long time gone

It seems as if years have gone by since I last wrote here. A lot of things have happened, and I'm feeling old and don't know where to start. Not that it's really necessary to catch you up on my life, but I feel the need.

The first picture is a good one for me. We buried our dog Seamus there in early July, and spread wildflower seeds on his grave. As late as it was in the summer, I didn't know if it would bloom at all, but it has, and still is blooming despite the cold. That's a wonderful sign of hope for me.

Late in August I found the dog in the second picture at the Humane Society. They had her labled as a male Wheaten Terrier, about three years old. When one of my co-workers was admiring her the next day, she remarked that the dog is a female. Oops. And when we took her to the vet to be spayed, he said she was probably about a year and some kind of terrier mix. Bill calls her a "wired hair terrier," because she is very lively.

A woman in the waiting room at the vet's told me she has a terrier too, and that as much as she loves the dog, she wouldn't wish a terrier on her worst enemy. With that propitious beginning, we quickly learned that our lives would change.

"Her name is Lola, she is a dancer...." And that she is. Also a racer, a tugger, a leaper, a fetcher and a stasher. I have thrown the ball or the squeaky pork chop two dozen times before I can get both legs into my pants, and even then I need to make sure she hasn't dropped it down my seat. There's nothing like having a squeaky pork chop fall out of your pants leg as you walk through the office door!

Just as we were beginning to get used to this bombshell in our life, another one dropped, only this one was a bad one. My daughter went to the clinic during the first week of school, thinking she had a sinus infection. She had a brain tumor, a large one, and her surgery was September 11. It could not all be removed without significant damage, but it is a slow growing one and we hope for the best. She's made it through her first series of oral chemo and is planning to go back to work part time on Wednesday.

So, that's what I've been doing. One of these days I'll redesign this page. I think that's one thing that's kept me away, not liking the look of it any more and not having any good ideas for a change and the energy to do it. I do miss it though, both the writing and the reading of others' blogs. So here's a start.