Meet Jinx

Jan 22, 2012

So given all the commotion that’s been happening in my life the last few months, new dog, bigger responsibilities at work, school, and new housemates¹, I haven’t really had a chance to announce the newest member to the Beckman pack.

Sadly, it’s not a baby but she’s still very cute, regardless!

Meet Jinx

Well, this is what she looked like when we first got her which was the first few weeks in October². But this is what she looks like now…

And she’s not even full grown yet.

I’m fairly certain I’m going to cry when she is…

But in the meantime…

Isn’t she just precious?!!!

Last Ditch Effort

Jan 23, 2011

Robby and I are at our last leg with Trouble. He’s clearly miserable but he’s just not getting better. We’ve talked to several different consultants and haven’t heard anything that we haven’t tried. It’s frustrated beyond on else, especially when you’re dealing with this type of situation and honestly I doubt a consultants directory would help and I certainly don’t think consultants for hire will do the trick either.

So we’ve resolved to trying out other methods that might work. We need to make a run to PetCo and get a Comfy Cone to prevent him from turning his neck to lick, some leg warmers so he can’t get at his legs and then lastly baby socks secured with duct tape to pad the scratching he’s doing. It’s a last ditch effort, but it might work.

When you’re dealing with a dog with severe allergies that continues to make things worse, but techniques do you employ? Do they work?

Day 24: It’s My Party So I’ll Cry if I Want To

Oct 13, 2010

I will admit that since I got married, I’ve become somewhat of a crybaby. I never used to be that way but even the smallest things can make me tear up– especially during that time of the month. Kristen is constantly amused about how easily things can make me cry– specifically TV shows or movies when I have become really invested. I’ve just come to accept the fact that I probably relate more than I should to the things I see on TV or in the movies. I think it’s endearing.

In any event, something that will always make me cry, not matter what is seeing an animal suffering. There are certain shows or things that Robby will not let me see because he knows it will upset me. Pit Bulls & Parolees is just one of the shows that makes me cry. I just cannot believe how cruel people can be and it breaks my heart. Even worse I HATE feeling like I can’t do anything about it. It’s the overall helplessness that makes it that much worse.

We ended up with Trouble because I was just perusing Craigslist trying to cheer myself up and came across his listing. I knew automatically given his issues that if he was sent to the shelter he would eventually be put down so I e-mailed Robby asking if we could foster him. I was actually pretty surprised that he agreed and despite the fact there are several other critters that need a home, which I would so give them if I could, I was glad to be able to do at least something.

Trouble is now a member of our family and he’s managed to live up to his name– but even with the bad times, I love him to pieces and could not imagine not having him. He is my Trub Trub and always will be.

Day 13: Take It One Day At a Time and You Might Survive

Oct 2, 2010

For the most part I’ve had a pretty crappy week. My weekend was okay, but my work week– well let’s just say it pretty much blew. Wednesday, I logged in to work as per usual and then discovered after I was off that Trouble was in distress. Apparently he had developed a hot spot¹ which had gone unnoticed and as a result, we ended up running to Walmart to buy some bandages and disinfectant to try and treat the area.

Once we had taken care of it, we ended up going out to dinner in town and when we came home we attempted to remove the bandages so we could wrap new fresh ones on his wound, but he wasn’t having it. We ended up having to put a muzzle on him because he refused to let anyone get near his neck and finally after holding him down we were able to re-wrap him again and kenneled him for the night.

The next morning, I awoke and took him outside to try and wash the wound. He was clearly still in pain but he allowed me to finish washing the wound as best as I could and didn’t struggle so much when I wrapped it. As I was almost finishing he ended up flipping out and refused to let me continue and laid on the kitchen floor, shaking. We figured it was just because he was in distress and would calm down after a few minutes, but didn’t. I immediately decided it was time to take him to the vet so I called to make an appointment and was told they had an opening in and hour. I ended up having to call in to work and tell them that I was going to be late and we drove him out to the vet, where he had to be left because he needed to be sedated so they could clean the wound.

After we left him at the vet, I went back to work, only to discover that my system would not let me log into the phone. It allowed me to log in to the network but not the phone and we couldn’t figure out what the deal was. After spending 50 minutes taking with chat tech support, I was advised that I had to call in and they finally resovled the issue by resetting my password. As a result I got to work a total of 17 minutes. Yeah it was pretty lame, lol.

Robby ended up picking Trouble up after work and bringing him home with a bunch of meds that he has to take but he seems to be doing much better. Friday when I woke up, I couldn’t log on to work because it told me I could not connect to the server. After spending 40 minutes troubleshooting with tech, we discovered I had to change my password, so finally I was able to work.

After work we headed out to Okotberfest which wasn’t as fun as I thought. According to Robby it was pretty lame compared to the year he went so I’m glad it wasn’t just me. Today, I just worked and spent the rest of the day lounging around the house. My week was a mixture of worry, panic, and pain in the ass with all my systems issues. I’m glad it’s over.

1 We found this out afterwards.

Day 10: You Are What You Wear

Sep 29, 2010

Given that my days are generally boring and since I spend the majority at home, I often am too lazy to actually change into clothes, this might be a little difficult. I did manage to do something other than stay at home today so I guess for the most part, you’ll get somewhat of a detail explanation, though I’ll try to keep it short because honestly, who really cares about what I wear? Especially in great detail.

moving on

I started out the morning, waking up in my birthday suit, after a really horrid, vivid dream. Do not get me started on the dream, it’s pretty gross and that seems to be the census for all those who’ve heard it. Once I managed to pull my ass out of bed, I jumped into the shower which lasted about fifteen minutes and then put on a t-shirt and shorts. Shorts in the sense they’re my comfy shorts or in other words my high school gym shorts. Yes, I still fit them, then again that’s never been an issue for me.

After working for about four hours, I went downstairs for no reason I can really recall and Kristen and I realized that Trouble wasn’t acting like his usual self. I ended up walking over to see what the issue was and removed the trainer collar he had on to discover that it apparently spazzed out and started shocking him without the remote. As a result, I had to quickly change into a purple short, with some decorative design, rhinestones included and jeans and we ran over to Walmart to pick up some disinfectant, gauze and ace bandage to wrap his neck. He’s doing a bit better now, but it’s going to take some time for his neck to heal and we’ll keep changing out at the bandages along the way.

So yes, now I’m in bed, trying to quickly post this before midnight and am back in my birthday suit. I know, isn’t my wardrobe so glamorous?

When It Rains, It Pours

Aug 18, 2010

Today has been an exceptionally long day. Lili managed to hurt herself while trying to jump down from the bed and as a result, I had to leave work early to go with Kristen to the vet. The appointment was at 2:30 and we were there until around 3ish before they took her back for x-rays.

We were told that it should take about an hour so we headed out to grab something to eat because we were starving. We’d initially tried to locate a restaurant so we could kill more time but after passing numerous buildings from dentistry’s to spa places and even places dealing with steel for steel buildings, we gave up and just went to Del Taco.

Even after Del Taco, she wasn’t ready so we walked around Target for a bit where I picked up one of my favorite books from my childhood A Wrinkle in Time and the blu-ray Seven Pounds which was only $9.99. Finally after about an hour or so we decided to head back to the vet even though we hadn’t heard anything from them and as we were pulling in, we finally got a call saying she was ready.

Thankfully, there were no broken bones and it was just soft tissue damage. The vet gave her some morphine to help manage the pain for the next several days and we headed home. We left the house around 1:45pm and got home a little before 7:00pm. It’s been an excruciatingly long day… and on that note, I’m going to watch some tv and crash. G’nite.