Tuesday Cindy came in and got me up. It was supposed to rain and I really wanted to stay in bed but Carol, my psychologist, schedule me an appointment at 4 PM. I missed last Thursday because I was stuck in bed and I'm not going to be able to make it next Thursday because my brother is coming to visit so I got up and I'm glad I did, it turned out to be a really nice day. The first time I started out just as I got to the door it started pouring buckets so I turned around and came back and watched TV for a while. It cleared up so Robby and I took off for a cruise down to the wharf, to the boardwalk and then to my appointment downtown. It went by really fast because I have a lot to say and she always makes me feel better about decisions I have made and feelings and frustrations that I have towards other people, I'm not always wrong! Rosa came in and put me to bed, what a great day.
Wednesday was a really busy day. Susan came in to give me a nice long massage, I always feel so much better after. Karen came in and we did some personal care and my favorite long hot bath. I got up and cruised around with Robby for a while and then came back with my appointment with Woofpack831, it's a group of eight or 10 ladies that take multiple dogs on hikes and walks… I've seen them cruising around Santa Cruz a lot. I signed Robby up to go on a hike with them one day of week and play dates on Saturdays. Between my energy and anxiety and his own Robby is getting really excited around other dogs so I'm hoping this will help. I can't really take him to dog parks and other places to play so it will be nice for him to expand a little happy energy with other dogs. One of the ladies as a nice big private yard so I won't have to worry about other aggressive dogs, I am really excited for Robby. While one of the ladies talk to me the other one worked with Robby to help understand this personality. Rosa came in early and cleaned up my porch and my yard a little bit, it is a mess from the big storms. Rosa put me to bed and again I was out.
Thursday was a really good day. Karen came in and got me up and I took Robby to the vet, he had a follow-up appointment with Dr. Dave for his ear infections… He is good as new. It was nice to see Dr. Dave, I saw him a lot before Robby retired by now that Robby's retired and looking and feeling a lot healthier I don't see him as much. He is such a sweet and caring man. I asked him about getting another service dog while Robby is in such good shape, I don't want Robby to have any bad feelings. Dr. Dave said Robby should be okay as long as I make sure that he always knows that he is number one. I feel a lot better about getting a successor dog now. He showed me pictures of Robby's ear and it looked great, he had ear infections for so long and I'm glad we got it under control and now I know the signs to look for… As soon as I see a sign I make an appointment and start dumping medication in his ears. We cruised down to the wharf, I'm a little nervous going all the way to the end because there's so many logs and posts floating around in the water banging on the pillars of the wharf… After all these storms you never know what's going to happen. We cruised back and rested for a while until Jerry brought my brother Dave from the airport. Jerry works for wingz, he used to be my neighbor when I lived in San Jose and we still keep in touch, he picked David up from the San Francisco airport and brought him here. We were going to go out to lunch but Jerry had to go because he wanted to get over the hill, you never know these days how long it's going to take any had to pick up another client later on that day. My mom, Dave and I went out to lunch at Santa Cruz diner… I love their Pho soup. They were featured in diners, drive-ins and dives. The owner's wife is Vietnamese so the diner pretty much has everything. We came back and figured out the plan of attack for the next couple of days, David is going to basically rebuild my computer, my home automation system and by security cameras. We are going to take a couple days to do that and then Stanley will be here on Sunday and the rest of the time we will just have fun and catch up. My cousin Debbie and her family might come down for a couple of days, I hope they do. I like to have a barbecue on Sunday and invite Lisa and her service dog Riggs. Rosa came in and put me to bed and I watch TV until I fell asleep.
Friday was a really good day. Karen came in and got me up just in time for my appointment with Jack and Daniel from Numotion, I love that they come here for my appointments so I don't have to go all the way down to Dominican rehab… It's about 3 miles. They raised my left arm rest so I no longer have to fold up a towel and tie wrap it to my armrest, now my elbow rests on the armrest without my body bending over. They also fix the backrest so I don't feel like I'm leaning back all the time. My brother Dave knocked out most of my to do list, he knocks them out just like dominoes, now the rest of the visit we can just have fun and catch up. Meaghan came in and put me to bed and we did some personal care and of course a nice long hot bath, without jets because for some reason they are not working. She put me back to bed and I watched TV and relaxed, it's so great to have my little brother here.
Saturday was another great day. Cindy came in and got me up and my brother and I went back up to UCSC college bookstore and got some more sweatshirts, I've been wanting to go up there and get some for so long. After that we went to Home Depot to get some black paint for the furniture in my bathroom so it will match the shoe cabinet and shelves, a tarp to cover my barbecue island, a putty knife… I didn't ask. We decided to get the pork butt and smoke it in the green egg to make •pulled pork sandwiches for dinner tomorrow, we also got some corn on the cob and potatoes to bake. On the way back we stopped at RadioShack and got accord to fix a couple of surveillance cameras, my brother really knows how to get stuff done. We came back home and had a Reuben sandwich, I ordered it again from that place online so it came right from… Wherever Ruben sandwiches are famous for. They were excellent! Meaghan came in and put me to bed and I just watch TV for a while until I fell asleep, Dave went to bed early after he marinated the butt because he had to get up at 5 AM to start smoking it.
Sunday was an awesome day. David got up early and started smoking the butt, it smelled so good. Cindy came in and got me up and I rushed outside and you could just smell the aroma of the pulled pork smoking. My friend Lisa came by with her service dog Riggy and the boys played for a while while we visited. My brother Stanley showed up, what a great day! Robby started acting weird, he kept sitting down and laying down and then whining… I have seen this a couple times before when he ate something he shouldn't have, usually it's Cat Poop. We came inside and gave him I can of pumpkin, that really helps settle a dog stomach, but after a while it was clear Robby was on his way to the puppy ER. David took him and we just waited to see what was going to happen. Lisa had to go before we ate, I feel bad but she needed to get home to take care of her sick kitty. After David called a couple more times he said they didn't really find anything, his colon was a little swollen so there was something but it looks like it passed through. They gave him a couple of shots to settle his stomach and sent him home, he has to eat a bland diet for a couple of days but is going to be all right. Meaghan came in and put me to bed just as David came back with problem so we all ate a killer dinner. Stanley made Robby some white rice for couple of days, he seems to be feeling better. I watched TV for a while and then Stanley and David brought me down some cheesecake and decaffeinated coffee, the perfect end to an almost perfect day. I watched TV for a while longer and then drifted off to sleep.
