Bald to the Bone

Well, Tater, has had a bad week. He has a torn ACL, which he got wrestling with me while getting his monthly bath, and last Friday he had some corrective surgery on it. The vet re-aligned his knee and put in a little plate & some screws, which should sort his leg out.

Trouble is, he has to remain very still - no going out for walks, no running or jumping, no swimming - for four weeks, and of course he's bored witless already. Worse still, he's had half his butt shaved, and a nasty pain-patch and some surgical clips put on his leg. So last night he decided to chew his clips out in a fit of pique while El Jeffe and I were out walking Poppy.

We arrived back home at 2am this morning, after a harrowing trip to the emergency vet. The guy took pity on us, and did the reclosure for around $65, a real bargain for animal medicine, especially in the wee small hours. Needless to say, Tater got a good telling off and will be sporting the Cone of Shame (see earlier post, October '06) for a while. We're just glad the vet said that the clips he's eaten will pass harmlessly through, although I secretly hope he gets a little reminder as they go through his rear end. Kinda like wiping your butt with a ripped up magazine without first checking to see that you took all the staples out. Serves the little toad right.

Thought for the day - don't chew off more than you can swallow.

Night, all.

Just Looking...

Well, El Jeffe and I went househunting this weekend. Not for real, you understand. Just looking.
I was amazed just how much house you can buy currently, due to the economic downturn. We found a recently completed house in Gloucester, 3100 sq.ft, that was built inside in a kind of Moorish style, arched doorways, vaulted ceilings, huge atrium around the stairs. It was $351,000.
To put that in perspective, our current 3-bed rancher, at 1400sq.ft, was valued 2 years ago at $245,000. We'd probably get $215k for it now, at a stretch. In my home country of Britain, in the town I grew up in, that new house would go for S1000,000 at least,I kid you not.
Needless to say, we were crunching the numbers when we got back, and we were found wanting, but not by all that much. We could do it, but we'd be mortgage slaves, and that's no fun. I suggested we could salt Tater for a week or two and try to sell him as bison steaks to raise some cash, but El jeffe wouldn't hear of it. Sure was a nice house, though.

Thought for the day - an Englishman's home is his castle. Just make sure you pay the gong-farmer well. Night, all.

It's a fair cop

Well, El Jeffe and I had a run-in with the law this week. It all started Wednesday, when El Jeffe wanted to get her oil changed. We went to drop her car off (a 2006 Pontiac Solstice, very sleek) at the Pontiac dealership she bought it from. It was dark, around 11.30pm, as as we pulled into the lot she noticed a Solstice for sale, with the convertible top down.
Being an inherently good-natured soul, she wanted to put the top up on ot, less it should rain and fill the car with water. So we went up to it, saw the alarm wasn't on, and put up the hood. Then we dropped her keys in the night drop-box and left.
No sooner had we gotten back onto the highway than she started to wonder if she'd locked her car, so back to the dealership we went. Sure enough, there were not one but TWO Police cars on the lot, doubtless looking for someone trying to steal a Solstice.
After some sincere grovelling, and after checking both our ID's and our unlikely story, we were released, shaken but unharmed. We were lucky we weren't cuffed and detained - this isn't my first contact with local law enforcement - and we decided not to tell the people at the dealership. El Jeffe was very embarrassed, although I still think we did a good thing.

Thought for the day - no good deed ever goes unpunished. Night, all.

Back in the saddle

Well, I've decided to start blogging again, after an eighteen-month hiatus. I haven't posted on here since I was 38 years old and now I think about it, nothing much has changed. plenty has HAPPENED, but not much has CHANGED. El Jeffe is as delighful as she ever was, bless her, and Poppy and Tater are still damn cute. Poppy has aged a little, and isn't quite so energetic, but Tater is still a monster. At two years old and 94lbs, I think he's about os grown-up as he's going to get, which isn't very grown up. Brunhilde, my beloved expedition, is still going strong, albeit with a new transmission. I have another kayak on the way - more about that later.
It's nice to be back on the blogosphere.
Thought for the day - forty is the new fifty.
Night, all.