The husband is working in Las Vegas at medical a conference, and I joined him for the weekend.

I generally don’t gamble, so I spent Saturday wandering around, seeing the sights. I also caught a couple of shows. As always, Vegas is commerce unbridled and a feast for the eyes. 

It’s been a pleasant weekend.

Saturday we held a baby shower for our friend Huff. Huff is about two months away from giving birth.

We had about 50 guests. It was an interesting mix of characters, Huff is a real estate agent and in the program. The guests were largely either real estate agents, or in the program, or both. 

Real estate agents are great guests at parties. Sure they want to network, but when they leave they are fastidious about cleaning up. More of us could live by that mantra… “leave it better than you found it.”

My mother-in-law has Covid. It’s dragging on and she is bored. Fortunately, it’s not severe. She is resting up and frequently calling her friends and family . Later today, my husband will double mask and head over to leave a care package.

My husband has heard back from his pulmonologist. His lungs look good. He is fine. 

My mother-in-law has Covid. It's a mild case. She has a fever, a sore throat and has quarantined in her apartment. Apparently, there is a small outbreak of Covid at her retirement home. 

We have had a wonderful weekend in Seaside. I have been here many years in April where we’ve had nothing but rain and cloud.  This year there was much sunshine

At the convention, I attended Al-Anon talks. In previous years, I had only attended AA talks because my friends are members.

I found the Al-Anon talks more insightful and, as a result, enjoyed the convention more. While I have many friends in AA, I don’t share their struggle with alcohol. I can easily choose not to drink or limit myself to one, making it difficult for me to fully understand the challenges faced by those who can't stop. To me, it seems simple: just don't.

The "A-List bear." They are popular. QJ has thousands of Instagram followers. We had a conversation about unhealthy and healthy social media posts. In his view, an unhealthy post is a staged, shirtless photoshoot by the pool. A healthy post, on the other hand, is a spontaneous shirtless selfie taken while genuinely enjoying a moment by the pool, simply wanting to capture a memory.

Overall, QJ is a great friend. I enjoy his stories and respect his perspective on life. We often take many selfies together until he finds and posts just the right one.

We're in Seaside, Oregon for an AA convention—Sober in Seaside. Our friends, C6 and QJ, have joined us on the trip, as they do nearly every year.

Seaside is a quaint little coastal town. We're lucky with the weather this year—plenty of sunshine. Pacific Northwest beaches are usually blanketed in clouds and rain, so it's a treat to stroll along the shore and take in the views.

Our dog is off her pain meds and healthy again. She loves running along the beach. We still have to keep an eye on her, though—she has a habit of eating anything smelly she can find.

C6 and QJ are an interesting couple—definitely A-list bears. I have only ever seen them dress in jeans, a t-shirt, running shoes, and a baseball cap. The intriguing part? Their t-shirts, caps, and shoes always match. The t-shirts are perfectly ironed. It’s casual, but with a touch of precision. I, on the other hand, tend to be a slob. Well... I always wear clean cloths, but I haven't ironed in years. As for matching colors-- I'm lucky if I choose color combinations that don't clash.  My husband appreciates it when a spruce up my look a bit. I rarely have the energy for that. 

Our dog is recovering well. I'm administering her pain medication orally, but she resists swallowing the pills. She's quite skilled at concealing them; I've found a number of pills matted in her fur around her mouth and hidden around her bed.

My husband has an issue with his lungs. We're unsure of the cause, and he'll be seeing a pulmonologist as soon as possible. A few weeks ago, he had a persistent cough. He was diagnosed with a mild case of pneumonia and treated with medication. He felt much better afterward.

At today's follow-up appointment, the chest X-ray showed the pneumonia has cleared, but there's still an area of concern that requires further investigation.

Life goes on.

A while back our dog cracked her hind teeth while chewing on a bone. Since then these teeth have become prone to infection and will sometimes bleed.

Yesterday she went to the vet to have these teeth out. 

The procedure went well. Now she is on painkillers. For the first time in her life she is feeling dopey and uncoordinated. She does not like that. She stares at us with her tail between her legs, she doesn't want to walk and has little interest in her food. 

Get well soon little doggie.