It's been a while.

[Mr Kleb]

Hi Woody, Bamps, Barry, Berna, Black Labbies, janedoe, jeff, jollymolly, katALabs, Snowshoe, SunDance. Apologies to folks not mentioned. :-) Hi to new members!


We are well. Filling in the past several years would need many many paragraphs. I will only post a couple experiences from last year.


My siblings came from the States for a reunion last June. We hadn’t seen each other since before the pandemic. Since we aren’t getting any younger it was so good to get together. We ate, drank, cooked, told stories, read books and sat quietly and companionably.


Faye very generously gifted me a flight on the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museums’ Dakota aka C-47, which I did last August. It is the type of plane my dad flew in WWII. It was an hour long flight from Hamilton to over Niagara Falls and back to Hamilton. A great trip back in time.


We are at the point in life at which it is more important to spend time doing stuff for us than doing stuff for others. So I moved into part-time work last week and Faye plans to full-time retire this summer. Plenty of projects around home and a bit of travelling will occupy our time.


We are juuuuuust outside the path of totality of Mondays’ solar eclipse. We may make the short trip to the path of totality, or not - we will see.


As for our pups, we still have two.


Hound/shepherd? mix Lucy is 11. She has a luxating right patella, Grade II. In late December she was diagnosed with a soft tissue sarcoma in and around her right hip and adjacent spine. :-( Chemo and possibly radiation would entail 2.5 hours on the road one way, weekly, to Guelph (the nearest veterinary college) for several weeks. And our vet, who we totally trust, was ambivalent about the long term prognosis for this treatment course. After much discussion about these two issues, we decided on palliative care. Lucy is doing well - eating, drinking, playing ball (she is a pretty good soccer goalie), occasionally playing with Fitzi, snuggling on the couch. So we shall see what we shall see as the months go by.


Black Labx Fitzi is 10 going on about 4. He is Mr. Enthusiasm! Races around the yard. Bumps/mashes his head into your leg or whatever body part is available. Almost always wags: depending on the situation, varies from a full tail wag to only the last few inches of his tail. Right now he’s sleeping on the other end of the couch.


Cheers!

[Berna]

Hi Andrew and welcome back! Glad you are all doing well! Poor sweet Lucy, it sucks when they get old. I hope you get a lot of additional time with her - savour every second of it.

[barry581]

Glad to see you back!!! I bet the C47 ride was really cool!!!!!

[Black Labbies]

Hi Andrew and Faye! Thanks for sharing your busy lives and updates with us!

It sounds like Lucy and Fitzi are keeping you busy, even though they're both seniors now. I'm sorry to read about Lucy's knee and cancer . Enjoy all the time you can with her and Fitzi!

[Snowshoe]

Welcome back. Lucy seems happy, but I am sorry she is going through this. You and Kleb and Fitzi are helping her, I'm sure. What a neat birthday.

[katALlabs]

Hi guys, glad to see all is as well as it can be given Lucys patella and sarcoma. Glad you had enjoyed your flight, There’s nothing like the distinct sound of a radial engine.

[Mr Kleb]

Thanks for your kind words Berna. While it does suck to see them get old, it is the bargain willingly made to take care of our beloved pups.

It's good to see Sonic doing well!

[Mr Kleb]

Hello Barry! The ride was AWESOME.

[Mr Kleb]

Hello Lisa! Yes, we are kept busy, which we like. I need to catch up with how Ursa and Loua are doing.

[Mr Kleb]

Hello Snowshoe! Well . . . while we are also sorry, so be it. It's our duty to make it as un-stressful as possible for all of us. Lucy show no signs, so far, of slowing down or of infirmity. We will continue being grateful for every day with her, what ever that day brings.