Baxter Has Clean Teeth

Despite never having had a teeth cleaning before, Baxter was a very good "patient" according to Joan and she ought to know.

Just after noon I loaded Baxie into the back of the car and off we went to Debary. Joan, the retired people dental hygenist, gave me excellent directions which got us there without incident. A sign in her yard commanded visitors to honk. Hearing our honk, she immediately opened the door, suggesting Baxter might want to sniff around a bit before coming in. With that out of the way, we entered her front room which doubles as a dental office if you will. I know this sounds pretty crazy, however, during Baxter's last check up the veterinarian said that if we didn't want Baxter to have gum disease, he needed his teeth cleaned which they would be happy to do for $350 or more. No thanks is what I thought. The last time they put him to sleep for his neutering, it did not go well. Our groomer, Alissa is the one who gave me Joan's name;  after puzzling a bit, I called her. She can out-talk me and that's saying a lot. We spent nearly an hour on the phone setting up the appointment during which time she gave me all her credentials.

Above she is using the Cavitron on Baxter, just like the hygienist uses on me! See how she's keeping his body still by putting her leg over his back legs? Pretty cool. Big time tarter, some gingivitis, and one sketchy molar was the diagnosis. He was none the worse for wear once it was over--it only took 30 minutes. Our bank account was happy too, only $125, with no anesthesia or full day affair. Forgive me if I've gone on too long about this, however, I thought you might find it somewhat interesting. When I asked Joan if I could photograph her for my blog, she was cool with that, however, she said she has more business than she can handle so don't give out her last name. Consider it done Joan.

On our way home I stopped at Gemini Springs just before a gigantic rainstorm struck. Because it was getting so dark , the water took on this extraordinary color:

Baxter is the world's worst walker in our neighborhood, however, parks are a different story. The desire to mark everything apparently is not so strong which makes it a much more pleasant experience for me.
That said, the oncoming storm sent us hurrying back to the car, coming down in sheets once we were on our way home.

Don't people who text while driving on the interstate make you crazy? They do me.

Bruce was home in time for dinner and an early bedtime because his road trip was so stressful. A Thursday meeting at the office brought him a day early--hurray!

Cause for another hurray was the addition of the chemicals to the pool to get it back up and running. This morning, after hanging the clothes on the line, I was finally able to get in again. Doesn't it look beautiful now? The staining is completely gone.

Despite the still 90 degree weather, the water was slightly cool after the draining and re-filling. Not enough to keep me out thought. It won't be too much longer and jumping in will be a chilly affair.

How about these dark mornings? The days are getting shorter and shorter. I feel for my British loved ones, who during the shortest days of the year,  have only about 8 hours of daylight. This would drive me mad, or so I think from afar. Speaking of our British loved ones, Matt and Tom enjoyed a weekend in Budapest, with Matt staying on for work. You may or may not know that Matt is a concert going king, having seen more people perform live than you can imagine. Pretty soon, he'll have visited more countries than you can imagine too. I always knew Matt would have an extraordinary life, just not what form it would take. So far it's exceeding anything I could have wished for him.

With the slight change in weather the birds are singing like mad in the mornings, with sightings becoming more common. Do we think this is our newest juvenille?

The feather colors make me think so. I'll be glad when we can remove the ropes which are keeping the tree nice and straight. Maybe after the end of hurricane season Bruce will remove them. Standing on the couch, I fit my camera lens through the blinds and hope I can get a shot. You knew I was crazy already though.

This weekend will be busy. Saturday morning I'll be at Winter Garden until 1, which translate into getting home around 2, then after packing the car with our tent we'll be heading downtown to the WMMO Art and Wine Festival until 8. Sunday, you can find me at my usual Sunday home away from home. Let's hope for no rainouts shall we?