Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Tuesday, February 6, 2024 -- Mattie died 749 weeks ago today. 

Tonight's picture was taken in February of 2004. Mattie was almost two years old. That day we had a dusting of snow, and of course that intrigued Mattie. So we got bundled up and went outside to experience the white stuff. I will never forget our deck and commons area. Mattie learned so many things in this enclosed city space. 

Quote of the day: Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them and filling an emptiness we didn’t ever know we had. ~ Thom Jones

Which one is Sunny? Can you tell? When I adopted Sunny, he was transported from South Carolina to Washington, DC. However, I couldn't pick him up because I was in Los Angeles. So for two weeks, Sunny was temporarily housed with a foster mom. The foster mom had a dog that looked just like Sunny. But my Sunny was the one with the red collar! Sunny's foster mom was a lovely person, she cared for Sunny beautifully, and she gave me periodic updates about his personality and his likes and dislikes while I was in LA. I remember her telling me that Sunny loved to chase squirrels/rats, that he wanted to constantly shake hands with his paw, and that he did not know how to climb up or down steps. I will never forget the day we picked him up to bring him home. It was labor day weekend of 2016! As soon as we entered the foster mom's home, Sunny approached me first. He was waging his tail and it was an immediate love and bond at first sight!

This was my morning view! Trucks up and down the block. 

It was a full day of many, many lows. I took my dad to his yearly physical. I truthfully wasn't concerned about this visit, because I deemed him stable. I have noticed that my dad gets out of breath easily, even when seated and not moving. This has been an historical problem for him, so I figured it was part of his de-ability. 

Well we went from an appointment where I was laid back, to one in which I was thoroughly stressed out. My dad has lost 11 pounds since he last saw the doctor, which was three months ago. In addition, my dad's memory declined one point on the memory assessment, and if that wasn't enough the doctor said his pulse was erratic and sounded like his heart was adding an extra beat. Something that was never reported about my dad before, and I would know as he gets assessed by his internist and cardiologist regularly. The doctor gave my dad an EKG and now I am trying to get that report to his cardiologist. 

As I was driving home from the doctor's office, I tried calling my dad's cardiologist. I spoke to a nurse, who I wanted to throttle. She did not want to talk to me at first because my dad did not sign the updated form authorizing me to have access to his healthcare. I literally threw my dad on the phone and said to him..... tell her she can talk to me. After he did, the nurse said.... how do I know this is your dad? She was joking, but I did not take it that way. I practically snapped her head off. She apologized and I told her her joke wasn't appreciated or considered funny. 

Needless to say the cardiology office has still NOT received the EKG report. So tomorrow I will have to address this first thing, because I rather hear from my dad's cardiologist that this isn't an issue. Meanwhile, my goal is to get my dad to gain back weight, which won't be easy, because his appetite is no longer what it once was. But I know he loves cheese, bread, and ice cream. So these goodies are coming out daily!