Simplifying or Not

As I slouch towards fitty fi, as some of my clients would say, I truly wish to simplify. I dig dogs, but would probably no longer have any -- pet sitting for grand dogs is plenty for me. Unfortunately for my desire, the woman I live with, who owns half of everything and gets about 75% say in things, says there always WILL be dogs, and more than one. So I lose on the issue. Last week, the strange rescue dog wasn't her usual chipper self. She barely moved, wouldn't eat, and little by little, had breathing problems. I assumed she had gotten some of Wifey's pills, which make their way sometimes to the kitchen floor, and Wifey called the vet. Our usual one wasn't in town, and so Susan, the friend who "fostered" the dog before helping to manipulate me into taking her (they set up a scene with D1 pleading)suggested her vet, a kindly octogenarian fellow. That vet said the dog was critically ill, and so Wifey took her to the Pet Emergency Room, a hospital near our house we're too familiar with -- the place the Bassett Hound was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and the place where the spoiled rescue Cavalier Bo got his orthopedic surgery... After a LOT of money for tests (I told Wifey to not even tell me the amount, but I know it's in the thousands) they diagnosed rat poisoning. The vet asked if our exterminator had put out "pet proof"traps. He had. Turns out at least once a month the vet gets a similar case -- either the rats drop the poison and the dog finds it, or the dog eats the poisoned rat. Since Vienna is part Dachshund, and these are notorious rodent killers and eaters, the vet suspected the latter. Either way, he drained lots of fluid from her belly, and gave her a Vitamin K antidote, and Vienna is recovering nicely. So much for simplifying. But in other news, Wifey is moving her ancient mother to Palmetto Bay, closer to us. She showed the 91 year old the unit we own, a condo conversion I overpaid by a factor of 100% 10 years ago, and Rachel wants to move there. So yesterday we traveled to Century Village in Pembroke Pines and listed the unit we bought there for my in laws in 2000. The salesman was the same fellow who sold us the unit --jovial New York guy. He REALLY knows Century Village, although he lives in Boca. He keeps a print out of Red Buttons'obit above his desk... We paid $120K for the unit, and I anticipated it wouldn't be a good investment, as most condos aren't. The salesman is listing the place for $169K, which is higher than I anticipated. We told my mother in law, who said a unit just sold near hers for $175K, and we "shouldn't take a penny less." Of course, I'd bet that unit was updated, and didn't have the peeling wallpaper and worn kitchen and bathrooms of our unit. I'll be happy to consolidate my real estate holdings. The salesman thinks he'll sell the unit in about three months. The good news for sellers is that buyers are now over 50% Hispanic and Caribbean. Lots of retired Cubans and Jamaicans are moving in. Mark the salesman told us the scores of retiring elderly Jews are now moving to Boynton Beach -- their new mecca, unless they have LOTS of money, and go to Aventura. We just hope to sell, and sell soon. So we get to simplify on the real estate front, but not on the dog. At least Vienna is happy about that.