Of all the hardships a person has to face, none is more punishing than the simple act of waiting. Khaled Hosseini, A Thousand Splendid Suns  What is more torturous, waiting in anticipation or in apprehension? When I was in the crate, every minute stretched into an eternity only to be interrupted by the sound of an approaching vehicle, the hope of rescue marred by the fear of the unknown; after a while,  the only conscious…

0415 at the Casa; as usual, Charlie has right hip duty, wedged up tight on top of the covers, while Max has taken his usual position on the left between mom and I. All this vitality crammed into 18.75" of the bed while mom rests unmolested on the remaining acreage is a bit off putting, especially when a Charlie starts another trip into dreamland.  Both dogs have their DDU's  (dad detection units, in this case…

When your task exceeds you ability, you experience anxiety... when your ability exceeds your task, you experience boredom: but when your ability exactly equals your task, you can achieve a state of "flow", a Zen - like condition where time seems to stand still and previously impossible tasks are somehow possible. Dad recently had a moment like this flying down the Potash Rd in Moab where everything "clicked"; the conditions exactly met his skill level…

This is every wardens nightmare, the moment when all control is lost at the asylum. All video surveillance systems were disabled and no alarms were sounded as all the inmates glided wraith-like through the night to their predetermined positions. Then, pandemonium. They say that the darkest hour is just before dawn, and this is when I was rudely awakened to find myself the helpless victim of a vicious waterboarding session at the tongues of two…

I've always found it off-putting when someone says "Happy Memorial Day"; I know that they have the best of intentions, but it seems to me that a day of remembrance is not exactly a gala affair. The first indication when I began posting that there might be something else to this endeavour besides a narcissistic dog was when I received a PM at 0230 from a vet, "your post just helped me through a PTSD…

I came, I saw, I stuck around... 09:57; realize that dad is in The Chair; begin my ascent of Mt Dad; upon attaining the summit, claim my dominance by immobilizing his arms, begin liberally coating his face with dog spit, occasionally hooking a nostril with a canine. 10:03 hear mom rattle some plastic in the kitchen; with no regard for dad's tender vegetation, leap from the chair to investigate. 10:05 notice that dad has almost…