Last year Mister B came down with a fungal infection called valley fever. He’s better now, but it’s a lingering disease. We give him fluconazole twice a day and take him in for a blood test every three months.
The fungus that causes valley fever is in the soil in southern Arizona. We think Mister B got it at a nearby park, because during our last few visits the county was digging up sections to make improvements, but really he could have gotten it anywhere. Nearly all of our friends here say their dogs have had it. It’s common.
When Mister B got valley fever, our first thought wasn’t “Oh, this is just a common thing dogs get.” It was “Oh my god our dog is dying!” He had a horrible hacking cough. He was listless and unreactive, panting for breath. He struggled to get food down his esophagus. His belly shriveled up to nothing and he looked like a skeleton with a pelt draped over it.
Our boy’s his old self again, happy and healthy, but the titer tests, which measure the concentration of antibodies in his blood, show the fungus still has a grip. Mister B may have to continue taking fluconazole another year, even longer. No argument from us. We’ll do whatever it takes to keep it under control … we don’t ever want to see him that sick again.
I almost ordered an Alexa device so we could control our TV by voice. Good thing I Googled how to do it first, because it turns out our Samsung has one built in. Kudos to me for saving money for a change. Which I promptly spent on other goodies from Amazon.
Donna got us registered for the COVID vaccine and we should get a notification when it’s our turn. Our group (over 65 but under 75) isn’t up yet, so it may still be a while. But hey, we’re on the list.
I cleaned my desk this morning. Put the messy stack of homeowners’ association paperwork and notes in a new folder in the file drawer; ditto my postal paraphernalia … stamps, address labels, stationary & envelopes. Files and receipts I haven’t looked at in two or three years? Trashed. Took an electronics wipe to the iMac’s screen; a disinfectant wipe (yay, they’re back in the stores!) to the top of the desk. It seemed, on the last full day of a four-year-long nightmare, the right thing to do. If Joe and Kamala drop by tomorrow and ask to sit down at my desk to check their email, it’ll be ready for them.
Speaking of cleaning, I read that when the Bidens move into the White House tomorrow, the beds in the residence upstairs will have new box springs and mattresses. I’m hoping the carpets as well. Because you can’t tell me the Steele dossier didn’t have it right.
I think … I hope … the MAGAts shot their wad last Wednesday and that tomorrow’s inauguration will be peaceful.
Less than 23 hours to go!