Husky

My girl is officially obese. My suspicion was confirmed today at the Falls Animal Hospital -- she has gone from 47lbs (more or less) in December to a whopping 62lbs now!

She could stand to lose approximately 10lbs, I was told.

I have already halved her daily dose of food and scaled snacks and treats back to the very bare minimum. Next step: put her on a Science Diet (or something like it), and increase her daily exercise.

Oy.

My goal is to get her back down to 50-55lbs by Christmas. I think I can do it. You can help.

Meanwhile, I nearly had to pay an exorbitant emergency fee at the veterinary clinic today, because the cab I called at 9.30am only showed up at my house (8 phone calls and three VERY angry conversations with three separate "managers" later) at 10.15 - 15 minutes PAST my appointment time (which, if you arrive at late by 30 minutes or more, you lose or have to pay extra to be seen immediately).

I got there at 10.34, but I think the (probably lesbian)vet had a crush on me and didn't charge me the surplus. Sweet.

Digression:

My Indian cab driver could barely speak a word of English. Originally, he went to pick me up at 603 Club Road (the last location from which I'd called a cab, though NOT the address I gave them over the phone this morning). When I asked the taxi service to check the whereabouts of my cab, they discovered him there and rerouted him to my address. Only, by the time he got there, I had already moved on and was trying to hail a cab several blocks away. A call from the manager told me to loop back - my cab would be waiting for me at my doorstep. Except, SURPRISE! When I got there, it was already gone. Livid, I eventually tracked him down on the corner of 29th and Howard, a block or so from where he was SUPPOSED to be and was prepared to deal with him calmly, until he had the nerve to tell me to put my dog ON THE FLOOR OF THE TAXI.

THAT'S when I lost my shit and told him he really wasn't in any position to be making any kind of demands right now, and that if he didn't start moving to get me to my final destination immediately, I'd happily talk to his manager - on the line - FOR him, though I probably wouldn't deal with the situation in a way he'd appreciate. He asked me where I wanted to go, and though I repeated the address AND the location AND the easiest way to get there 3 TIMES, he still stopped A HIGHWAY SHORT and asked me if I wanted to get out at a doggie spa and boutique.

Why would I have asked for 6314 Falls Road, Animal Hospital, all the way over the overpass, if I wanted this CLOSED doggie spa and boutique?

Tu me niaises-tu?

"No, sir. Does this look like the Animal Hospital to you? This is 5912 Falls Road. You have a while to go before 6314, unless I am counting wrong."

The total of the cab ride was $15.60. I gave him a $20 bill. When he handed me $3.00 and started fishing in his pockets for change, I nearly lost my shit again.

me: $4.40 is what you owe me, sir.

cabbie: No. $1 charge for call.

me: No, sir. You will give me that $1.

cabbie: No. Is rule. Call charge $1.

me: Sir, I can sit here all day if you'd like. I'm not leaving without my full change.

He handed over the extra dollar, and Eska and I hopped out.

I walked the 1.5 hours home (sometimes along the highway) in the rain. Fuck Checker Cab, man. They have lost my patronage forever.

The good news is, Eska kept up on the walk home and didn't even stop once to rest. Maybe she's not as out of shape as I have made her out to be.