Rainbow Dragon's Lair

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Welcome to my colourful corner of the Hive!

I have in the past used this first post in my check-in thread to keep a dated list of all the DAREBEE programs, challenges, and special events I have completed, along with some personal challenges. But the new Hive software won't allow me to import it on account of its length. So I'll keep this intro post short and sweet, and make a separate "Rainbow's History at DAREBEE" post below in an abbreviated form. (I don't think the list will be too long if I strip out the links, and by abbreviating the date info I should be able to continue to update it for a while yet.)

So... what have I been up to? The last month of my summer was not as productive as I would have liked, and I fell way off the wagon in terms of my GBOT and GOBOT goals. But I have kept up with my daily workouts, daily French, and abstinence from solo video games (although not from solo boardgaming, which has been a bit of an issue in recent weeks). I have also been away from the Hive for far too long. I'm hoping to use these shiny, brand-spanking-new forums to kick-start my return and give me a chance to stay on top of keeping up with you all.

For those of you who were following my old thread:

1. I signed off with the periodontist on August 4. She declared the gum graft procedure a success at that time and cleared me to return to cleaning my teeth and mouth without restrictions. Professional cleaning (scaling) was still forbidden until September, but I had that done on September 6th. Never before was I so excited to visit my dental hygienist! It is so nice to be back to eating, brushing, and flossing normally. I'm even a little bit starting to get used to the feel of my altered gum landscape.

2. My super strong and brave Terrific Trudy is still with me. The bump on her head is huge now, and her nose drips blood pretty much constantly. But she still has a great appetite, still loves to go for walks to visit her friends, and still appears to be comfortable most of the time. So we persist, taking life one day at a time.







3. Super Shelby is jealous of the extra attention Sick Dog is getting. But she is still a happy girl who is trying very hard to be considerate of Other Dog's needs. My father has a new attendant who dotes on Shelby and always gives her lots of attention when she visits, which is nice for Shelby. (With Trudy being the over-affectionate Golden, and Shelby being more reserved at home and more anxious on our walks, many people have favoured Trudy with their affection in the past.) And Shelby gets her own walks with me (at a much faster pace than Trudy can manage these days) and has a couple of friends of her own who we stop in to visit.







4. The obligatory bird photo:



Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus)

A great photo for a sad reason: this bird flew into our window and was badly concussed. I picked it up and placed it on a branch that was at my eye-level, so not a usual photo op, but hopefully a little safer from predators than stumbling around on the ground. Within about half an hour the bird did recover enough to fly off, so I have some hope it may be okay. (But concussions are usually bad news for birds.)

So... not such a short post after all. But hopefully short enough to be accepted. More to come...

​

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Completed DAREBEE Programs & Challenges:

15 Days of Fitness: JUN '17
Yoga Week: JUN '17
30 Days of Fitness: JUN '17
30 Day Walkabout: JUN '17
Abs & Core 30 Day Challenge: JUN '17
Posture 30-Day Challenge: JUN '17
100 30-Day Challenge: JUN '17
Balance 30-Day Challenge: JUL '17
Katana Week: JUL '17
2-Minute Multiplank 30-Day Challenge: OCT '17
1-Minute Yoga Challenge: DEC '17
2017 DARE Tree - Strawberry Cupcake: DEC '17
2017 Snow Fight - 1038 burpees!: DEC '17
2017 Fitness Advent Calendar: DEC '17
2017 Fit Christmas: JAN '18
<Totals>: JAN '18
Athena's Playbook: FEB '18
Random Workout Challenge 10.0: failed Round 3 FEB '18
Plankathlone 2.0: FEB '18
Meditation 30-Day Challenge: MAR '18
Flexibility 30-Day Challenge: APR '18
Iron Glutes 30-Day Challenge: APR '18
Squats & Punches 30-Day Challenge: APR '18
2018 DARE Tree - all the things!: DEC '18
2018 Snowfight - 388 burpees: DEC '18
2018 Advent Calendar: DEC '18
Calves of Steel Challenge: DEC '18
Wall-Sit Challenge: DEC '18
Hell Week: DEC '18
Dragon Week: JAN '19
Girl Power Week: JAN '19
Battleground 2019 - 14,486 points for the Light: JAN '19
Get to Bed On Time: FEB '19
Only Homemade: FEB '19
Age of Pandora - Part 1: FEB '19
Random Workout Challenge #11: failed Round 5 MAY '19
2019 DARETREE - Honeycomb (1000 sidekicks): DEC '19
2019 Snowfight - 1251 shrimp squats: DEC '19
30 Days of Running: DEC '19
Power Up: DEC '19
Yoga Abs Challenge: DEC '19
2019 Advent Calendar: DEC '19
30 Days of Yoga: JAN '20
Back & Core: JAN '20
COOK90 / Only Homemade 30: JAN '20
No Junk Food: JAN '20
A Salad a Day: FEB '20
Vitality: APR '20 - w. N
Baseline (version 1.0): MAY '20 - w. N
Total Abs: MAY '20
Express Tone: MAY '20
Knee Push-ups 30-Day Challenge: JUN '20 - all reps and holds done on my toes
Foundation Light: JUN '20 - w. N
Wall Push-ups Challenge: JUN '20 - w. N - push-ups completed as a mix of full classic and kneeling, holds completed as full chaturangas
50 Squats a Day Challenge: JUN '20 - w. N
Posture Challenge: JUN '20 - w. N
Cardio Go!: JUL '20 - w. N
Upper Body Light Challenge: JUL '20 - w. N
Core Control Challenge: JUL '20 - w. N
Touch Your Toes Challenge: JUL '20 - w. N
Power Grip Challenge: AUG '20 - w. N
Punches & Squats Challenge: AUG '20 - w. N
IronBorn: SEP '20 - w. N
TEN: OCT '20 - w. N
Foundation: NOV '20 - w. N
Square One: DEC '20 - w. N
De-Stress Challenge: DEC '20 - w. N
30 Daily Dares Challenge: DEC '20 - w. N
2020 Advent Calendar: DEC '20 - w. N
2020 DARETREE: Sapphire (400 squats) - w. N & Topaz (200 burpees): DEC '20
2020 Fit Christmas: DEC '20 - w. N
Fireheart: JAN '21 - w. N
Full Circuit: FEB '21 - w. N
Hero's Journey: APR '21 - w. N
30 Days of Gravity: NOV '21 - w. N
Combat HIIT: NOV '21 - w. N
60 Days of Cardio: NOV '21 - w. N
Arms of Steel: NOV '21 - w. N
1-Minute HIIT: NOV '21 - w. N
2021 DARETREE: all the things!: DEC '21
Ironheart: JAN '22 - w. N
Pathfinder: JAN '22 - w. N
30 Days of Cardio Blast: JUL '22 - w. N.
Spartan Trials: AUG '22 - w. N.

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Current Goals - Fitness:

• minimum 5 hours / week moderate to intense physical activity
• minimum 3 hours / week yoga asana practice or dance
• minimum 20 km / week running
• minimum 1 hour / week meditation

Note: Yoga asana practice includes all styles of yoga, both vigorous and restorative. Active yoga asana (vinyasa, power, etc.) hours also count towards my 5 hours of physical activity per week. Restorative yoga does not.


Current Goals - Work / Study:

• minimum 10 hours / week writing
• minimum 3 hours / week French language study
• minimum 5 hours / week artwork
• minimum 1 hour / week health & fitness

GOBOT:

• 6AM = 3 stars
• 6:30 = 2 stars
• 7AM = 1 star

GBOT:

• 10PM = 3 stars
• 10:30 = 2 stars
• 11PM = 1 star

Current Streaks:

• daily exercise since April 23, 2020
• daily French since November 11, 2020
• no solo video games since July 9, 2022
• daily writing since September 15, 2022

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Current Workout Schedule with Norma

My mother's belly dancing class is finally back on at our local seniors' centre. And she has decided to start doing the Thursday VON class (in addition to the Tuesday class she was already doing). Tai Chi is back on now too, also on Tuesdays. So in theory I only need to workout with my mother 4 days per week now. In practice, she often ends up missing a public class for one reason or another and then expects me to come up with something to do with her that day. So I currently have a 6 day per week schedule to do with her--although I hopefully won't have to do the Monday or Thursday workouts with her too often. (There is nothing scheduled for Tuesdays at the moment. My mother currently has two classes at the seniors' centre on Tuesdays. She usually makes it to at least one of them. If she doesn't, it would likely be because she wasn't feeling well, in which case we would just do something easy: maybe hands & feet and some chair yoga.)

Sundays:

• Journey Before Destination (3x DP)
• Back Pain Relief (2x DP)
• Ankle Recovery (2x DP)
• Wrist Pain (DP, per side for one-handed exercises)
• Hand Tendons (2x DP)

Mondays (if necessary):

• Upperbody Mobility (one set)
• Easy Legs (3 sets per leg for asymmetrical exercises)
• Sore Feet (2x DP)
• Talk to the Hand (DP, per side for one-handed exercises)
• Hand Tendons (2x DP)

Tuesdays: nothing scheduled

Wednesdays:

• Rotator Cuff (2x DP, per side for the asymmetrical exercise)
• Total Burn (usually on Level II)
• Sore Feet (2x DP)
• Talk to the Hand (DP, per side for one-handed exercises)
• Hand Tendons (2x DP)

Thursdays (if necessary):

• Energizer (2x DP)
• Upper Body Tendon Strength+ (DP)
• Brute: Leg Day
• Ankle Recovery (2x DP)
• Wrist Pain (DP, per side for one-handed exercises)
• Hand Tendons(2x DP)

Fridays:

• Universal Warmup (DP - per direction/leg last 3 exercises)
• Total Burn (usually on Level II)
• Ankle Recovery (2x DP)
• Wrist Pain (DP, per side for one-handed exercises)
• Hand Tendons(2x DP)

Saturdays:

• Posture (3x DP, sub hip circles for final exercise)
• Knee Saver (3x DP, modified to all standing exercises, with some additions)
• Sore Feet (2x DP)
• Talk to the Hand (DP, per side for one-handed exercises)
• Hand Tendons (2x DP)

Note: DP = Dragon Protocol = 30 seconds per exercise.
Doing any exercise with my mother for less than 30 seconds is pointless as transitioning that quickly just confuses her.
My mother is a talker. She talks at me pretty much non-stop during our workouts. This makes counting reps very difficult.
Also: if I specify that an exercise is to be done for X # of reps, my mother has a tendency to half-arse her reps on exercises she doesn't like to try to get them over with quickly.
Consequently, for most workouts, I ignore the official protocol and just do 30 seconds per exercise (or per side) per set: Dragon Protocol.

 

[DorothyMH]

I love your DP

 

[val.lavigne86]

I love your DP

Second this

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

September 18-24, 2022 Goals Check-In:




GOBOT:

6 days @
1 day @

GBOT:

3 days @
3 days @
1 day @

I'm not sure what to do about this. I don't want to be not running or not working on my art. But I don't want to cut back on any of my other areas either.
GOBOT and GBOT look bad for the week. But considering where I was at the start of the week, this is actually significant improvement. I'm happy about my stats there.
The rest of it though... I think I managed my time pretty well this week. And this was the best I was able to pull off.

Earlier on, when I was aiming for 16 total study/work hours per week, some of what I was doing was watching instructional videos--something I can do while I'm eating, for the most part. Now I'm aiming for 19 total study/work hours per week, and it's pretty much all hands-on work. So I am asking more of myself. But there was a time when I was writing four hours a day--butt in chair, hands on keyboard--every day. There was a time when I was playing roller derby, attending 10 hours of practice every week--which I had to commute to--and helping to run the league and still writing. Of course, my parents were a lot less needy during those times. And I only had one dog back then, who was until very close to the end less needy than Trudy is now.

I'm not going to change my targets for now. I cannot say for certain what I will or will not be able to accomplish in a given week because the external demands on my time are not consistent. I still think my current targets should be attainable most of the time. So I'm going to keep striving for them and learn to be okay with sometimes missing the mark. I need to keep prioritizing my writing and my total workout hours as the two areas in which I cannot miss. I need to start making some money, and selling my writing is still my best shot at doing that. And if I don't have my health, I don't have anything. So I need to stay on top of that. Also: I want to work harder to ensure that I get out for a run at least one day a week. Other than these things, I'll flex where I need to, but keep shooting for full marks when I can manage it. Give my current plan a shot for 4 more weeks (until October 22) and reassess then if necessary.



Streaks:

Daily Exercise: 885 days
Daily French: 683 days
No Solo Video Games: 78 days
Daily Writing: 10 days

Daily Workout for Norma : 22 days
(My mother lost her streak on September 2 but jumped right back in the game again the next day.)

 

[NancyTree]

You have so much on your list, getting 6/8 done is pretty good Good luck with next week

Yay for Norma getting back in the saddle!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Thank you @NancyTree

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

I made it out for a run today!



It was cold* and windy and raining. But I got it done!

*Not cold cold. Our precipitation today is only rain. But it was cold enough I wore a toque and a jacket. Our weather flipped here overnight on the equinox, from too-hot summer weather the day before to this on the equinox and most days since. It's a bit of a shock to the system. (I prefer the cooler weather, but not so much the wind and rain.)

 

[TakingBabyStepsBack]

Good for you!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Thank you @TakingBabyStepsBack

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

@Sif_Shepard here is the outfit I wore to entertain the ladies who liked to watch me skate from behind their lace curtains:



Everyone who's ever strapped on a pair of skates was a new skater at some point. There is no shame in being Bambi!

 

[BetaCorvi]

That is an absolutely fabulous roller skatting outfit!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Why thank you @BetaCorvi

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

September 25 - October 1, 2022 Goals Check-In:

GOBOT:

5 days @
1 day @
1 day @

GBOT:

3 days @
3 days @
1 day @

Full colours for fitness, but still no artwork.
Messed up GOBOT and GBOT again being a putz to myself. Must do better here.

Streaks:

Daily Exercise: 892 days
Daily French: 690 days
No Solo Video Games: 85 days
Daily Writing: 17 days

Daily Workout for Norma : 29 days

 

[NancyTree]

You may be kind to yourself, there's progress in comparison to last week! You're already doing better

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Thank you @NancyTree .

I am happy that I got my running mileage done. But this was unfortunately due at least in part to shorting the dogs on their walks. This is a difficult area for me to navigate these days. Trudy is nearing the end of her life. What she most wants to do these days is go for walks so she can visit all of her friends. Last weekend she made me take her to our veterinary clinic. It was late afternoon when we got out for our walk. I didn't want to call on the friends we usually visit because I knew they would be prepping/eating dinner at the time we were passing by their homes. Trudy had a few times recently tried to walk in a different direction from where we normally go, so I decided on this day to let her lead and see where it was she wanted to go. She took me straight to the vets'. She does not know they are medical professionals to whom I pay a lot of money to check her out. She thinks they are a whole bunch of friends of hers who all live together in a big ol' house and who pet her and give her yummy treats and tell her she is awesome when she goes to visit them. She was very disappointed when we got there and she was not invited to go inside! (The clinic is closed on weekends. Because the building is glass-fronted and was dark inside, she could see my reflection in the glass and was convinced I was someone inside the building, coming to the door to let her in. She wagged her tail so hard! She did not believe me that no one was there, and she did not want to leave without seeing her friends.) The trouble is that our full route that takes us past all of her friends' homes is a 3K trip. (A round trip to the vets' is also 3K, just in a different direction.) Trudy is so slow at walking these days, it takes us 2 hours to make the trip. And I have to walk Shelby as well. (I cannot walk them together because Shelby does not want to walk that slowly.) So everyday I am faced with the dilemma: do I sacrifice 2.5 hours to walking my dogs, thereby giving my dying dog what she wants, or do I give them short walks so I can get more of my own stuff done? This week there were several days of cold/windy/rainy weather, which helped to inform my decision.

The messed up GOBOT/GBOT however was entirely caused by me being a putz. I was doing well at the beginning of the week and getting a lot done. So I decided to reward myself on Tuesday night with a game of Wingspan. This somehow turned into multiple games of Wingspan which lasted until 4AM. Then on Thursday night, when I still had a sleep deficit from Tuesday night's nonsense, I stayed up all night playing Viticulture. (The one day last week when I logged 3 stars for GOBOT was because of this. I was up at 6AM because I had not gone to sleep!) If I had not messed up on those two nights, my GOBOT/GBOT for the week would look a lot better, and I probably would have had time to get some artwork done too. So I really do need to do better on this front.

 

[NancyTree]

You probably have thought about it, but is it possible to take Shelby on your run?
I can imagine you want to give Trudy her happiness with those walks, but 2 hours is a lot of time when you have a long list of daily 'tasks'.

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

You probably have thought about it, but is it possible to take Shelby on your run?

No. Shelby is a sprinter but lacks my endurance. She would be dragging me until she wore herself out. Then I would be dragging her (at slower than my usual pace).

I can imagine you want to give Trudy her happiness with those walks, but 2 hours is a lot of time when you have a long list of daily 'tasks'.

It is. I'm trying to find a happy medium: taking her for the full walk when I know her friends are likely to be home and the weather is nice enough they'll want to come outside and visit with Trudy for a bit, but sticking to shorter walks if the weather is miserable or I know her friends are not home. [There are a couple of friends whose homes Trudy will not walk past. She is 14.5 years old, has arthritis in her legs (and possibly in her spine), a huge tumour on her forehead, her nose drips blood constantly, she is mostly deaf now, and the pressure of the tumour is now making it difficult for her to keep her right eye open. When we are at home, she sleeps. But when we are out for a walk, she will drag me up her friends' driveways! I am no weakling. But Trudy is a 75 lb. golden retriever who still has a lot of strength left in her when she needs it to get something she wants.]

 

[NancyTree]

No. Shelby is a sprinter but lacks my endurance. She would be dragging me until she wore herself out. Then I would be dragging her (at slower than my usual pace).

That doesn't sound like fun

It is. I'm trying to find a happy medium: taking her for the full walk when I know her friends are likely to be home and the weather is nice enough they'll want to come outside and visit with Trudy for a bit, but sticking to shorter walks if the weather is miserable or I know her friends are not home. [There are a couple of friends whose homes Trudy will not walk past. She is 14.5 years old, has arthritis in her legs (and possibly in her spine), a huge tumour on her forehead, her nose drips blood constantly, she is mostly deaf now, and the pressure of the tumour is now making it difficult for her to keep her right eye open. When we are at home, she sleeps. But when we are out for a walk, she will drag me up her friends' driveways! I am no weakling. But Trudy is a 75 lb. golden retriever who still has a lot of strength left in her when she needs it to get something she wants.]

Good to hear she is still happy despite her problems

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

October 2-8, 2022 Goals Check-In:

GOBOT:

1 day @
3 days @
3 days @

GBOT:

4 days @
2 days @
1 day @

Improvement this week! Still no artwork but full colours on fitness again, and I made GBOT and GOBOT every day!

I actually was over my target hours on writing work this week, clocking in at twelve and a quarter. This may persist for the remainder of the month and will almost certainly need to be the case throughout November as I have committed to doing NaNoWriMo this year.

I still want to get back to my artwork. And there were places with my schedule this past week where I could have done better. My schedule is generally in flux at the moment, with some things still to work out, and the need to remain flexible overall. It's time to workout with my mother now, however, so more notes in a subsequent post.

Streaks:

Daily Exercise: 899 days
Daily French: 697 days
No Solo Video Games: 92 days
Daily Writing: 24 days

Daily Workout for Norma : 1 day
(Not sure if she's still interested in tracking this since she lost her big streak, but I'll keep the record for now.)

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Right. Where was I?

Scheduling.

I got into a good habit with running over the summer by getting out first thing in the morning before things got too hot. Now it is cold first thing in the morning. We've had frost a couple of mornings already. But by afternoon it's often still double digits, or at least close to it. Of course I need to acclimatize myself to running in sub-zero temps to be able to keep it up throughout the winter. But six a.m. is going to be bitterly cold then, not to mention still dark (it's dark now at that hour) and with roads potentially still unploughed. Plus Trudy is so tired in the evenings these days, she often does not want to get up to go outside before bed. Which means she is getting up earlier in the mornings. If I leave to go for a run, and then she starts barking to go out and wakes my mother, I'll get an earful when I return. If I let the dogs out first, Trudy often wants to stay out these days. (She loves the colder mornings.) But I won't leave the property if either of the dogs is outside and my mother is still sleeping. So switching to running later in the day is better this time of year, but harder to schedule around eating and other human members of my household wanting a piece of me.

Last week I did not make it out for a run on Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday. Wednesday we had warmer weather, so I decided to do a longer run to make up my mileage deficit. Trouble was I waited too long to get out, and it was actually too hot out. (In this case "too hot" = 22C. It's pathetic that I think this is too hot now, but being outside in full sun in that temp for as long as I was without hydration did take a lot out of me.) Also: when I got to the running trail, a class of high school students was there running laps. So I ran rather faster than I had intended to because I am competitive and could not allow any of those lazy high school kids to pass me. Anyhow... I managed 9K on Wednesday, then 5 the next day and 3 on each of Friday and Saturday to complete my 20K for the week.

Cooler mornings means I can walk the dogs a bit later too, which is nice because Trudy cannot call on her friends if we're out too early. My mother is doing classes at the fitness centre four days a week now. This is good for my yoga practice as the only times I have space for yoga are when my mother is out of the house. But it also means that my home is not a good place to be on those days for the two hours between when my mother gets up and when she leaves for her class. (Having to get herself out the door in the morning before 10 or 10:30 AM is stressful for my mother, and she habitually projectile-vomits her stress all over whoever happens to be around. Which is me if I'm home since my father is still with his morning attendant for most of that time, and my mother tries to be nicer to outsiders and save her nasty for the people she lives with.) So I'm trying to rearrange my schedule to get desk work done first thing, then walk my dogs during that two hour window when I do not want to be home, but still get back home in time to fit in a yoga practice while my mother is out. This new schedule is still a work in progress, and sometimes it gets thwarted by my mother deciding not to go to her class (one of the reasons why I need to remain flexible), but I think it will more or less work, at least for a bit.

Last week I got in all of my running mileage, as noted above, and actually squeezed in an extra half hour of yoga above my goal. The dogs got shorted on their mileage again, however. I need to try to do better for Shelby here. For Trudy, I think she got about as much mileage as she can handle these days. She insisted on doing her full 3K only once this week. Then she was so wiped afterward she did not make it off our street for the next two days. Friday I took her for a 2K walk. (This enables us to visit her 2 favourite people.) The next day she was fine, but did not fight me when I said we were only doing 1K. Trudy is a real trooper, but definitely slowing down.

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

October 9-15, 2022 Goals Check-In:

GOBOT:

4 days @
1 day @
1 day @
1 day @

GBOT:

2 days @
3 days @
2 days @

Bah! Messed up GBOT for no good reason again. (Stop being a putz, Laura!) And still no artwork. However, a friend came to visit me from out-of-town on Thursday. We went to Rondeau and had a long hike through the woods and a bit along the beach. It was wonderful! And I did well to still get everything else done in spite of taking the day to spend with my friend.

Streaks:

Daily Exercise: 906 days
Daily French: 704 days
No Solo Video Games: 99 days
Daily Writing: 31 days

Daily Workout for Norma : 8 days

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

I found a lump on Trudy's spine this morning.




I love this girl so much! I know I will need to say goodbye to her soon. And I'm so not ready.
(That word doesn't even work for me, because I am an atheist. So many words in the English language, but we haven't got a proper one for a final parting.)

 

[CODawn]

I'm so sorry.

 

[Sif_Shepard]

 

[Froud]

We are never ready and it is always too soon and unfair. It is always awful.
I suspect she had a great time with you and you gave each other much much love.

Here is a hug for you both!

 

[Fremen]

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Thank you @CODawn @Sif_Shepard @Froud @Fremen

@Froud your words are very true. I don't have any words for parting. But I do tell Trudy every day that I love her. I thank her for choosing me to be her person and tell her I am grateful for every day we have had together and for all the days we will still have together, no matter how many or how few. And I tell her that when she is not able to remain with me any longer I will miss her, but I will not be angry at her for leaving.

Trudy and I have only been together for seven and a half years. She is my second "foster failure" who was initially meant to be only a short-term foster I was promised would be for one month only. She was initially a Purple Leash foster, which meant she was to go back to her original human once said human got herself into a more stable living situation. But that person ended up surrendering Trudy to the rescue. Which meant she then had to be spayed (at seven years old) before she could be adopted out permanently. Due to the vets the rescue used cutting corners, Trudy almost died from the spay surgery. She fought to survive, however. Then she suffered complications (again due to incompetence on the part of those vets and their staff). She recovered from them too and was finally put up for adoption after she had been with me for five months. Being a golden, the rescue immediately received a slew of applications to adopt her. (Everyone wants the pretty dogs.) The lady who got her application in first did adopt Trudy, signing the paperwork and paying the adoption fee--the whole nine yards--and Trudy went to live with her. But she spent her entire time in that lady's house watching the front door, waiting for me to return for her. After six days of this the lady wrote to me saying, "I love this dog. But she is breaking my heart, because she obviously wants to be with you." And she gave Trudy back to me. (And paid the adoption fee for me to officially adopt her!)



The girl who everyone wanted ^^ Trudy in 2015, after her spay surgery.

 

[TakingBabyStepsBack]

 

[Anek]

 

[NancyTree]

It truly is a love story

 

[Sif_Shepard]

Aww that is the sweetest story, and that was so nice and wonderful of that lady to give Trudy back to you after all that.

 

[WSMC1]

 

[Froud]

oh my, what a journey. I am shedding a tear!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Trudy took a turn for the worse on Wednesday night. Now I am having to deal with that while also dealing with multiple people around me who for some reason seem to believe that they know better than I do what is best for my dog and who also suffer from the delusion that it is somehow their place to judge me for choices I have made and am making in providing care to her. I have neither the time nor the mental or emotional energy to deal with that BS right now. So I ranted about it on facebook and am now trying to avoid those people so I can preserve all my time and energy for providing care to Trudy (and also to Shelby who is being ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL in helping me to care for Trudy but who also needs not to be forgotten amidst all the efforts to care for her sick sister).

I managed to maintain all of my streaks last week, but fell short of most of my weekly volume targets. I'll post a proper update at some point, but that may be a few days away.

 

[NancyTree]

I'm sorry Trudy got worse and you have to deal with crappy judgements... it's hard enough already without it.
Take care!

 

[Matan]

 

[Anek]

 

[Fremen]

 

[Sif_Shepard]

 

[WSMC1]

 

[Haleth]

 

[CODawn]

 

[Froud]

Lots of love from Brussels!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Thank you @NancyTree @Matan @Anek @Fremen @Sif_Shepard @WSMC1 @Haleth @CODawn @Froud




Terrific Trudilicious Golden Girl passed away on Thursday, October 27, 2022 after gracing the world with her presence and love for 14.5 years. She died peacefully at home, holding hands with her best friend Laura, while her amazing sister Super Shelby watched over her.

Trudy first came to me in April 2015, an emergency "short-term" foster situation that I was promised would be for only one month.
Trudy had other ideas! She fought to survive a botched spay surgery and to claim me as her #1 human.





Trudy blessed me with her love for seven and a half years, during which time we enjoyed many wonderful adventures together.







Best back roll ever: on top of a dead fish we found on the beach!:





Alas, in December 2021 Trudy was diagnosed with a malignant tumour on her forehead and given only a few months to live.
Trudy once again had other plans.

Tell it to the hand:


Trudy still had places to go and people to see! She remained strong for ten months after her cancer diagnosis and continued to go for long walks almost daily until 8 days before she passed. On her final walk Trudy went to visit her boyfriend Chris (Trudy had many boyfriends, but Chris was her favourite) and her kitty friend Buddy.



She wanted to go further on that day, but I could see she was tiring and decided to cut our walk short at 1.5 km. I thought that if we kept our walk a bit shorter that day, Trudy would be better recovered to walk again the next day. Alas, this was not to be so. On Thursday Trudy was too tired to go out for another walk, and on Friday she was weaker still. By the weekend it was clear Trudy would not be going for any more walks.

We spent the next four days outside, resting peacefully in our backyard. (We have the heat on in the house now, and my 81-year-old parents like things rather hotter than my thick-coated golden retriever did.) The weather was perfect: cool enough to keep Trudy happy, while not being too frigid for me or short-haired Shelby. On Sunday and Monday nights we camped outside at night too. Trudy always loved camping!



On Monday, Shelby and I called on Trudy's friend Margaret while we were out for our walk. Margaret is a senior lady who Trudy had been visiting almost daily for a few years. Trudy loved everybody and had a great many friends, but I knew Margaret was the person Trudy was the most sad about not getting to see on her final walk. So Shelby and I went to fetch her on Monday and escort her back to our home to visit with Trudy one last time. Trudy was growing quite tired by Monday evening, but she was happy to see and spend some time with her friend.

Trudy spent her final two days mostly sleeping, with Shelby and me by her side, until she passed on Thursday morning.

Trudy's was a life well-lived. She left a huge legacy of love for me and others whose lives she touched to carry forward in her memory.



Rest in peace, my sweet Trudy. You did good!
Though you are physically gone from my life now, your love will live on in my heart forever.

 

[Fremen]

Rest in peace Trudy

 

[Sif_Shepard]

So sorry for your loss

 

[NancyTree]

I'm sorry for your loss what beautiful pictures of her
Wish you lots of strength!