The Ties That Bind

 I had to look it up to confirm dates, but when PF Chang’s came on the scene in the early 90’s, I remember it as more of an upscale “Asian-fusion” dining experience? Never in our regular rotation like our beloved Tex-Mex joints, but we went a few times Back in the Day… All I can say now is that it’s definitely gone downhill - feels as if they’re serving Panda Express in a fancier setting!?!

Let me back up and start at the beginning - all I intended to do yesterday afternoon was to deliver a couple of pumpkins to my son, but I wound up with an impromptu invitation to Victoria‘s grandmother’s birthday celebration. Of course I will never bypass any invitation from my son, even if it involves getting roped into running an errand like picking up her birthday cake (Zach had forgotten he had a dentist appointment). But with all the fine dining opportunities that abound in the DFW area**,  somehow we wound up at PF Chang’s? Victoria had the day off so she had taken her grandmother to the Dallas Arboretum, perfect weather for their pumpkin-patch display!

** we had to find someplace that would satisfy Victoria‘s grandfather’s inconsistent appetite; he has not been doing well, but that’s another story

PF Chang‘s now has their “Chef’s Feast” option which is the best value since you get an appetizer, soup or salad and then a main-course dish. Andy was adamant that he wanted “no rice!” as we patiently explained to him multiple times that the rice would be served on the side. (Even more alarming than his physical deterioration is his cognitive decline) And again, while it was nice to see everyone, this was not a memorable fine-dining experience like our expedition to the Fort Worth stockyards two weeks ago… “I ate it anyway” so won’t be approaching my scales after all that oil, sodium, & MSG. The highlight was returning to Andy & Adela’s to cut the cake & witness their dog Mac’s unbridled joy at seeing ZACH!!! since he’s been taking him for walks. (I wanted to tell Mac I know how he feels, but if I wiggled my butt & jumped up & down in delight, Zach might not invite me over as often ;-)

Time to disturb my little lap warmer Izzy & get on with my day

Diminishing Returns

  There comes that cold hard point in one’s existence where the reality of your own limitations (physical, financial, existential??) meet the parameters of this Great Escape you’ve planned, like waves crashing upon the beach. And in the long run, having as little effect.

Nothing really “bad” happened on my mini-vacay trip to Quitaque; things just didn’t go quite as planned. Most folks were somber as we realize that this might be our last chance to enjoy these trails as the ranch is on the market (for the low low price of $8 million - needless to say, it might take a while to sell) and who knows if the new owners will continue to allow equestrian access? 

https://www.land.com/property/5457-acres-in-Briscoe-County-Texas/20852165/

Silas didn’t like his new boots (I think more a case of he’s never worn such things before rather than not fitting properly) so we wound up picking our way gingerly through the first day barefoot. We wound up falling in with a group of 7 moms & daughters; everything was fine but we had to go slow and both of us were tired at the end of our 16-mile loop. I treasure these horse-camping opportunities for the splendid isolation/private time it affords me, but this time instead of reading & journaling, I mindlessly surfed the 'Net. (Cue minor guilt for wasting precious irreplaceable time) Silas’s back wound up a little sore so I decided not to ride on Day 2. My friend Chris’s horse likewise had girth galls, so we had a nice “coffee-time” visit Saturday morning before I loaded up for a leisurely haul home. Chris is recently widowed (her husband passed away last month after an extended cancer battle), so she of course is still grieving as she adjusts to her new reality.

About 150 miles from home, my truck developed an alarming vibration. Everything was running fine, so I slowed down and kept proceeding towards home (spoiler alert: it was a bad tire, but it didn’t blow out on me and I got home safely even though my nerves were stretched tight) Victoria’s grandfather has loaned Zach a car to drive to work as he goes through the slow & tedious process with the insurance adjuster. (I offered him either my baby Buick or my mom’s big land yacht of a Buick, but he’d rather drive Andy’s old Lexus) Once the settlement is complete, we will sort out what to do about a “new used” vehicle for him.

At some point I have to seriously question how much benefit I received from this recreation: this last weekend seemed like it carried a large component of stress, even though it was great to see everyone as always. I am on my last week of this two-month commitment to acupuncture, and while I can say I seem to be sleeping better I don’t know that it’s done me much benefit in my other symptoms of fatigue, shortness of breath, etc.

I didn’t take very many photos but I’ll try to post a few later.

                                                   This is another friend's panoramic shot

67 Inches Above Ground

 I recently completed “Six Feet Under” which, while quite engaging & entertaining, did not seem to have the profound effect on me many other people have attested. Perhaps because I deal with death & dying Every. Damn. Day - granted, in veterinary medicine, not the human field but it makes me more inured to it. “Yes, Virginia, we’re all gonna die & it’s a process for the most part that we have little or no control over!”

Last night, Zach had completed his first community outreach program for the City of Dallas (setting up a table, handing out water bottles & talking to citizens at a nearby park) - he was feeling good about himself after a 12 hour workday when some kid ran a stop sign and Zach could not avoid hitting him. Fortunately Zach is uninjured, although he is stiff & sore and may go to an urgent care clinic today to have his potential whiplash injuries investigated, but in all likelihood insurance will total his car - it’s a 2012 Impala & it’s just not worth that much! So, like it or not, we will be car shopping and Zach will have to take on (another**) car payment.

**I’m still covering the car payment on the other car which Zach seems to have ceded to Victoria for the most part - I’m grateful he wasn’t in the Lexus; it would’ve been heartbreaking to wreck that one!

So I’d better shift my freight to get moving on my own workday, since I don’t want to sacrifice my ride this weekend, carpe diem & all that…I’m going to finish paying the piper for my colleague Dr M by spaying their pet skunk!

Chin Up, Chest Out, Shoulders Back

 A banner weekend for me in more ways than one: physically, emotionally, maybe even spiritually?

I took my girls to our Southwest Veterinary Symposium in Fort Worth; I seem to have succeeded in showing them a good time on a little mini-vacay - I booked us rooms at the Sheraton. Metroplex traffic has gotten so horrendous - I know I saved us between 3 - 4 hours each day of commuting time. I had to get my truck serviced Thursday for this upcoming weekend’s trip, so I was a little late getting out of my gate;  coming up to Fort Worth in the late afternoon I only hit one minor traffic jam which probably delayed me 10-15 minutes but felt like forever!

I did not book Dr. M & her husband a hotel room since they were going to stay with her daughter in Heath (a nearby suburb which under normal circumstances would be 30 minute commute). However, after 2 days of bucking northside traffic, on Friday night Dr M bunked with me - & Saturday night we had a full-fledged slumber party since her husband stayed over too; he didn’t feel like driving back after our celebratory “family dinner”. (Well, it wasn’t a full-blown slumber party since I couldn’t convince P to sleep over, he just drove over for dinner - & what a dinner it was!)

To Be Continued…

As you can read, I continue to cope with most of life's issues through dark'ish humor - and while I was not thrilled to sacrifice my privacy in my upscale hotel room (I know for my mother, highlights of her existence were our vacations when I became a teenager: we were well-off enough that we no longer had to camp out, we stayed in hotels & ate in restaurants where somebody else was doing the laundry, the cooking, & the dishes! Of course I absorbed those traits), I was trying to make the best of it & even felt some guilt after Dr M's profuse gratitude. It really was not that big a deal!

The physical aspects of my victory came from surpassing 10K steps on Friday, attending my first "real live" yoga class on Saturday (not perfect but I tried to keep up), and fasting all day Saturday in preparation for our Big Fancy Family Dinner Saturday night - Dr M & her husband were celebrating his successful recent cancer surgery which he came through like an absolute rock star. He insisted on picking up the check at the Ft Worth Stockyards steakhouse (easy to remember as it's named Lonesome Dove) where we enjoyed exotic sausage (rabbit & rattlesnake), wild boar ribs, and sharing tidbits of elk tenderloin, Berkshire pork chops, bison ribeye, and my own beef filet which, hands down, was one of the best pieces of meat I've had in my whole life! MM insisted on picking up this hefty tab, so I could justify my hotel room sharing as part of "paying the piper".

Trainspotting

 Last week, Big Boy, one of the few remaining operational steam locomotives in North America, came through Ellis County on its big multi-state tour. He steamed right down the tracks across the road from my clinic - I was not out early enough to see this, so I drove down to Ennis to catch the whistle stop. I will get some photos posted later; it was damned impressive.

https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/4014/

On Sunday afternoon, we got the surgery trailer cleared out so that yesterday I was able to work completely in my building. This was nice as long-awaited rainstorms came through; we didn’t have to trek back-and-forth to the surgery trailer. I hope to get news from the bank today that Dr. W’s loan has been approved and then we just have to finalize details of when he will pick it up? Hopefully it won’t be this weekend as we are going to the state veterinary conference, but even so, Zach has already volunteered to be my handoff man. He’s as anxious as I am to get those funds so I can pay off some debts & start catching up on dadgum tax payments! One hurdle at a time…

Things seem to have stabilized with Kristy’s mom under hospice care at home. I certainly hope nothing dramatic changes so Kristy can enjoy (as best she can) our short little weekend in Fort Worth. She & Misti have been plotting out which lectures they will attend; I haven’t even had a chance to look at their schedule so that will probably be Thursday evening’s chore when I check into our hotel. (I splurged to get us hotel rooms since it will save us close to three hours of commuting time each day)

But speaking of chaos, my son does seem to thrive on it - he was filling me in on more drama in his personal life with Victoria. Obviously they’ll either work things out or they won’t - for now I can just be content that all is well in his professional career - he is picking up extra shifts, socking away some overtime so he and Victoria can go to Tulum. My boy is figuring out the true cost of things and I haven’t even finished transferring responsibility for his utilities and car payment…I’m giving him a few more months to adjust to adult life.

Speaking of which, I’ve got to get on with my own! Life doesn’t feel very carpe diem-ish now, but next week will be better when I’m prepping for my ride at Pole Canyon

More Blessings

 I’m doing my best to cultivate that “attitude of gratitude” but it’s challenging when I creak out of bed feeling like The Tin Woman - multiple joints stiff & achy, where’s my WD40?? By the time I pace the aisle of my barn, getting the ponies fed, it’s better but I’m grateful to settle in with my cup o’ coffee.

My FitBit logged me at 3.2 miles Saturday; while it didn’t feel as if I walked 5K at the time, today the ol’ bod is telling me differently! I didn’t have a chance to download my photos from the festival - Monday Monday! - but hopefully I’ll have that opportunity today. More gratitude on the front of having a full complement of staff members; Kristy reported further declines in her mom’s condition as I expect she’ll linger for weeks or months under hospice care** - I make no claims as to my diagnostic abilities with humans.

All systems “Go” as we should have Dr M back on board Wednesday; she also confirmed my ride dates in October, so I sent off my entries for next month’s beautiful Pole Canyon ride (10/4 & 5). But unfortunately my young friend Heather is letting her own anxieties get the better of her: I had offered her a ride to Pole Canyon but she doesn’t think Smidge is ready. I really have no business taking off work myself, making such a long haul for these short intro rides but what the hell, it’s carpe diem time!

** while my dear friend Rhonda lasted merely 6 wks after her lung cancer diagnosis, my “god-sister” Dana (my godparents’ only daughter, about the same age as Rhonda) lingered in a comatose state for over a month under hospice care. And I shake my head bitterly at the lost opportunities with my half-sister Linda: I feel as if I was robbed of my chance to have our relationship “out in the open” since I thought learning of her existence would’ve been too big a shock to my mother. Poor Linda’s been gone almost 20 months now, yet while I wouldn’t say my mom is “still going strong”, she is still alive if unwell. I know that sounds awful of me, but she seems to take no pleasure out of life anymore.

And pleasurable or not, I’ve got to get on with my work duties.

Counting Blessings

 I will never turn down an impromptu invitation from my son - Saturday afternoon he wanted to go downtown to the Viva Dallas festival, a pre-celebration of Mexican Independence Day (which is actually today, Diez y Seis de Septembre). It actually worked out well because I had a 3 PM acupuncture appointment: Zach was working Saturday, so by the time he got home, mowed the front yard & took a shower, it was perfect timing. 

We drove downtown, parked at a lot a couple of blocks away (which was “merely” $11, the festival itself was free!) and hiked over to City Hall Plaza. What’s not to like? We ate tacos & elote, listened to mariachis, watched the dancers and saw some impressive displays of horsemanship. I was especially impressed by the young lady riding astride in the full flowing skirt.

Zach couldn’t stay out too late because he had to get up for work Sunday morning - this was perfectly agreeable to me also… We strolled around admiring our architecture and I tried to fill Z in on some of the controversy - many traditionalists were not in favor of our modernistic City Hall design or the Henry Moore sculpture in the plaza. The modern faction won, I think mostly from a desire to prove that we were not Fort Worth! If you walk a few blocks west, you can see the traditional cattle-drive, western bronze sculptures. Zach had to do his employee orientation inside City Hall by which he was favorably impressed.

 But then Sunday morning, it was back to reality - like it or not, I had to get my mother showered. Let me just say that I can handle animal clean-up much better than the eye-watering combination of stale urine and body odor. I tried to work as quickly &efficiently as I could and I got it done. On the classic movie channel they were doing a Lonesome Dove marathon, which turned out to be far superior to the disappointing Cowboys game.