This and that

Top, a display at Andrews Greenhouse, above, the view,

and below, how I wish my garden would look.

The major events so far this week have been giving the dog a bubble bath, buying flowers for the garden and obsessing over why the New York Times cut a paragraph out of the letter that I had in the Science Times section today. The link goes to two letters; mine is the second. I'm actually happy the letter got in, and my problem with the omission falls into the "Will you please get a life" category. I will explain more below, but first:

Maddie has been scratching a lot, and the vet said she is probably allergic and would benefit from an oatmeal (shampoo) bath. Normally I take her to the groomer, but they were booked, so Katie and I did it ourselves.

It's been a long time since I ran a bubble bath for anyone. It made me a little nostalgic, and I even thought about bringing out some of the bath toys I saved. Yes, I actually did save the colored letters that stick on the side of the tub and some other floaty things. They're right in a cabinet in the bathroom in case anyone needs them.

Maddie seems to have sensed what we were up to, because each time we called her up, she ran to the top of the stairs and then ran down. I tried to pull her up by her collar, but she backed out, a tricky move that brings to mind the way toddlers make their bodies limp so you can't buckle them into the car seat. (So much of this dog-raising is like bringing up a kid.)

Finally I put the leash on and lured her up with pieces of a dog biscuit. Katie and I each took an end, hauled her in, and the fun began. She was actually very good and stood there quietly, except for the few times she shook and got us soaked and the time she was done and we had to push her back in. I wanted to take a picture of the wet rat look, but I gave up because she wouldn't stand still enough.

Now she is smooth and shiny and seems to feel better.

Today we went to Andrews Greenhouse in Amherst to buy flowers for the garden. I like it as much for the setting and the view as for my purchases, which usually don't look so great by the end of the summer. I'm still not allowed to garden, so Katie will do the planting. It's because my immune system will be compromised as long as I'm on prednisone, making me susceptible to breathing in fungus from the dirt. I'm not a big gardener, but I would just love to pull some weeds.

I'm a little out of sorts because my fractured foot has kept me from exercising. The air cast enables me to walk without pain, but you're not supposed to use that as an excuse for overdoing it. I did walk a short way today to meet a friend for coffee; it felt like a big adventure. Maddie came too and sat outside. I hope that when I get back to exercising, I won't have lost too much ground.

The letter I referred to above addresses a column from last week's Times about why runners keep going despite pain. I had written that after my bone marrow transplant and lengthy hospitalization, I had wanted to prove I could run again. The editors deleted the part about the bone marrow transplant and simply left in that I wanted to prove I could do it again.

It's fine without the impetus in there, and to a reader it makes perfect sense. OK, it was only a silly little letter, I'm done with it, and I'm going to go watch the first episode of "The Good Wife." I missed the whole first season and got a free month-long trial from Netflix to see how much I can watch before I cave in and pay up.

The end of "The Good Wife" for the season has left a really big gap in my life. Talk about getting a life...