Thursday, November 3, 2016

Day 2516

It rained a lot last night. Dash slept through the storm, but Dot became frightened and I had to sleep on the floor with her for a while. This usually calms her down, but now I'm a little nervous that she'll poop on me while I'm asleep. Everything worked out fine and by morning life was back to normal.

When I went up on the roof to reconnect the sump pump and clear away the standing water, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the material the roofers applied last Friday had not self destructed. Everything still looked good. This doesn't mean much for the long term, but at least the elastomer didn't dissolve in the rain and wash away. That has happened before. Maybe I'm good for another year. I'm going to be cursed with this roof for as long as I own this house. There doesn't seem to be any way to automate the process of removing the standing water either. The house is old and has settled in spots. This makes lots of little puddles. I'd probably need ten pumps if I tried to keep the roof dry using pumps alone.

I finished the rest of yesterday's website updates, but this didn't keep me busy very long. It was a slow day that was mostly spent cleaning up after Dot. She peed on a rug while she was eating her lunch. I wasn't expecting that. Later, she pooped in her bed while I was up on the roof and then ate the evidence. Some days you just can't win.

I thought I'd look for an astronomy app for my new iPad and was amazed at how sophisticated this type of software has become. The better apps not only showed you the constellations and planets, they also made it possible to track the International Space Station, various other satellites, and even comets and asteroids. A couple of the high end apps could even control a telescope. If you tapped your finger on an object you were interested in on the screen, the telescope would automatically point to the corresponding object in the sky. All these bells and whistles made me wish I had a telescope and some really dark nights.

Today, when my watch urged me to take a deep breath, I touched the begin button instead of just dismissing the message. I guess this is some sort of meditation app. The interesting thing was that when I did the controlled breathing the way the app was telling me to, it seemed exactly the same as the way I normally breathe anyway. Maybe I'm calmer than I think I am.

I've already taken the trash to the curb and I'm looking forward to going out for breakfast tomorrow. Unless something unforeseen happens, I should actually get to go. It's weird that this simple outing is often the high point in my week. I'll go to sleep wondering whether to have cinnamon pancakes, biscuits and gravy, or something I've never tried before.

Dalmatian of the Day
Watch of the Day