Friday, October 15, 2021

Day 4313

I recorded my slowest walk ever today. My pace was a full six minutes per mile slower than a normal day. Sadly, I was never that fast to begin with. The main reason I was so slow was that my feet hurt, but my terrible seasonal allergies certainly didn't help. I walked over four miles, but by the time I returned home I could barely move. I don't know whether I need to quit walking for a while, or just start wearing the new Hoka shoes I bought a month ago. I'll try the new shoes first. I'd really hate to give up walking.

One year ago at this time I was out at McDonald Observatory for an astrophotography workshop. I was definitely feeling my age then, but things have gone downhill since that little adventure. The way I feel today, I'm wondering if I can even make another of these long trips out to West Texas. Astrophotography involves a lot of standing and even worse, kneeling in the dark. The terrain is uneven and you need good balance. It's very cold at night too. The drive itself is a nightmare. The past two trips to the observatory were during the height of the pandemic when traffic was lighter. Now that Texans have decided that the pandemic is over, freeway traffic is as bad as it ever was. I've heard horror stories from some of the West Texas locals about I-20. Evidently, there's a lot of road construction now, which makes the long drive even worse.

My motto is to always keep moving, so hopefully I will rebound from my current foot pain setback quickly. If the new shoes don't work, I may have to scale back walking for a while. I can't imagine quitting though. Walking defines my day now. I feel the same way about trips to McDonald Observatory and Kennedy Space Center. There are so few things I really enjoy these days that it would be a crime to give up any of them.

I think the cold wave that everyone's been talking about has finally arrived. The skies cleared today, but the temperatures kept getting cooler. Actually, the only pleasant thing about my long walk this morning was the temperature. It was a little chilly, but not quite jacket weather yet. If my feet didn't hurt so much, it would have been perfect walking weather. I think it's going to be even colder tomorrow. Luckily, there is no more rain in the forecast. I'm glad I cleared the roof of standing water when I did. I doubt that I could even make it up on the roof today.

Janet is trying to help me with my heartburn. She brought home a vegetarian pizza tonight for dinner. It was basically just artichokes, fetta cheese and a few olives on a pizza crust without any of the normal sauce. This isn't going to give me heartburn, but it isn't a pizza either. I told Janet that she ought to keep eating what makes her happy and if I need to fix something else for myself that's fine. We both agreed that an artichoke and fetta pizza wasn't a good idea.

We haven't seen any of the empty store shelves they keep talking about on TV. Gas is more expensive but everything else seems pretty normal. I'm wondering if I should stock up on a few things when I'm grocery shopping tomorrow though. This is probably how panic buying starts. Everyone is just trying to get ahead of the curve. We'll see how the stores look tomorrow. I basically think panic buying is stupid, but I'd hate to run out of toilet paper.

I still keep hoping that Dawn will warm up to me. She adores Janet, but still thinks I'm a kennel attendant.  She's fine when I'm feeding her or walking her on a leash. The rest of the time she gives me the stink eye.

Lucky is today's Dalmatian of the Day


Watch of the Day