Queen Amidalas. I was hoping there would be a few members of the 501st there, but no one that die hard was invited. My wife was a little overwhelmed, but she managed.

This is why I hate politics. I have no problem with sensible political debate; I find it healthy and enjoy reading about both sides of the argument. I don’t take the political stance that one side is “good” and the other side is “vehemently evil” and must be opposed at all costs. But when it devolves from healthy political discourse into good vs. evil arguments, you end up ridiculing a candidate’s teeth (which apparently aren’t even his original set). And this type of attack isn’t limited to one side of the aisle. If it’s not teeth, it’s a flag pin, or a wife’s senior thesis, or some other asinine issue not actually related to the politics at hand.

That’s about as screedy as I get here. I follow politics, I just try to stay away from the mud flinging aspects of it. Politico is probably the best site to get your political fix without having to wade through all of the partisan krep, just as long as you avoid the comment threads.

Well, that’s enough for one evening. See you Tuesday.

When we last visited Meerkat Manor, Maybelline had led off a splinter group of Whiskers, forging the founding of another meerkat clan in the Kalihari: the Aztecs. Now Flower’s legacy lived on with two daughters serving as dominant females of rival mobs. Rocket Dog was still at the helm of the Whiskers and still trying to escape her mother’s shadow.

(Full recap of last season’s finale can be found here.)

It begins!
Episode 1: To Have and To Have Not

- Wait, where the hell is Samwise? You mean we have to listen to Rizzo? -50 points for Gryphendor

- New title sequence. Meet the residents (instead of meet the Whiskers): Commandos! starring Nikita (Hannibal?), Aztecs starring Maybelline, and the Whiskers starring Rocket Dog

- Starting w/ a timelapse sunrise and a panoramic view of the Kalihari, we see a clan of meerkats. Rocket Dog and Maybelline are both struggling with reigning in their new mobs. Lots of OTJ training is required.

- Everybody’s up, flies are buzzing, and there’s plenty of chattering over morning coffee at the burrow. Rocket Dog has a large crew to manage. Usually new managers start with smaller branches before taking over the home office, so her promotion to dominant female of the Whiskers is quite an achievement. The youngsters are rasslin (Axl and Rufus). Grampa Zaphod is the last up this morning, showing off is new radio collar. Zaphod’s still hanging around, which is probably putting a damper on Rocket Dog’s dating scene, but his experience is definitely needed in guiding a group this large.

- And off we go for breakfast. And there’s a snake. Snake!?! Snake! Heading towards the Aztecs pad. Apparently most of Maybelline’s followers returned to the Whiskers, leaving her with just 7. Apartment shopping is on the menu for today, but something seems off. Could it be our first cliffhanger-esque commercial break of the new season? Yup!

- I know I’ll get used to it, but I’m not digging Rizzo’s voice as the narrator. Sure, it’s better than Whoopi’s job on the Flower movie, but that’s not saying much. Bring back Samwise!

- Back to the action… perhaps another false alarm? No! A big snake! Nostrils flaring, the puff adder is just chilling, not budging. Murray tries to sneak up on the snake… watch out Murray! Whew, he smartly backs off. Whazzat? Bird? Maybelline sends the troupe back down into their tiny little burrow. Not a good start to the day.

- Meanwhile over in Whiskerton, it’s a feast! Or maybe not. Slim pickings, so they snack on ants. The group is spread out over a large area, and there’s plenty of sibling fighting. As she tries to reign in the fighting, half of the mob takes off on her. Her lead calls bring them back, so no new splinters today.

- Mitch is at his usual guard duty post, and he’s spotted someone. Who’s that? A roving male? Since the Kalihari isn’t located in West Virginia, Rocket Dog will need a roving male to mate with if she wants pups this year. But as usual Grampa Zaphod chases off Rocket Dog’s would be suitor. Dammit Dad! Why do you keep running off my dates.

- Ah, the ol’ ladder in the back window trick! The rover makes his move anew! But Grampa Zaphod is wise to the rover’s tricks (he’s no stranger to roving either) and he manages to drive off Rocket Dog’s potential mate one more time, with the help of Rocket Dog’s brothers. One problem. Grampa Zaphod had traveled a bit too far with his turn indicator flashing, and now he and his boys are lost. Rocket Dog scans the horizon looking for signs of her suitor or the rest of her gang.

- Commercial break over, and Rocket Dog’s boys still haven’t returned. Her lead calls are getting desparate, and no answer from Dad. Oh well, back to eating.

- Axl has found a millepede. Good eating if he manages to rub off its coating… and if he manages to keep it. Rocket Dog’s the boss, so she gets first dibs at the buffet. Axl tries to defend his meal, and succeeds! (classy close-up of the headless millipede, glad I already ate)

- Apartment hunting continues over with the Aztecs. The manor is in a bit of a housing crisis, so pickings are slim for the Aztec crew. Maybelline finds a place with a huge front door, probably the home of something much larger than a meerkat at one time (or still?). Down they go to check out the new place. Ah, it’s vacant. But what lived there previously? What the hell is that?!? Anteater? Aardvark? Aardvark! We have an Aardvark sighting! The Aztecs move on in search of a vacancy.

- Over at the Whiskers, Rocket Dog is leading the remainder of her clan home. On the way, someone sounds the alarm. Something in the bushes… a commercial break? Naturally.

- Back from break, a mystery meerkat on the horizon. Could it be Zaphod bringing the boys home? No! It’s a suitor for Rocket Dog! (Okay, I was willing to give her a shot, but seriously, the narration sucks. Not just the reading, the text is overly dramatic and too romantic. C’mon, we’re talking about meerkats having sex, this isn’t Shakespearean love poetry). But no! he’s not a suitor, he’s a scout! It’s the Commandos! Nikita the pup-eater! (Now they finally reveal that Hannibal is dead.) Going head to head with Nikita would be more than a mere cat fight (get it? mere cat fight - meerkat fight? they must’ve wrote the narration during the writer’s strike). Tails up, the Commandos! come a war dancing. What to do, Rocket Dog? Fight? Flight? Tick tock, tick tock. To war? No, it’s a retreat! The Commandos! drive them off their land. Tough break Rocket Dog.

- Maybelline has found herself a new burrow, or so it seems. Angie heads below to check out the new place. The smell is off, but nothing else seems wrong with it. Well, maybe not. What’s that thing? A mongoose! That’s his home, apparently. Murray, having failed at scaring off the snake, seizes the opportunity to scare off his mongoose cousin. Scat! The mongoose limps off, evicted.

- Now with a new burrow, Maybelline seems to be getting the hang of this leadership thing. Unlike the Whiskers who are holing up at a bolthole for the night. Losing both her home and 8 relatives, Rocket Dog’s day was chock full of suck. Rocket Dog’s leadership stock plummets, while Maybelline’s shows signs of resurgence.

- Next time, there’s love on the horizon for Rocket Dog (finally)

Have to say, I wasn’t impressed with the start of season 4. This was a pretty typical do-nothing episode with very little action. As for the narration, let’s just say I am so far unimpressed. The voice I can get used to (bring back Samwise!), but the cheesy-overly dramatic intonations I could do without. It seems that Animal Planet has dialed up the anthropomorphism this season.

Feel free to leave your comments about tonight’s episodes in the comments, but please no spoilers. Don’t care where you read it; don’t care if it’s true. No spoilers. Comments are moderated, so they may not appear immediately if you’ve never commented here before.

Also, let me use this platform to plug my weekly humor column: Dr. Smitty, please report to service bay #2″. Be sure to check it out!

Nothing like a nice hot sticky day after two straight days of rain. The walk from the car to the front door of the office is enough to make your shirt feel like a damp towel hanging on your upper torso. And since I have the hottest office in the building, needless to say I found no relief from the humidity once I walked inside.

There were signs of progress today that my office would soon be up to code. Contractors were on site to run the cables for both my phone and network connection. I should have everything installed by tomorrow, which means the end of the laptop for me, alas. I plan to hang onto it as long as I can, claiming that I still have some files that I need to transfer off the hard drive. That should buy me at least another couple of weeks.

Oh, I forgot to mention this yesterday: I had to sedate my dog. No, not put him to sleep, I had to give him a sedative to calm him down during the storms. On the night of the tornado watches/warnings I mentioned how severe weathr turns my 60 lb purebred American Sampler Hound into a crybaby scaredycat. On Wednesday night, he didn’t just try to climb into my lap or under my legs. He tried to climb onto my shoulders. As I was sitting on the couch finishing up my column, he jumped up on the couch next to me then proceeded to climb onto the back of the couch and lay accross my shoulders like grandma’s shawl. It was quite awkward and quite painful.

After his second attempt, we decided to apply a little medication to help calm his nerves. Our vet had given us some sedative pills to use on our Shih Tzu when we had to take her in for grooming. She hates the clippers, and attacks anyone who comes near her with them. So to help keep her calm, the vet said to give her a 1/4th of a pill about a half hour before her grooming session and she’ll be as docile as a stoned angel.

Even though he weighed more than four times as much as Sara we only gave him a half of a pill just to calm him down. It really was for his own good; besides trying to climb on my shoulders, he also would try to bolt every time the front door opened (why he’d run out into the storm to get away from the storm I have no idea. Dog logic, I guess).

A half hour later he was laying in the middle of the floor on his back, all four legs up in the air, tongue dangling out the side of his mouth. Yes, my dog was high. His eyes had that half-opened bloodshot stoned look to them. I roused him up just to get him moving and he forgot to walk with his back legs. His front legs moved, it was just his back legs didn’t follow. I helped him into the kitchen for some water and a few munchies, then walked him back into the living room where he fell asleep. Lightning, thunder, all that was still going on around him, but he was feelin’ goooooood.

Well, this wraps up my first week of chronicling. Have a good weekend, we’ll see you back here on Monday.