But I Was Going Into Tosche Station to Pick Up Some Power Converters!

2016 and environs.  Wow.

To start off, I like the whole "Dewey Defeats Trump" thing.  I really do.  But other than that...

Very end of 2015: Joe the Cat goes under the plunger.

Winter 2016: Friend's marriage dies.  Very sad.  Helped him move.  Bought a bag of army men for his little boy to play with when he visits.  Very sad.

Winter 2016: Friend's teenage child commits suicide.

Winter 2016: Colleague at work diagnosed with terminal brain tumor.  We're not close, but he shines like a beacon of "not done yet, mofos" just a few feet away.

Spring 2016: Soap opera-y trials and tribulations At Work.  Gawd, by now, even I find them boring.  But there they were.

Summer 2016: Sam the Dog needs me one last time.

Summer 2016: Another friend's marriage ends.  This one stings a bit more for him.  Or maybe just more deeply.

Fall 2016: "This thing" on another direct colleague's neck at work is diagnosed as cancerous.  Let the radiation and chemo begin.

Winter 2016: Close friend goes to Urgent Care then ER after a couple of weeks of suspected cold-> flu -> maybe pneumonia/bronchitis.  They immediately check him into hospital ICU for AML (Leukemia).  "One of the most aggressive and virulent" cases they've ever seen.  Goes in on December 22nd, is sedated and on a respirator by Xmas day, kidney dialysis on the 28th, and after family arrives in-state and gets the full story of how badly he's deteriorated, he passes quietly on January 5th, an hour after everything's switched off.  Spent January with another friend cleaning out the apartment.

So, that was my personal 2016.

As far as I can tell, the only good thing that happened was that I was introduced to this:

When I watch it I can't help but think of "Oh Kungas, we're going to have so much fun!"

Sam the Dog Final Bark

I brought Sam the Dog home almost 10 years ago.  He looked like this:

Most of the time since then he looked something like this:

And this June he managed to fool everyone and look like this for a few seconds:

Mid-July he went off his food a bit.  By the end of July he simply wasn't eating anything but smidgens of scraps of chicken and steak, and was losing weight.   In the second week in August I had him in for an ultrasound which was inconclusive, and then a CAT scan which spelled out "Lymphoma".  My vet pushed the plunger for me on 8/16.

I sure didn't expect to have to deal with all that again so soon.  I know every dog is the best dog ever, but Sam was the best dog ever.

Once again, as with Joe the Cat, thanks to everyone who's helped me with Sam over the years.

Joe the Cat Final Meow

Today was Joe the Cat's sign off.  He had a great run (14 years) but in the end the combo of diabetes and kidney and spleen issues was too much.  He had another bad day and night yesterday so I made the call and took him in this afternoon.

Thanks to everyone who's fed him, scritched him, had their blood sucked by him, cooed over him, nearly been suffocated by him, had their lap warmed by him, rescued rubber bands from him, snatched dice away from him, or sneezed out dander from him over the 13 years he administered Fort Sam the Dog for me.  He will be missed.

"(2003) Hmm.  This dwelling may serve my needs for approximately 13 years after all..."

Thank You, Alka Seltzer Cold & Flu Fizzy Tablets

And screw you, expiration dates.  If I wanted to hear from you I would've looked at you months ago.

Almost Over Already, This Summer Is

I really like Star Wars. Even the prequels.

There. I said it.

I've got a lot of proto-posts whizzing around in my golova, but nothing's touching down very long. It's been a terrifically busy spring-summer so far and, if things keep thinging along the way they have been, it's looking to get even busier come summer-fall.

I've been out on the bike more so far than the previous two seasons combined; finally realize what the dealer and my buddy meant when they said that a 650 would seem big at first but would eventually get too small; can't wait for my HighNoon shoulder rig to get here; really really need to get some bids in on a new upstairs bathroom, and bought my own copy of Chaos in the Old World because, well heck - we play it so often I shouldn't have to make anyone else drag their copy over.

It's been a pretty great summer so far, so here's to hoping it gets even more so: