update on the dogs and some ranting about stupid people, basically

[la_belle_laide]

I'm writing this quick update on yet another new laptop. Like I mentioned, my Mac is dying a protracted, painful death, so I had been using the little Toshiba I got last year. Well, during our family Xmas celebration on the 26th, I stupidly put the damn thing on top of Mom's freezer to make some room. My cousin didn't see it up there, opened the freezer to put in some ice cream she'd bought, and CRASH went the laptop, breaking it entirely. 100% my fault for putting it up there. Lucky thing it didn't land on her head. I still feel really bad about it.

The holidays were good this year, though. I'm a little sad that I forgot to do my annual “end-of-year” memes on LJ. I'm sad, actually, that I haven't been on LJ a lot. In fact, honestly, I'm sad that LJ in general is just about done and that everyone has moved to Tumblr. Even me. I still feel faithful to LJ even if I'm not on it often.

But yeah, Christmas was good. We had a lot of people over, and we bought those cracker things you see on Doctor Who all the time, and everyone got stupid prizes and a crown to wear. To me, it was awesome. It was all a bit much for CJ, who has started to have this separation anxiety and stranger danger kind of thing. He's still in that phase, too. He only wants Mommy and Grandma and sometimes Jo-chan. Everyone else scares him if they get too close.

Speaking of, I took both dogs to the vet yesterday for their blood work and checkup. It was just me, the two dogs, and CJ. I was just trying to keep them all in one place while we waited. It wasn't so bad until this bratty kid, maybe around 3 or 4 years old or something, came up to us and started bothering Haku first. I told him to stop, that Haku would bite him. He asked if he could pet Sano and I said okay (Sano really loves kids,) but don't get near his face. Then the bratty kid went up to the carseat and peeked in. “Is that your baby?” I told him yes, and then took CJ out of the carseat, because I didn't want Bratty Kid to start touching him. Once he was out, Bratty Kid started getting in CJ's face and growling and barking at him.

WTF. So I said, “Where's your mother?” really loud. Finally his mom came over and dragged him away, Bratty Kid screaming and hollering all the way. Then he frigging CAME BACK and started doing the same thing again. I looked Bratty Kid in the eye and said, “My dog is going to bite you if you keep doing that to the baby.” Once again, his mom came over and pulled him away, promising him candy if he would behave.

I sat there thinking, “Please don't ever let me be that negligent Mom of a bratty kid who bullies little babies.” I know toddlers are pre-rational, but there was something up with that kid the way he was acting so mean. And with her making promises of candy to get him to stop... I dunno, I realize I'm not there yet and there's no telling what CJ is going to be like so maybe I shouldn't judge. I just know that if he started picking on babies and getting into strange dogs' faces, we'd be having some serious talks.

Anyway, the good news is that both dogs look really good. I got the blood test results today. Sano's blood is perfect! (*knock wood*) His arthritis is getting pretty bad and the lipomas on his sides are getting big. But his insides are all good. Haku's liver value is up from last year, by about 100 points (up to 317 she said) but it's not a significant increase for a dog on so many meds. She said that she's seen dogs his age with higher values than that, who aren't on meds. And his chloride is actually down from last year!

I'm not clear on the chloride. We think it's related to the potassium bromide he's on, but she mentioned that it had to do with the potassium-sodium pumps and my brain went “Oh well that's cell biology, the exchange of potassium and sodium via the pump inside each cell, doesn't that have something to do with action potential or something something it's been a long time since A&P...” and I started to wonder if maybe it was related to epilepsy. He was having lots of seizures last year and his chloride was high. This year it's lower, and—I feel like I'm jinxing this just by writing about it—he hasn't had a seizure in 4 months. FOUR MONTHS. That's a record. And I have no idea why. But maybe the chloride level is related to seizure activity. It's worth a google, which is what I'll do once I'm done typing this.

So, I started this entry this morning, then CJ woke up and we drove to the north fork to visit my boss at work, just for a social sort of thing. There was a horrific accident this morning. One of my cousin's friends lost her life in it. Nothing more terrifying than these random accidents. Can't stop thinking about it. It was about a mile from my house. So we were able to get out of town without any issues, but coming back, there were detours on the main road to my road. They said they'd have it all gone by noon. We came back at 1 and the detours were still in place. So they made me go all the way to Hampton Bays to go around... And of course, there was another detour on the other side. I pulled over to the shoulder of the road, opened the door and asked the cop, “I live just up the road. How do I get home?” He just stood in the road yelling at me that it wasn't his problem the roads were closed, and to go the other way. I said “Well, that side is closed too. I have to get my baby home.” By this time CJ was way late for lunch and his nap and he was crying. The cop was super douchey and just stood there yelling about how it wasn't his problem. PROTECT AND SERVE, BRO. So I yelled back, “YOU'RE THE OPPOSITE OF HELPFUL!” and slammed the door shut while he was still ranting about how none of this was his problem. Then, instead of collecting my wits, I yelled, “This is so stupid and it's made me REALLY ANGRY.” I looked into the backseat to check on CJ and I saw his little lip wibble, and then he just busted out with a full-hearted cry. And, oh man, he cried and cried for the next half hour that it took us to get back to the other detour.

The cops on that side were nice; when I told them I lived on this road they let me go through. Why couldn't the other cop do that? No idea. Baby cried—wailed, really—all the way home. And I know it was because he knew I was upset.

So we got home to a late lunch and a late nap. But. We got home to a late lunch and a late nap. We were inconvenienced and the cop was a bag of dicks and CJ was hungry and tired and I was angry. But we got home. And the people in the car accident didn't. Even when I'm pissed off and nervous, I am still thankful every single day. Though, I should probably not have shown my anger and frustration, because it really upset the baby.

Well, anyway. He's asleep on my lap now and, I don't know, maybe I'll read a short fic or something before he wakes up.

Oh yeah, and one more thing! Anyone who gets Pivot TV should watch the new HitRECord show. I'm going to be in two episodes of it. :D Yay! And I'm on the Don Jon DVD briefly, too! Buy it, so that I get paid! ;)

And be thankful every day!

Addendum: I just read my last entry re: ancestry.com where I was looking for the Plantagenets. And guess what! A few branches over, there they were! Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine are my 28th great grandparents. :D WOW!