Mar 11 - a day of rest

As of this a.m., I think that I've got this beat.  I've only blown my nose a couple of times in the last three hours and coughed a couple of times.  My throat doesn't hurt anymore, but as usual, there's some residual graveliness (if that's a word) and congestion.  I should probably take an antihistamine, as that's likely the carry-on issue with congestion.  That always happens.

So that's good news. Whether riding a couple of days in the midst of this helped or hindered recuperation, I'll never know. 

I did get out briefly with Cassie yesterday, both walking and boating.  We only went as far as the South Causeway in the boat but she had a good time chasing the ball, swimming and running.  She's funny -- after a while chasing the ball she'll then run over to the boat and jump in, as if to say "enough".  I coaxed her back out and she ran just the same but it's really a funny move on her part.

She's well prepped at this point for chasing and swimming for the ball at the cottage.  Now I have to convince her to jump off the dock; that's was Vickie's specialty.  Abby neither jumped nor fetched :).

Yes, it still gives me a "pang" to think of her.  I don't care if she'd lived a "standard" golden retriever lifetime; she went too soon.

Vickie was a beautiful example of a golden retriever.  Abby was a bush dog, well proportioned but not well groomed, per se.  Cassie -- probably too young to tell for sure -- is oddly proportioned -- but that might just be a matter of timing.  A while ago she was "leggy".  Now she's long in the body and short in the legs.  Actually she's only about 1" off standard height, so perhaps she's the right height for her age but long in the body -- that might all catch up.  One thing that's different about her "look", however, is her ears.  They're a little short and perky.  One wants to flip over all the time.

Interesting, you'd think that if you had a picture of all three faces side-by-side it would be hard to tell them apart, but no.  They are distinctly different.  Abby's features could have been bred forward; Abby not so much; Cassie no; she's not going to match the AKC standard :).  Don't tell her though; she's perfectly happy the way that she is.

Sandy did some shopping late afternoon; the big box stores on ISB (International Speedway Blvd) in Daytona.  I dropped over to Jim & Joanne's briefly to see their new outdoor kitchen installation.  They got a complete unit, grill, mini-fridge, bar-counter, stools and thatched roof.   It's a nice setup.

Oh ... I've been typing too long.  Cassie just came over, ball-in-mouth, pushing at me to play.

Onward !