I decided to take yesterday off from writing, mainly because last week was pretty emotional. A week ago, we learned that our beloved Arran has lymphoma, and will likely be leaving us soon. The fact that Arran has cancer isn’t necessarily a shock, nor is it a shock that he will eventually leave us, especially since he’s between 13 and 14 years old. This is something that happens to every living thing at some point. But the timing of this is tough, since we’re going out of town on Wednesday and returning next Monday, and then Bill has to go on a couple of business trips. Arran saw the vet Friday, and they did more blood work. Some of his values actually improved since last month’s tests. But I can feel his lymph nodes getting larger, and he just wants to rest all the time. Except, of course, when it’s walk time. He does still enjoy his walks, and he will still eat, as long as we offer something tastier than plain kibble.

We also had rainy weather yesterday, which made going out kind of unappealing. Bill ended up making brownies and I downloaded some new software, which I was trying out yesterday. I also couldn’t think of anything to write about. Or, maybe there were things to write about, but I couldn’t be arsed to write about them yesterday. Instead, I just wanted to hang out with Bill and my dogs. Arran is such a unique character– complex on so many levels. He is selfish, cranky, and possessive, yet so loving, loyal, and sweet. So yes, it’s been hard to realize that our time with him is going to be ending in the near future.

We did go out on Saturday. Finally saw the optometrist, and updated our prescriptions, which we really needed to do. Wiesbaden had two fests going on, so we walked around those, and had some lunch. The featured photo is from the Fall Fest, which is always fun, especially since, for the past two years, we haven’t had it due to COVID-19.

I wish we could postpone our trip out of town, but to do so would mean losing a large bundle of cash and having to fight an insurance company to get reimbursed. Plus, we are engaging in some necessary business by visiting our dentist, and both Bill and I are in need of a change of scenery/break. I need one more than he does, since I don’t take business trips. Or… maybe I don’t need a break, in terms of life or death, but I really want one. This trip will be to a beautiful hotel with great food… I just hope we can enjoy it. We will be two hours from home, so if anything happens with the dogs while we’re out of town, it won’t be too hard to get back to them and take care of things.

As I was writing this, Arran came into the room. He used to get up when we did, but now he sleeps later. Generally, when the sun comes up, he saunters in and asks to go outside. He does his business and has his breakfast. Now he’s come back up here and parked himself behind my chair, where he’ll stay until he decides he wants a walk. It occurs to me this morning that nothing has really changed, other than knowing that his time is limited now. But actually, that would be true in all cases, since we never know when we’ll die. According to Embark, Arran canine age is the equivalent of a person in their mid 90s. But, for someone in their 90s, he still gets around pretty well, in spite of the lymphoma. He’s still gorgeous, too.

I think Noyzi can tell Arran is ailing. For one thing, dogs have a fantastic sense of smell, and we give off different scents when we’re sick. I’m sure that’s true for animals, too. And there’s a different energy, too. Arran isn’t as cranky when Noyzi is around, although he hasn’t completely stopped barking at him when he gets too annoying. Noyzi also did something very interesting the other night. We had a rare thunderstorm, and Noyzi was obviously scared. He came down to the dining room, where Bill and I were, and sought comfort. At first he came to me, because he prefers women to men. But then, he crawled under the table, which is usually Arran’s domain. Then he stuck his head on Bill’s lap, looking up at him hopefully, as if to ask him for reassurance. That was the first time he’s ever done that, and it’s a big sign that he trusts Bill. Given that he used to pee submissively when Bill would take off his belt, this is a HUGE deal.

The vet thinks Arran will be fine while we’re gone, if not a bit less energetic and hungry than usual. When we get back, he’ll have another appointment, and she’ll decide whether or not to give him prednisone. Having seen what prednisone did for both Zane and MacGregor, two of our dogs who have since gone to the Rainbow Bridge, I think it would be helpful for Arran. I don’t think we’ll do chemo for him… but that decision will be final when we learn what type of lymphoma he has. I hate this, though. I feel like we should be doing more, even though Arran doesn’t seem to be in any serious distress right now.

I also spent yesterday plowing through my latest book. I will probably be ready to review it tomorrow, as it’s not a long book, and I’ve managed to get a lot of it read in a couple of sittings. I’ve even been reading it aloud to Bill, since it’s about Donald Trump, and Trump intrigues and disgusts him as much as he does me. Maybe I’ll even review it today, since I don’t have any pressing chores to do. We’ll see…

I did have a chance to record a new song yesterday. It will eventually be used in a new video that will be posted at a later date. And here is a video I made today, but this one is not the one I did yesterday.

Sometimes, one just needs a day to do nothing that requires a lot of brain power. I can’t say that I didn’t do anything yesterday, since I did buy new software and try it out, and I did so some recording. But it was good to take a day off of blogging. I don’t think anyone minds… or even really noticed. This is especially true since I disabled the Facebook page. I obviously had people who were following the page without officially following it, looking for new posts. While it would be nice to have more readers, I’m pretty happy with having some high quality folks reading and commenting, and not looking for a reason to be negative. There’s a definite downside to popularity.

Anyway… I don’t have anything else to add to this post. Maybe I will later. Like I said, I don’t have pressing chores to do today.