Today I had to leave work early and get a CT scan in preparation for my upcoming surgery. The hospital is an hour away when the traffic is good, so I knew I had to leave in plenty of time. I was told to drink a couple of glasses of water a couple hours ahead, so by the time I got there, I was desperate for the bathroom. Luckily, I didn’t need a full bladder for the scan because the contrast dye they injected gave a warm sensation that made me feel like I had wet myself. Good thing the nurse warned me ahead of time. I’m thankful the scan was uneventful, and I should have results in a day or two.

Uneventful is not what happened at home today. Over the weekend Patrick and I were discussing when we thought we’d be ready to get another pup since it feels very empty without Chance. And as the way things go, we saw posts of a little guy on a local shelter’s social media/website that gave us Chance vibes. Today we decided it wouldn’t hurt to meet him. We were wrong.

Against all better judgement, we brought him home. I mean, it’s terrible timing with my surgery coming up. But something in this little fella’s face and temperament spoke to us. Still, I cried all the way home thinking of my Chance and remembering the day I brought him home. I felt disloyal, thinking maybe we haven’t grieved long enough. But I’ll always wish he was back and I know we will never replace him.

We’re just opening ourselves up for a new chapter. Barley wasn’t too keen on him at first, but wasn’t aggressive, which helped push us towards adopting him. He usually doesn’t like new dogs. We’re hopeful it won’t take long for them to bond. Barley has seemed a bit lonely. We have good signs.