09/23/2013

I’ve noticed people write less often on OD (including myself, really). I can’t really say that it has anything to do with the site’s performance. And I’m not really using FB or any other sites more often. I just find myself less and less inclined to need to write. I don’t know if it’s because I’m happy or because my life is pretty routine now. But, I bought a lifetime membership to this site and I intended that to be for my lifetime, but if the rumors are true and this site is headed out, then I guess it will just be for the lifetime of this site. I’m not sure who picked Prosebox as the site to skip town for. There are so many journaling sites on the web, but that’s the one people seem to want to run to. I looked at it. I wasn’t interested though. I honestly don’t think I would write more over there. I have my friends here… and while most of them have become very minimal writers, I still like the group we have here at OD.
 
I think it’s really interesting though how things have changed. I remember writing on this site back in the early 90s before other social media sites were available. There was just something attractive about being able to reach out and make friendships in a wider circle than your immediate neighborhood. And to be able to be so intimate and anonymous too. But now, I think that sites like FB have created some sort of world where people feel more connected to essentially strangers and that our connection to those in the world is much wider, so maybe we just don’t need this environment (of OD) like we used to. I got a voice mail the other day… “Hi Amy, this is Vince. I dialed the wrong number. Sorry about that… but I hope you have a good day.” Really? Who leaves a voice mail on a wrong number? It used to be that you just hung up. Somehow boundaries have slipped.
 
And there seems to be something so routine about just going to FB, maybe typing a 30 word status about yourself and then taking some time to scroll through and see what others are doing. And meanwhile, my mom has stopped emailing me all together because she’s just “keeping up with you through Facebook.” Even though I don’t really use it other than to occasionally write that I went to the gym. I’ve actually been considering ditching it all together. It’s a pretty big waste of time. But, the routine of it is what brings me back.
 
Routines are good for the most part if they are good habits. Having a dog has really helped with some good habits for me. I was always a cat person… I think because cats don’t require much of anything. But dogs require a lot. Exercise and a consistent feeding schedule. You have to be home every day for them for the most part. My routine has turned into this healthy life that I didn’t anticipate having. Getting up and going to the gym. Coming home and feeding Rosie. Then going for a walk with her. It’s good to have her here.
 
It’s hard to believe that it’s only been 19 days since we lost Amos. Rosie keeps us distracted and happy and so it hasn’t been sad and depressing in the house like it was when we lost Buster. But this weekend was hard and emotional. We went to a lecture on cancer in animals. They focused on dogs (Golden Retrievers mostly) because the group that came was affiliated mostly with the rescue. However, they did mention cats a few times which was good information. The talk started off with a woman who started a nonprofit free support group called Day by Day which helps people with “anticipatory grief” and grief after losing a pet. That was the hardest part. Thinking about how we feel and the lose we’ve experienced is hard… listening to the technical details of cancer and prevention and caregiving is so nonemotional it’s a little easier to deal with. It was a good lecture and we got a lot of information and I think it helped both of us feel validated and know that we made the right decision. They have made a lot of great advances in treating cancer, but for the most part, you are only prolonging the life of the animal for a few months during which time, you are administering chemo or radiation. And most of these cancers happen to older animals. It might sound heartless, but honestly, they aren’t immortal and are going to die eventually… the only reason to prolong things is really for yourself. They haven’t found the cure yet, although they are getting closer to being able to have dogs live more than a year after treatment.
 
Once we got home, we took Rosie over to play with Amos’ buddy, Cooper. She had such a good time. I hope we get many many more happy years with her.