Attribution: BruceBlaus, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins Phyllis in telling the keeper to stop feeling sorry for himself just because today is the day he checks in with the VA eye clinic in the routine of eye shots to ward off the progression of macular degeneration. It …
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Category:Aging
Kickass and His Silver Walker
Illustration courtesy of Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper is still searching for ways to adjust to the intrusion of a walker into his life, solely as an occasional balance aid and never to be acknowledged as yet another reminder that he is damn old and hopes to get …
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Kickass and Old Drivers
Attribution: Photo by Neda Vidakovic on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper and Phyllis winding up their long relationships with vehicles with a faithful Subaru that rests docilely in basement parking until there is a medical or supply need and the keeper assumes the driver’s seat with Phyllis occupying the “participating passenger position.” …
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Kickass and Menopause
Attribution: Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper wondering how he might upgrade the evolutionary status of old men to match that of old women who, after they are no longer able to bear children, are still seen by the one and only evolutionary …
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Kickass and Old Kids
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper pretty much denying birthdays, especially his own, but also those of his children who have somehow gotten so old they creak and limp. Even the youngest—Mike, who reportedly is now 70 years old and does not have the decency to lie …
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Kickass and Dog Dementia
Attribution: Photo by Raul Torrento on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog assumes that along with the keeper and Phyllis, everyone watched the 60 Minutes feature on the benefits of studying dogs’ dementia to shed light on how it happens with humans. Being at the age where his recliner could turn into an F-35 at any …
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Kickass and New Wheels
Attribution: Photo by Mobio Marketing on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper has a new set of wheels, and adjusting to them may require more than was demanded when his first wheels were pulled out from behind the neighbor’s machine shed in the form of a no-tires Model T Ford pickup that …
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Kickass and the Price of Gas
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, cautions the keeper about going so deep into his past that he mentions the price of gas at 5 gals for $1. Memory exercise of this kind tend to brand the keeper as either careless with the facts or performing for attention. His defense …
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Kickass and Johnny Appleseed
Attribution: See page for author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper impressed with a bit of research showing that Johnny Appleseed sometimes went barefoot in the snow, slept in the woods and once fell out of an apple tree and was caught by the neck between …
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Kickass and Volunteers
Attribution: Gabriel Vanslette, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that at the time his daily Kickass meandering is usually written, today the keeper will instead be on his way to the VA eye clinic for injections to treat the eye problems that dear old mom handed off to …
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Kickass and the Extra Hour
Attribution: Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, notes the keeper and Phyllis accepting with gratitude the extra hour of March 7, 2025 and hanging it on a hook with all of the others—in the keeper’s case that would be about 34,467 hours and—hopefully, counting. Phyllis’s hour tally is impressive but not …
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Kickass and Feeding the Young and Old
Attribution: Photo by Maria Lin Kim on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper and Phyllis in acknowledging that as the only meaningful function for every species is reproduction which includes lots of obligatory activities among them feeding the young until they are adept enough to feed themselves. Thus, ingrained early as a vital …
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