Day 4128

Well, it doesn't look like I'll be going to Florida any time soon. NASA rejected my application to attend the Crew-2 launch later this month. I was getting accepted for a while and then Covid hit and everything changed. It's discouraging that it's so hard to get press credentials even when I've got a magazine supporting me. Jeez. I've written some nice articles about space. NASA ought to be eager to have me attend their launches. Oh, well. I ought to look on the bright side. I really can't afford many of these trips anyway.

I got an e-mail from UPS today saying that I was getting a delivery later this week. When I clicked on the tracking number, it said that the item had been delivered last month to someone in New Jersey. How could something be delivered before I ordered it? The e-mail said the item was shipped on 4/12 and delivered on 3/24. Weird. I called UPS to explain the mix-up and the first thing the automated message system asked for was my tracking number. I wanted to talk to a real person so I could tell then they'd given me the wrong tracking number, but the automated system kept telling me "your package has been delivered." Very frustrating. I called the shipper who assured me that the package was addressed correctly and was on its way. "Just ignore the tracking number," the guy told me. "We're having issues with duplicate numbers." Will I ever get this package, or have I entered the Twilight Zone? I guess we'll see.

The weather has been beautiful lately, but I'm not really taking advantage of it. I take my daily walk and then I return to the house. The car gets used once a week for grocery shopping and that's about it. I have no desire to go to a movie or visit a nearby town. Whenever I do go out, the traffic is so terrible that I wish I was home again. Maybe it's important that I go to West Texas periodically. I'm always a little apprehensive about these trips, but they keep me from becoming a shut in.

I was tempted to enter a photo contest today, but when I read the fine print on the contest rules, it said that a contest entry gave the company the right to use the photo for whatever they wanted in perpetuity with no additional compensation. That sounded pretty harsh. It's not that I was planning on selling the photo anyway, but I hate weasel words in contracts. Why do people have to be this way? The contest is legit with a well respected company, but I think I'll pass.

The water level is dropping in the lake again. There must be a leak in the dam. You'd think the city would be right on top of this, but maybe they haven't noticed. I probably wouldn't have noticed myself if I didn't walk the same route along the shoreline day after day. I could tell you when certain flowers were going to bloom several years ago, but now I'm starting to recognize individual ducks. This walk is getting very familiar. It won't be long before I start naming the ducks.

Dawn seems more relaxed now that I've decided to stay out of the kitchen while she's eating. Dawn's a noisy eater so it's easy to tell when she's finished. I still fix her meals and then go back to the office. It seems to work. Oddly, Janet doesn't like me in the kitchen either. Oh, well. It is a small kitchen and I seldom cook anyway.

I'm still irritated that NASA rejected my press pass application. I need something more exciting to write about than UPS tracking numbers.

Valli is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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