The move continues...

First of all, to answer a question - lofts in Dallas can go from around 70 cents/sf to about $3/sf. It all depends on the neighborhood. I'm in a very transitional neighborhood and I pay about 80 cents/sf. It's a pretty nice loft with very few amenities in an old bottling factory. If you go further into downtown the prices start getting pretty ridiculous.

I was up until about 2:30am packing and organizing. One thing led to another - over and over and over again. I got a lot moved upstairs with Mark's help last night, but once he left I decided to disconnect most of the electronics.

I had to take pictures and draw diagrams as I was doing it because it took me forever to get them connected in the first place. While I was taking them apart I realized I had a couple of cables connected things that really had no purpose. I'm sure there is a much more efficient way of connecting everything, but I just get too easily confused.

In addition to the TV and cable box, there's the receiver and Blue-Ray. It's all too fancy and way out of my league. There are way too many ways to connect everything and way to many holes and not enough cables. I really should have someone come over and hook it up professionally so that I only have one remote instead of four, but whatever...

Anyway, I'm going on 5 hours of sleep and a lot of coffee. Tonight will be more of the same sans Mark. He got a last minute invitation to go see Leslie Jordan tonight and took it. I don't blame him, I would've too. But, he's more going to hang out with his friend than to see Leslie Jordan...which is annoying because I've wanted to go to this show for a few months now...but whatever...I'm not bitter or anything.

Actually, at this point I'm more jealous of the fact that he doesn't have to move anything tonight. He gets to hang out with a friend at what will be a hilarious show. I get to pack and move more crap upstairs. As much as I love Leslie Jordan, and have always wanted to see him live, I let go of that awhile back. The move is priority right now. I have to get a ton of stuff moved tonight. My goal is to be 90% moved by tomorrow night. Lofty goal, I know...

Busy Busy Weekend

This was a crazy busy weekend. Mark and I got a lot accomplished with the move. This is all preliminary moving mind you - the official move doesn't happen until this coming weekend. Our first night will be Saturday, May 31.

Saturday morning we woke up bright and early. Chip, a fellow blogger and someone we'd never met in person, offered to loan us his truck to move Mark's bookshelves. I'm still amazed at the fact that someone we'd never met face to face loaned us his truck for the morning. I'm not that trusting by any stretch of the imagination. Anyway, we had Mark's stuff loaded and unloaded by 10:30. The humidity was so bad that we just looked at each other and decided we were done for the day.

We decided to head up to Rooms To Go - just out of curiosity. We have a big space to fill now. Much to Mark's surprise he qualified for Premier Credit...so we bought some living room and dining room furniture.

Afterward, we decided to go see Indiana Jones at Northpark. If you are a true Indiana Jones fan you will love it. It doesn't have a lot of CGI, it's shot on film - not digital, and is full of the standard Indy one-liners and cheesy jokes. It also has plenty of action and a few nods to past Indiana Jones movies. Here's the deal though - the original 3 movies were based on 40's serials, so the material was too. This one is based on 50's serials - so it's going to have more of a 50's movie plot. Just keep that in mind when watching it. Russians are the enemy and the opening sequence takes place in Area 51(don't worry - they get to South America too.) But, it's still Indiana Jones 100% and I loved it.

So, Sunday we went to Lowe's and Home Depot then went back to the new place and hung blinds, curtains, and shelves. Then we went to Brandon and Dusty's pool party for a few hours to take a break. Afterward we were spent and ended up napping until about 8:30. We got up and packed Mark's glass collection and a few other things.

Monday morning we moved more of Mark's stuff and then went to packing my place. As usual, I'm procrastinating a little which drives Mark crazy, but it's getting done. Every night this week will involve moving boxes upstairs. Thursday the new furniture is delivered to the new loft and Saturday the movers come to do the rest.

I'm tired just writing about it...

Thank you

I just want to start by saying a very big Thank You to everyone for sending your comments, emails, and prayers my way. It's nice to know that there are still people out there who care about people other than themselves. Your words were very comforting and every now and then when I burst into a fit of tears or am crying myself to sleep I think about them. It's been a week now since she's been gone. It's been a very very long and painful week that involved a lot of sleeping, but I think I'm through the initial shock. I still can't believe that she's actually gone, but at least now I can be in my home without crying constantly and dwelling on it. Anyway...thank you!

Now for something completely different...I also have to share this video...

It's a video of a flying fish taken in Japan. Normally these fish are in the air for about 2-3 seconds - more like a jump than flight. This video shows a record breaking 45 second flight. Not only did it fly for 45 seconds, it was going with out air...pretty impressive fish.

A Quiet Home

Today was the first day in 6 or 7 years that I woke up without any animals greeting me and following me around the house. I took Cobb (my cat) to her new home last night. I love her to death, but I took her in as a favor to my sister about 5 years ago, and my allergies have had enough.

I've put off finding her a home for a long time because she's just such a sweet cat, but with Mark moving in soon, I decided it was time. My allergies may be bad, but his are worse. I'm not putting this onto Mark by any means. Like I said I've thought about it for a few years now and have needed to do it, but I have a hard time letting go even if it's what's best.

I found her a great home though and I know she'll be fine and well taken care of. Now comes the task of cleaning cat hair out of everything, which sometimes seems like an impossible battle. It was just bizarre to have only myself to take care of this morning. There were no animals peeking around corners or following me around while I get dressed. No one to talk to or no one talking to me. It's just very quiet.

But it won't last...in a couple of weeks I will become a stepdad. Mark, Max, and I are moving into another loft - a bigger one. I'm crazy about Max and can't wait to have him there. He has such a great energy about him. He can be a little insane at times, but he has a great spirit and is fun to have around. And as much as I love Mark and can't wait to live together, I'm going to have to get used to living with another person again. And he has to get used to living with someone full-time again since I travel for work only 4 days out of a year.

I'm looking forward to it though...I'm just not looking forward to the move...I hate moving.

The Rainbow Bridge

Most people who have had to make the decision to put a loved member of the family to sleep are probably aware of the Rainbow Bridge. For those who are not familiar with the Rainbow Bridge, here is the poem inspired by a Norse legend.

Rainbow Bridge

By the edge of a wood, at the foot of a hill,
is a lush, green meadow where time stands still.
Where the friends of man and woman do run,
when their time on earth is over and done.

For here, between this world and the next,
is a place where each beloved creature finds rest.
On this golden land, they wait and they play,
till the Rainbow Bridge they cross over one day.

No more do they suffer, in pain or in sadness,
for here they are whole, their lives filled with gladness.
Their limbs are restored, their health renewed,
their bodies have healed, with strength imbued.

They romp through the grass, without even a care,
until one day they start, and sniff at the air.
All ears prick forward, eyes dart front and back,
then all of a sudden, one breaks from the pack.

For just at that instant, their eyes have met;
Together again, both person and pet,
So they run to each other, these friends from long past,
the time of their parting is over at last.

The sadness they felt while they were apart,
has turned into joy once more in each heart.
They embrace with a love that will last forever,
and then, side-by-side,
they cross over...together.

Overwhelmed

I'm sitting here for the first time in my place alone after Abby passed away. I am overwhelmed by her loss. I spend most of my days in a daze. (huh, that sounds funny...) I am in complete disbelief that she is gone. It doesn't seem possible.

I didn't realize how much my life revolved around her. I didn't realize how much I thought about her throughout the day and looked forward to her greeting me at the door everyday. I miss her looming over me while I lay on the couch. I miss her trying to sit in my lap, her drooling on everything, her breathing in my face, her constantly being attached to my hip. I miss watching her try to play with Cobb - sticking her butt in the air and wagging her tail. I miss everything about her. I want to touch her again, smell her again.

I've been kind of just wandering around not really sure what to do. I don't want to think about the fact that I chose to have someone come to my home and put my baby girl to sleep and take her away. I'm sitting here looking at where her bed used to be in the living area - where her huge crate was in the corner. I got so used to having such a large presence around me all the time that now everything feels empty.

Now I'm crying too hard to keep writing. Maybe I'll write more later. I can't believe what I've done. I want my baby girl back.

Abby 05/13/06-05/15/08

This is the last photo ever taken of my Abbygirl. I took it a few days ago just because she was too cute not to. I love my baby girl very, very much which is why I had to make the worst decision a pet owner ever has to make.

She had Wobblers Disease - a pretty severe case. I did everything I could short of surgery. The surgery is extremely expensive and there are no guarantees - it could even leave her unable to walk at all. I realized I was being selfish by continually pushing her and hoping she would improve. Her condition only progressed.

Last night my parents and Mark came over and we all sat around loving on her until the vet arrived. She was given an anesthetic which took about 15 minutes before she was totally relaxed. She fought it pretty hard. Once she was relaxed, I sat next to her with her head in my lap, petting and kissing her head. The vet came in and administered the final drug. After about a minute or so, her head got very heavy in my lap and I knew she was gone. I just sat there holding her and sobbing while my parents and Mark sobbed along with me.

I couldn't watch them take her away. I laid down on my bed still crying while they took her out. My parents and Mark then took everything of hers away. I can't have anything of hers around me anymore. It's much too painful. She will be cremated and I will get her ashes in a nice box. She was an amazing dog, companion, friend, daughter. She will be missed by everyone who knew her.

Very Sad

I'm not going into much detail right now, but for those of you who don't know, we will be putting Abby to sleep tomorrow evening at home. The vet is coming to the house so she will be as comfortable as possible. My parents and Mark will be there with me. That's about all I can write without bawling right now. In a few days I will go into much more detail about why and all of that.

Mixed Bag of Emotions

My emotions are kinda all over the place right now. This is going to be a pretty short post...

On the positive side I got to see one of my all-time favorites last night - Dolly Parton. She was so much fun! She talked a ton, even talking about how much she was talking. Her voice sounded great too. I had a blast!

Then there's the other stuff going on. Abby's condition is degenerating slowly. Basically the $5000 surgery she requires only stops it from continuing, it doesn't necessarily "fix" her problem. She has a lot of difficulty getting in and out of the truck - I pretty much have to lift and lower her each time...145 pounds of dog. Needless to say, she pretty much stays home. Now she's getting to where she can't go up stairs.

I've contacted both the breeder and the Great Dane Rescue of North Texas. The breeder told me that she was going to do some research. I gave her the official diagnosis from the neurologist. She sent an email I believe she meant to send to someone else for advice where she gave the impression that the best option would be to euthanize her - in her best interest. She believes that her quality of life is not reparable.

I'm still waiting on the final word from her. Meanwhile I haven't heard anything from the GDRNT.

To continue with this theme, I need to find a home for Cobb (my cat), as well. I just can't handle the allergies anymore. I've kept her for so much longer (years) than I planned. It's only because she is the sweetest cat I know that she got to stick around as long as she did. But, I'm moving soon and I need to move into a place cat-hair and dander free. Anyone need a sweet, loving, 8 year old cat?

...ok, so the post wasn't that short...

Disneyland Again!!!

Well, it's only been a few months since we went to Disneyland, but it's time to go back. We've decided that this time we should go for the Fourth of July. Since the fourth is on a Friday this year we get a long weekend. I decided I needed a slightly longer one. We plan on leaving Thursday and returning on Monday. That's a lot of Disney!!!

Last time we only got one day at the park. This time we've decided to spend about a day and a half at Disneyland, a day at California Adventure, and one day at Universal Studios. I might be a drooling mess by Sunday evening, but it'll be a great weekend! I'm sooo excited...

Liza Liza Liza

Saturday evening I dragged Stacie to Bass Hall in Ft Worth to see the amazing Liza Minnelli. I have always loved her - train wreck drama and all. We were in the fifth row - close enough to see her spit and sweat fly. The woman is 62, has had hip and knee replacements, and just keeps going.

Her energy was great as well as her voice. She was funny and self-deprecating. Stacie kept laughing at me because I sat there with perma-grin the whole time (unless I was singing along.) I must have looked like a little kid who sees Elmo for the first time. I couldn't stop telling myself, "I can't believe I'm sitting this close to Liza."

Coverings 2008

This past week has been crazy. I'm so glad it's Saturday! I attended Coverings - a national tile show - for work. I know it doesn't sound like it would be fun, but it really was! Keep in mind I work with very high-end artisan tile, not the 50 cents a square foot crap at Home Depot. (No offense to anyone that has that, believe me, it's all I can afford).

We went to Orlando and walked miles and miles looking at what's new and upcoming in the tile industry. It was also great to meet some of the people I talk to on the phone every day face to face. There are some amazing things coming out that I'm really excited about. The things that the Italians and Spanish are coming up with are very impressive, but the Japanese are the ones that really surprised me. There were some things we'd never seen before.

It's funny to me how excited I get over tile. I never would've thought, but I love tile! I get to work with extremely beautiful products and extremely cool suppliers on a daily basis. I absolutely love my job and completely geek out on tile and stone now! Not only was the show itself fun, but there was also dinner and drinking involved! How can you go wrong with that?