Another quick weekend…

Posted on December 8, 2019 by

It has been a pretty easy-going weekend.  I wanted to make pasta sauce, didn’t get to that, unsure why, laziness perhaps…  I did make banana bread today, for the first time ever and it turned out really well.  I was impressed with myself.

Hera’s ear infection seems to be doing well with the medication that she was prescribed.  The steroids that they gave her caused her to have peeing accidents on Wednesday night, so I decided to stop giving her that.  I called the vet and let them know, since she only had one half of a pill, I didn’t figure there would be any withdrawal symptoms and the vet agreed.  Poor Hera, if dogs feel embarrassed, she definitely did when I woke up at 2am and discovered pee in the hallway, bathroom, living room and kitchen.  Nothing since.

It was cold and snowy this weekend.  It was 5C or so on Friday afternoon and again on Saturday morning and then the temps dropped down to the -15C range or so on Saturday afternoon.  It is so nice being back in civilization and having gas heat.  We aren’t freezing our buts off this winter.  This house isn’t drafty either.  What a place that was out by the lake, should be bulldozed.  I feel bad for whoever moved in there in August, I am willing to bet they won’t stay past one year.

Only a couple of weeks until Christmas.  I will likely have two people over for dinner on Christmas Day.  I have not decided if I am making a turkey breast or a full turkey this year.  I will need to call the butcher stop that I have been going to and see if they can do a stuffed bird.

I am working over the holidays, other than the mandatory days off, this is OK though as I suspect it will be VERY quiet.  We get a short break from the insanity, until January 6 rolls around and that week is insanely busy.  I have always said I should take the first week of January off, yet I never have.

I do have a week booked off in February though.  I am heading down to California for a few days, driving there and back.  A friend of mine turns 60 and I am seeing another friend that I have not seen in 14 years – should be a great week.  The dogs will stay in the pet resort up here.  Will be nice to get away from the cold for a bit too.

Well, hopefully you had a good weekend, they do seem to go by too quickly.  Enjoy your week.

Posted in Hera, My Dogs, Personal, Work | Leave a comment

A trip to the vet…

Posted on December 5, 2019 by

Over last weekend, Hera was showing signs that her right ear was bothering her.  On Tuesday, I called and made an appointment for the vet.  Overnight, I guess it got worse and her ear was really bothering her and I could smell it so I called and changed my appointment for Wednesday afternoon.

So, off we go, just Hera and I to the vet – in Calgary.  Long story there, but basically, it took me a long time to find a vet that I really liked in Calgary and now that I have found one, I am going to keep going there.  Typically, it is for yearly check-ups.  In fact, this is the first time in the time that I have had dogs that I have had one sick.

Blondie and Twix were none too impressed that I was taking Hera somewhere and not taking them along.  I arranged for Crowsnest Pet Care to come over and let them out and feed them though, so they would have enjoyed that.

The drive to Calgary was great – dry and clear roads all the way, until we actually reached Calgary that is.  It was clear and mild in the Pass, it was overcast and cool with snow flurries in Calgary – figures.  Glenmore Trail at rush hour is lots of fun to drive on, throw in a little bit of snow and everyone forgets how to drive.

We arrived on time, good thing I gave myself a 3-hour window.  We got right in to see the vet, not Hera’s regular vet but one of the other vets in the clinic.  She definitely has an ear infection and the vet cleaned out some awful looking black goop from her ear.  Yuck.  Luckily, it didn’t smell bad at least but it was gross looking…

She’s going to take some ear drops for the next 10 days or so, we are scheduled to re-visit next Friday for a follow-up.  They also gave her some steroids and one of the possible (although not likely side-effects) was needing to pee a lot.  Well, Hera couldn’t hold it last night and peed in various places in the house – not fun having to clean that up in the middle of the night…  I just pat her head and gave her a hug, I know it’s not her fault and if a dog can look embarrassed, Hera did.

She’s not bothering her ear so much today which is a good sign.  Hopefully it will clear up soon.

Posted in Blondie, Hera & Twix, Hera, My Dogs, Personal | Leave a comment

Happy December

Posted on December 1, 2019 by

It’s December 1, already.  This year is zooming by.

I am now ok with people putting up Christmas decorations.  I will be putting up my majestic Christmas Tree today, this is a picture from last year:

IMG_20181201_094707

Majestic, isn’t it?  I am not into decorating and whatnot, this tree is absolutely perfect.  I am not sure where I will put it this year, but I have a few places in mind.

It will stay up until January 1, then go back into storage for another 11 months.

Here’s this years version of the Majestic Christmas Tree:

78191096_10158028585302806_1529268366106165248_o

Notice the subtle differences?  This years tree shares the top of the bookcase with Lord Vader and protected by my trusty Knight.

This year, I may have two guests for Christmas dinner which will be nice.  I haven’t decided if I am doing a full turkey, or a turkey breast, or what.  I guess I need to make up my mind.  I will have to see if I can borrow a roasting pan.  I had one and I remember exactly where I left it when I moved out of the house in Calgary – it was on the top shelf in the laundry room.  Oh well.  I don’t have to have to buy a roasting pan, not for something I may use once a year anyway…  Hopefully, my neighbour will have one I can borrow.

Nothing big planned for today other than a hike with the dogs, putting up my Majestic Christmas tree and perhaps start on the paperwork that I need to fill in for Air Cadets.  I have not really looked through what I have to do as yet, but the email I received had 19 attachments.  What fun.  I did confirm that I don’t have to shave my beard off at least, so that’s good.  I have had facial hair longer in my life than being fur-free.  LOL

No football today – my Buffalo Bills ran all over the Dallas Cowboys on American Thanksgiving this past Thursday.  It was a pretty good game and I won a bet against a friend at work.  She now has to take me for dinner when I visit in August, I am greatly looking forward to it.

Well, Happy December and have a good Sunday.

 

Posted in Personal | Leave a comment

I think Winter is here…

Posted on November 27, 2019 by

It looks like winter is here.  We got about 6″ of snow or snow yesterday and it’s snowing again today and we are under a Winter storm warning for the day.  It’s cold, -12C right now and windy, so it’s not a friendly day at all.  BUT, I did choose to live in the mountains and I am willing to put up with an early and long winter to have the rest of what you get living where I do.

I am pretty much in my Winter hibernation mode already.  I am hitting bed relatively early, between 9 and 10 and sleeping in until after 5am, not that 3am crap that I was doing for a few months.  It’s quite nice not being exhausted all day.

No real Winter activities are planned, other than hikes with the dogs when it isn’t -20C or colder.  I did buy snowshoes back in the early Fall and I am hoping to get some use of them.  Blondie and Hera love the snow and cold, Twix loves the snow, the cold, not so much but when she wears her sweater, she’s much better.

I am hoping to do some ice fishing at some point this Winter, I’ve only ever done it once.  Lots of great places to do it.

November is almost over, the Fall is zooming by.  It is so nice having gas heat in the house, as opposed to the nonsense I put up with last year.  This house is insulated well, which is nice and it’s not drafty.

Anyway, hopefully you aren’t getting snowed in, we are here today (sort of).  Enjoy.

Posted in Blondie, Hera & Twix, My Dogs, Personal | Leave a comment

Saturday, a day of nothingness…

Posted on November 24, 2019 by

Last week was interesting at work.  Monday through Wednesday were insanely busy which made the days zoom on by.  Thursday was what I would call a normal day and Friday was much more relaxed, not busy at all.

Yesterday, it was a day of nothingness.  I did have to go and pick up my bi-weekly vegetables and stop at the grocery store for milk and salad dressing – I came home with milk, so, guess what I am going back for today?  It is hard to have a salad without salad dressing.  Oh well.  I didn’t even go on a hike with the dogs, I know, bad…

I went back to bed yesterday morning after getting up way too early, I can see something similar happening today.  I watched a couple of older but great movies – V for Vendetta and Glory.  I have Amazon Prime which gives you a great selection of movies and TV shows.  I could almost cancel my satellite subscription.

The Bills are hosting the Broncos today at 11am (my time) and are looking to go 8-3 for the first time in 20 years I believe it is.  Should be a good game and I am sure there will be some trolling between a few of us on Facebook.  Later on today, the Pats visit the Cowboys, I am sure PB will be glued but I don’t see the Cowboys fairing too well in this contest.

Nothing else planned for today, except we will go for a hike, between football games.  Weather should be good for a hike along the mountains.  Enjoy your Sunday.

Posted in My Dogs, Personal, Work | Leave a comment

Hit smack dab in the face, first thing Monday…

Posted on November 21, 2019 by

I was sort of hoping that when I returned to work on Monday that I would be able to ease into the work-week, ease back into the work routine, you know, nothing out of the ordinary.  Well, nope.   Monday, at 6:30am when I started, I was hit, smack-bad in the face with issues and it continued, pretty well non-stop through the end of yesterday.  Don’t get me wrong, it made for an interesting three days and three very fast days as well, they zoomed by.

It was a good, I suppose, start to the work-week and my return to work.  I can’t say I was bored at any rate and I didn’t drown, so, at the end of the day, all is well.  Just another two days left and I think it should be a tad quieter.

Nothing really planned for the upcoming weekend, a hike or two with the dogs and a nap or two on the weekend.  I will catch the Bills game on Sunday, hopefully, they can continue in their winning ways and drive for a playoff spot, that would be sweet.  Next week, they play in Dallas on American Thanksgiving.  That will be exciting.  I am hoping that I can catch a Cowboys game next September when I hopefully will visit Texas.  It will depend on the schedule of course, if Dallas is home, and also on how much it will cost – I understand it can be rather expensive.

Nothing else happening in my world.  I am glad to be back into my regular routine.  I am not planning on being away from home any time soon, I am sure the dogs will be happy about that.  The holidays are approaching and I will likely have a friend down for a few days over Christmas, so that will be nice.  Otherwise, the holidays are quiet, just the way I like ’em.

 

Posted in My Dogs, Personal, Work | Leave a comment

Back to a normal routine…

Posted on November 18, 2019 by

My week off is over.  I am actually glad to be back into a normal routine.  It was relaxing, but I actually got bored, my own fault of course.

My trip to Calgary on Friday was productive.  I left around 11AM and dropped the dogs off at the pet resort for a one-night stay.  They happily went in, which is good to see – I do believe they like it there.

The trek north was uneventful which is how all trips should be.  The weather was nice, warm, for this time of year, nearly 10C.  I stopped at Costco in Okotoks.  Gas was 90 cents a litre, filled up.  I went in to get dog food and chicken treats for the dogs.  Well, as I am heading for the check-outs, there was a large Traeger grill display and a couple of Traeger reps.  They normally don’t sell Traeger grills at Costco, just the accessories, this was a factory direct thing.

I ended up buying myself a Traeger, I have been looking for a number of months and I saved a lot of money buying one on Friday.  I got some free add-ons when he thought I was going to walk away without buying, so I am happy.  It did sort of derail the shopping in Calgary I had planned to do, but what the hell.  I now have the grill/smoker that I wanted and got it for a great price.

I spent part of the afternoon in the Calgary office, saw some co-workers I normally don’t see so it was a good afternoon.

Dinner was at Mina’s Brazilian Steakhouse in downtown Calgary.  It was a great venue and the food was pretty darn good as well.  It was not the best Brazilian place I have been to in Calgary but it was an 8/10 all in all.  None of us left hungry and it didn’t cost me a dime since this was the result of the Astros beating the Yankees in the ALCS.

I spent the night in Calgary.  Driving home after a Meat Coma meal, at night (for 2.5 hours) at this time of year can sometimes not be fun.  I left Calgary around 8am on Saturday, retrieved my dogs and had a relaxing rest of the weekend.

Back to work today and I am glad to be back into a normal routine, until the Christmas break I guess anyway.  Have a good week.

Posted in Baseball, My Dogs, Personal, Work | Leave a comment

A relaxing week off…

Posted on November 13, 2019 by

My week off is going well, nice and relaxing which is exactly what I was looking for. I am heading out shortly to take the dogs for a hike. The weather is good for this time of year, it is partly cloudy and the temps are right around the zero mark.

I won’t really have much else planned for the day, or tomorrow either. Friday, I will drop the dogs off at the Pet Resort for a one night stay and I will head to Calgary until Saturday morning. The weather forecast is good, so that’s a bonus.

I may go for lunch with a co-worker on Friday, not sure as yet but for dinner, I am hitting up Mina’s Brazilian Steakhouse for all u can eat meat. It should be a good time, to be sure and the best part is that it won’t cost me a dime. Dinner is a result of a won bet, the Astros beat the Yankees in the ALCS. Should be a great meal indeed.

Saturday I will make a stop at Costco for some dog food and other stuff and then I am having an appetizer night with the neighbours. There have been some great recipes on Facebook lately and we are trying a few of them.

On Sunday, I will catch the Bills game, hopefully catch another win, but, with the way they’ve been playing, I am not banking on it.

Anyway, happy Hump Day, enjoy the rest of your week.

Posted in Baseball, My Dogs, Personal | Leave a comment

Good for Don Cherry

Posted on November 12, 2019 by

Yesterday was Remembrance Day in Canada, Veterans Day in the US.  It is a good day to reflect on the sacrifices many made for us so that we can live free as we do.

On the weekend, a Canadian icon, Don Cherry made some remarks about people not wearing poppies.  The “left” were outraged.  Of course, the “left” are outraged by most things these days.  It’s absolutely ridiculous.

Rogers Sportsnet apologized for Don’s remarks, where many of us don’t think an apology is necessary.  Ron MacLean apologized for Don’s remarks.  Ron is a wimp.  Kowtowing to the powers that be, like he always does.  He’s disgusting, as far as I am concerned.

Yesterday, on Remembrance Day, Sportsnet fired Don Cherry for, essentially, supporting the troops.

Does it affect me?  No, not at all.  It’s gross though.  Don Cherry has always spoken his mind and had made many controversial comments over his many, many years as a hockey commentator.  Don also doesn’t apologize for what he said, instead, he stands behind it, as we all expected him to do.  Good for you, Don.  We need more people like you in Canada and fewer people who get offended by what you said, and what everyone else says.

Posted in Personal, Rant and Rave | Leave a comment

On staycation…

Posted on November 10, 2019 by

I was going to work on Friday and start my vacation (staycation as I am not going anyway) after work on Friday afternoon.  I accumulated some OT at the conference that I was supporting and my boss wanted me to use some of that as lieu and take most of Friday off, so I only ended up working from 6:30-8:00am and then was off.

The dogs got picked up for their pack hike and I went to do some running around that I needed to get done.  I had dropped a couple of winter jackets off at the dry cleaner to have new zippers put on, they did a great job and now I can wear my ski jacket that has not been worn in 4 or 5 years I would say.  It is a Columbia and I called (and emailed) their customer service line, getting them to repair it turned out to be impossible – they’d say “take it back to where you purchased it from”, so I did – Sport Chek, they’d say “oh no, you need to contact Columbia” – yeah, been there, done that.  Anyway, for $30 the dry cleaner fixed it, thanks.  I also had my Rockies jacket repaired, that zipper only gave way this year but I wear that jacket all the time so I didn’t want to go without I guess.

My brother in law is taking over my second cell phone contract and I am giving him my iPhone 6s to use, he’s going to port his home number to it and save himself a crap-load of money on phone bills.  I packaged everything up and brought it down to the post office.  I paid some extra so it would arrive next week as opposed to the week after, not a big deal, I was supposed to send it so that it arrived WHILE he was in Cuba last week, but I forgot.  Well, when I got home, I discovered that the phone was still sitting on a cabinet in my living room – I had sent all of the accessories.  Sigh…  Now I will need to send the phone, likely Tuesday.  Oh well, it’s not like he doesn’t have a phone.  I do feel like an idiot though.

The rest of Friday was relaxing, went to bed early and got up sort of early on Saturday.  I see a lot more of this type of routine over the next week.

Posted in Personal | Leave a comment