Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Day 4443

The weather was crazy today. It seemed unseasonably warm when we walked Dawn early this morning. The temperature was 70 degrees and we didn't even need jackets. We returned home thinking that it was going to be a nice day. I was dumbfounded when I walked outside again after eating breakfast and the temp-erature has dropped to 38 degrees. What happened? This sudden change seemed almost instantaneous. Oh, well. I put on some warmer clothes and took my long walk. The weird thing about this sudden change of temperature was that it wasn't accompanied by a lot of wind. It didn't even feel like a front was moving in.

I walked early today because it was time for Janet to have cataract surgery on her second eye and I was the designated driver. I was a little surprised that they scheduled both eyes so close together, but that's the way they do it these days. The whole procedure is amazingly fast. It was almost time to return to the surgery center by the time I drove home. I've been dreading having cataract surgery myself, but Janet's success with these procedures makes me feel a little more confident. The first surgery has already dramatically improved her vision and she said the second surgery went well too. 

The surgery center is super efficient and they always send the designated driver lots of messages about how the surgery is progressing and when and where to return. Some of these messages arrived while I was in the car driving back to take Janet home again. Much to my chagrin I realized that I've forgotten how my paired phone works in the car. Nobody calls anymore and I never listen to the radio. When the calls would come in I would press the green button on the steering wheel and couldn't figure out why I couldn't hear anything. The call was connected but I could barely hear a voice. How do I make this thing louder I kept thinking? After several dropped calls I finally figured out that you controlled the volume on the phone with the volume dial on the car radio. The volume dial was multi-function and controlled all the car's audio. Since I had turned off the audio months or even years ago, I'd almost forgotten that this button existed. When we drive to visit the kennel Dalmatians in Janet's car she listens to the radio. When I drive, we don't listen to anything. I've forgotten how to program stations in my car's radio. Basically I like silence. When I drive out to West Texas, I make the entire long drive in silence.

Apparently, another arctic cold front is headed our way. This seems a little strange because it feels like it is already here. Nope. According to the forecast it is going to be even colder tomorrow. It is supposed to rain as well. I just hope that we don't have any more freezing rain. If history is any guide, we will have to endure this erratic winter weather for another month. Occasionally we've had some really bad weather in March. I'll be glad when April arrives. It's officially Spring in April and wildflowers are everywhere.

I hope we don't allow ourselves to be dragged into another needless foreign war. Haven't we learned our lesson by now? I'm an unabashed isolationist and think our country would be a lot better off if we just minded our own business. The Vietnam era was pointless. So were the endless wars in the Middle East. I can understand why Putin would like to recreate to old Soviet Union. Maybe he succeeds and maybe he doesn't. I just don't understand why we are obligated to get involved. Let the Europeans handle this. I don't even understand why we are a member of NATO. Sadly the only thing that Democrats and Republicans seem to agree on is foreign wars. They both love a good foreign war. It's a perfect distraction from all our domestic problems.

I was able to walk three miles today. I guess that's progress. I was struggling to walk two miles yesterday. It's sad that my two regular activities have lost their magic. What would I replace them with though? Walking keeps me moving and blogging keeps me thinking. I still believe that physical and mental activity are equally important so I'll keep on keeping on. I have a feeling that tomorrow is going to look a lot like today.

Maggie is today's Dalmatian of the Day


Watch of the Day