Sydney is in the ICU area at the vet’s; we rushed him over yesterday just about noon when he had a seizure; the vet was about ready to close but waited for us. He worked on him for a good hour and 20 minutes – valium, IV fluid, medicine to reduce swelling in the brain and lidocaine to control the PVC’s his heart was throwing. He had several EKG’s, two X-rays and blood draws.

The vet had been scheduled to make a farm call and after Sydney seemed to stabilize, he left for about 45 minutes while we sat with Sydney.

His first question when he returned was to ask if Sydney had started to come round and tried to sit up; he had not. He was still rigid and trembling. More lidocaine, valium and then lidocaine introduced into the fluid bag.

We think he is in no  pain and we are waiting and watching. There was no change today so far and if he does not come around by Tuesday morning, well, we will do what we feel is best.

We are thankful that Sydney was in Der Bingle’s arms from just after the seizure started until we reached the vet’s.

One of the cars in the driveway had a flat tire yesterday and this morning Der Bingle and Robert William* took care of the situation. I could be more descriptive of the atmosphere while that was going on, but I think I’ll just let it go. The fix got done.

BUT, while we were out there, I realized today’s weather was going to be like last year when we were faced with what may have been the largest tree in LaGrange County lying across the deck at Scott. Cameron and Summer and others with pruning saws infiltrated the rain forest willow fronds – sort of a Teddy Roosevelt adventure. It was so hot and so humid and perspiration just dripped. So, this morning, I could deal with the trauma of of tire problems in the heat – I just remembered the “tree weeks”  of  2010.

* My dad always called Robert by his full name – Robert William – I think because he felt self-conscious about RW being named after him. Of course, this wasn’t the first time around for this response; he always called his nephew Robert Allen by his full name as well.

Cameron spent the week at the Ohio Redoubt and now he and Der Bingle are on their way home. Guess what is new on the flats of Ohio? Windmills. Not cute little Dutch ones, though – propeller-looking things.

July 1st. Already days are getting shorter – after six decades of living, I think I figured this out, if not too much else. So July . . . what do you have in store for us? I’m asking because I, moi, have made no plans. No plans for a cook-out on the Fourth, no plans for fireworks, no plans for Der Bingle’s birthday later this month. But then, again, that is my normal modus operandi.

I am supposed the help Someone today with the outline for a paper; I hate outlines – especially that old rule about you can’t have an “a)” without a “b) ‘ – because my mind does not want to work that way. I think most of the time I would write the outline after the paper – although often I was foiled by teachers wanting to SEE the outline before the paper was written.

And now here I am again with another blanking outline. And what is worse – I am a consultant. That means I will  be asked to come up with ideas that are going to be rejected out of hand, if not openly mocked. It’s Someone’s online class and the instructor is throwing words such as “culture” around without specifying the scope of the definition.

Oh, wait. Der Bingle will be home tonight and tomorrow maybe he and Someone can put their heads together . . . because we all know: “Grandpa is smarter than you, Grandma.”

Oh, look . . . July 1st fireworks.