Day 4538

It was hot this afternoon, so I finally went back to the gym. I hadn't been there in such a long time that there were new owners and I had to enroll all over again. I still had a membership, but they wanted me to sign some new waivers that basically said that they weren't responsible if I dropped dead on the gym floor. I went through my old routines on my favorite machines, worked with some free weights for a while, and was totally dismayed at how much harder everything seemed. Use it or lose it, I guess. I really need to make an effort to go to the gym a couple of times a week this summer. My upper body strength is terrible now. I guess I've been fooling myself with these long walks. They are really just leisurely strolls.

On the way home I stopped at REI and got some new shorts for Summer. The shorts I've been wearing on my walks are practically rags by now. The store was having a big sale, but there was really nothing else I needed. I find this happening at almost every store I find myself in these days. I'm losing my desire to buy stuff. Now what? Buying things I didn't really need kept me occupied for many years.

The weather was perfect for our sunrise walk with Dawn, but she didn't seem all that interested in walking this morning. She's started her freezing in place behavior again. I thought we were going to have to turn around and go home, but then another dog passed us on the trail and Dawn decided she wanted to follow it. After that she was perfectly normal again. She didn't seem interested in the dinner I fixed for her tonight either. There was nothing wrong with her appetite though. As soon as Janet came home, she raced out to the kitchen and ate everything. I have no idea what is going through this dog's head, but it doesn't seem normal.

Janet and I went out for dinner tonight. It's been a while since we've done this and it was a nice change of pace. I've noticed that you can't just pick up the phone and make a reservation these days. Restaurants increasingly want you to use Open Table, or something similar to make your reservations online. I liked the old way better, but things change and you learn to adapt. It's weird. I made my living designing websites for quite a few years, but I'm not a fan of the online revolution. Things were better when we weren't as connected. Try explaining that to someone who has had a phone or a tablet in their hands since they were a baby though. They just don't understand.

The traffic seemed really light for a Saturday. The stores weren't crowded when I was grocery shopping this morning either. It's a holiday weekend and people must be traveling. There is such a pent up demand to do stuff after two years of Covid restrictions that I don't even think that the high price of gas is slowing down the desire to travel. There's got to be a breaking point though. I was amazed at how much more expensive my two trips this year were compared to similar trips in previous years.

We're going to have to watch the temperature tomorrow. Last week it was almost too hot for Dawn on her Sunday outing. Dawn looks forward to this Sunday trip though. If it's too hot, we'll skip the walk and go directly to the ice cream store.

Sam is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day