Missed Opportunity

"Where do they do the screening?" I asked when my doctor recommended a baseline cardio-plaque CAT scan.

"It's down in Shirlington," she told me.

"Oh! I know the place! Is it right by the car rental?"

She nodded. 

"Oh my gosh!" I continued. "I can't believe I'll finally be able to park in one of those reserved spots!"

"I know, right?" she laughed. "Whenever I'm down there, it's a battle to find parking, and those six spots are usually empty."

But? As excited as I was? In the end, I just walked down for the scan. It seemed silly to get in the car for such a trifle.

Perks

I never gave getting my COVID booster at the doctor yesterday a second thought. And when I had some leg aches on the injection site side later in the afternoon, I didn't make a connection. But when I woke up with chills, aches, and a splitting headache at 2 a.m., I started to suspect side effects. 

A dose of ibuprofen and another of acetaminophen a little later have taken the edge off, but I still don't feel good. Current situation: sitting on the couch with a blanket and a dog, sipping seltzer water and streaming TV shows on my laptop.

Boy, was I glad I didn't have to go to work this morning! 

>60

"Oh, good!" said the nurse practitioner conducting my annual wellness check when I mentioned that I was recently retired. "Maybe getting these screenings done won't be too inconvenient for you."

Her list was extensive: mammogram, bone density, thyroid, dermatologist, eye doctor, and colonoscopy, with an optional CAT scan for plaque. And really? Are any of those tests ever actually "convenient"? However, I can schedule them without delay or consideration for conflict.

"Just think!" she added. "Your wellness can be a retirement project!"

In-N-Out

I read today that the summer TikTok trend of "very demure, very mindful" has run its course and is over.

Well.  

I'm glad I met it on its way out the door.

Leave It

Judging from how much sniffing Lucy and Lady were doing up on the hill this afternoon, I reckoned that something big had recently gone down in the canine community. 

And when we saw the disembodied squirrel tail, I knew what they were on to, and we hastily made our way past the scene of the crime.

No Drama

"There's throw-up in the slide!" Charlie reported to his mom. "We can't go down it!"

He was high over our heads on a rope bridge in the enormous play structure by the farmers' market. Kids of all ages began a mini-evacuation to the ladder at the other side of the structure. They filed through the rope and wood tunnels in a perfectly orderly way, then took turns climbing down the ladder. Even though no adults were with them, there was no pushing, yelling, or tears.

"Let's go play on the other one!" Charlie said when he made it down, and that is what they did.

Canine Connection

Ordinarily, Lucy is a stay-a-bed. When I am the early riser on the weekends, she usually snuffles and sighs before cuddling up to Heidi, who is still sleeping. I'm okay with it. On these days, I enjoy the solitude of the kitchen as I unload the dishwasher, make the coffee, and prepare breakfast.

Today, though, Lucy hopped out of bed the minute I was dressed and practically danced down the stairs as I made my way to the kitchen. After quickly assessing whether this was exuberance or a bathroom emergency, I made myself some coffee before snapping on her collar and leash.

On the stoop, Lucy raised her nose before setting off purposefully up the drive. Having seen this behavior in the past, I fully expected to run into one of our dog-owning neighbors, but the complex was quiet. Even so, this didn't stop Lucy from leaving little breadcrumbs of pee along our route. 

When at last she had pooped, and we were on our way home, I spotted one of her favorite people with her oldest doggie friend way down the parking lot.

AJ was sleepy but awake enough to turn his back to an excited incoming Lucy. This time, though, she was all about the dog. Lucy and Lady greeted each other as if it had been weeks instead of days since last they met. "Wow!" said AJ, "that's the most energy I've seen from her in ages."

It was true. 14-year-old Lady was leaping and play bowing in circles around us, and Lucy matched her enthusiasm.

"She woke me up from a sound sleep to come out here," AJ told me.

"Lucy has been looking for someone for the last ten minutes," I replied. "It really seems like she knew you guys were going to be out here."

"Dogs," he shook his head. "How do they do that?"

I shrugged.

"I'm going back to bed," he said.

And when we got home? That's exactly what Lucy did, too.