Day 4967

A neighbor's house went under the wrecking ball today. This was a nice house with an Austin Stone exterior, three bedrooms, a pool, and an updated kitchen. The original owners both passed away several years ago, but I remember them well. They had a big Christmas party every year and invited the entire street. They liked dogs and were always friendly with our first Dalmatian. 

It's a shame that the original residents on our street are all gone now. People buy their properties for exorbitant prices and then just tear down the house. There are a lot of vacant lots in the neighborhood now, all waiting for new mansions to be built. Truthfully, I liked the neighborhood a lot better when houses like the one torn down today were something to be proud of. People built these homes in the 1950's and lived there until they died. Janet and I knew all these people, but don't know any of the newcomers who replaced them. It's the end of an era I guess.

It hasn't gotten any cooler. We had another triple digit day with no rain in sight. It's even hot at night now, although our sunrise walks with Dawn are still tolerable. Were our summers always like this? Maybe. I think it feels worse now because everyone reinforces the bad weather by constantly reminding me about it on social media. I guess it could be worse. We don't have floods or wildfires.

After returning from our sunrise walk, I ate my breakfast and went to the gym. Every day feels more or less the same but I have no complaints. I'm healthy. I'm paying my bills on time and at least for the moment, everything in the house is working. It's easy to forget what day it is. When I'm at the gym it feels like I've never left. The same people are working out at the same machines. I feel like I know some of these people just from overhearing their conversations as I pass them walking around the indoor track. Things are starting to feel a lot like Groundhog Day.

After having my regular ham and cheese sandwich for lunch, I took a nap with Dawn on the bed. She didn't leave the bed this time which was kind of amazing. Maybe she's finally warming up to me. Probably it was just too hot to get bothered about anything. I think Dawn is as tired of our hot weather as I am. She doesn't even want to sit out in the yard now. I can't blame her. I don't want to sit out in the yard either. If I mow the grass again, it's going to have to be very early in the morning.

It's hard to believe it will be August tomorrow. Time to get the car safety inspected again. I'm glad there are no car problems this year. I'm glad the air conditioner is working well too. I'm just going through the motions this summer and definitely don't want any problems. Actually I wish I could just sleep through August and wake up again when it was cooler. I don't think it's going to be any cooler tomorrow. We'll go through this same routine again.

Shelby is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4966

Another insanely hot day. This is getting old. At least our sunrise walks are tolerable. It's never really cool though. Even when we leave before sunrise it already feels like the high for the day in a normal world. Oh, well. At least our air conditioner still works well.

No big weekend breakfast today. Janet had a meeting to go to, so I had my shredded wheat and fruit again. The hydroponically grown strawberries are actually quite good. I'll have to get these again. I'm going mall walking earlier now. The mall opens for walkers at 9 AM and there is no reason to sit around the house. There was nothing new this week, but the place was pleasantly cool and it's still more enjoyable to walk there than at the gym. The hotter is gets outside, the more people I see mall walking. There are very few middle aged people mall walking. It's mostly young couples pushing kids in strollers and old people like me. Some of the restaurants open early for the walkers, but the stores don't open until noon. I'm gone by then. I like going to the mall, but have no interest in doing any real shopping.

Dawn was eager to go on her Sunday outing as soon as I returned home. We let her get outside a bit at her Sunday park, but it is too hot now for much of a walk. After she pees and does a little sniffing, we return to the car and head for the ice cream store. Sometimes our cones are piled high with ice cream and other times we feel cheated.  It just depends on who is serving. Dawn loves ice cream but she is a messy eater. She always seems to spill some of her cone on the back seat.

Afternoons are always slow. I seem to have run out of energy and enthusiasm. There are so many things that I could be doing and probably should be doing, but I do my best to avoid starting something that will be difficult to finish. I'm not going to paint the house and probably won't fix the sheetrock either. I could hire someone to do these things, but I hate having strangers around the house. I used to spend time writing and recording songs but I haven't picked up a guitar in over a year. After several gallery shows I totally lost interest in making fine art prints. What does this all mean? It probably means I should go to Florida more. I still have more than a passing interest in chasing rockets.

It's getting to be where I hate to look at Facebook anymore. There is an endless parade of people trying to re-home their dogs, along with desperate pleas from other people to save dogs that will be euthanized at the pound tomorrow. I don't understand animal control. Why don't they just stop intake until they can find homes for their current dogs. They keep taking in more and just killing them. Jeez. What is wrong with people? Why get a dog if you aren't willing to treat it as a member of the family for as long as it lives. The older I get, the less tolerance I have. I guess there are still good people out there, but there seems to be a huge number of totally worthless people.

It's going to be a long summer. There is no rain in sight and a seemingly endless string of triple digit days. I'm sure I'll be back at the gym tomorrow. It gets me out of the house and it's a lot cheaper than a trip to Florida.

Penny is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4965

Another Saturday in the books. We see lots more people on our weekend sunrise walks. The park was full of runners this morning. I guess if you like to run, this would be the time to do it. Since we got up later this morning, it was already a bit warmer outside. We still had an enjoyable walk though because there was a nice breeze.

I'm glad we slept in later because I didn't get much sleep last night. Dawn woke me up several times itching and scratching. We don't know what is bothering her, but she's been itching and licking her belly a lot lately. I think she's itchy from sitting out in the grass, but it could be anything. Since she mostly does this at night, maybe she's allergic to the comforter or blankets on the bed.

After our big weekend breakfast I did my weekly grocery shopping. I had to get gas today and was surprised at how much prices at the pump had gone up in just a week. I don't think there are any gas shortages, but I haven't been keeping up with the news. It's weird how volatile prices are these days. At least eggs are a bit more reasonable now.

Strawberries have been in short supply for several weeks. This week I saw something new called hydroponically grown strawberries. They looked a lot fresher than the regular berries. I thought they might be expensive since there was no price listed on the display, but they turned out to be about the same price as strawberries grown in the ground. We'll see what they taste like when I resume eating shredded wheat and fruit on Monday.

It's kid of irritating that stores have quit selling my favorite beer. Maybe the company doesn't brew it anymore. Probably it just wasn't a big seller. If I like something there's always a good chance that nobody else does. At any rate, I finished my shopping fairly quickly this week. It probably helps that I'm starting earlier now.

After I put the groceries away I went back to the gym. I like going to the gym on weekends because it is virtually empty. It's easy to find a spot in the parking garage and there were only five people on the floor when I arrived. The gym is quite large and five people working out are almost invisible. I felt like I had the place to myself. Even though all the machines were available, I just did my same old routine. I briskly walked three miles on the indoor track and then spent ten or fifteen minutes on the basketball court. All I do is shoot free throws. If I ever get really good at this, I may try something else.

When I returned home I took a shower and did a load of laundry. I got some author copies of SpaceFlight in the mail with my article about the AX-2 launch. All in all it was a pretty good day. Tomorrow I'll go mall walking, but it will probably be too hot for Dawn's Sunday outing. We'll take her to get ice cream cones though. She'd be real disappointed if we forgot the ice cream cones.

Tink is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4964

I got a message from my editor asking if I'd be interested in getting a tour of the ship that will be used to retrieve the Orion astronauts after the next Artemis mission. I had to say no. The event is being held at the Navy base in San Diego and I'd have to pay for the trip myself. Jeez. I can barely afford an ocassional trip to Titusville and this would be much more expensive. I'm also a bit superstitious. The last time I went to California on a NASA related event, I had a wreck in my rent car.

Today was another day with triple digit temperatures. We still had a nice sunrise walk with Dawn though. I knew it was going to be a bad day when we walked out the door before sunrise and the temperature was already in the high 80's. We've definitely had hotter days in Texas, but I can't remember this many 100 degree days in a row. I seldom wish for rain but we could definitely use some. Sadly there is no rain on the horizon. My Apple weather app shows triple digit weather and clear skies for the next ten days.

Today was just like yesterday. I had my breakfast of shredded wheat and fruit, made the bed, checked my messages, and headed for the gym. I wish there was something that would capture my interest, but there isn't. I'm not even as excited about launch trips anymore. I certainly have no regrets about skipping the EchoStar Jupiter 3 launch. The weather has been stormy in Titusville this week and even if the launch does take place tonight, I would have ended up spending most of my time sitting in a hotel room. 

I've got to start doing something else at the gym. The place is very well equipped, but all I do is walk around the indoor track and shoot a few baskets afterwards. I've been going to the gym for a long time and have used most of the machines, but I'm not very interested. This is just a poor substitute for walking in the park. I've managed to convince myself that it's important to get my steps every day. Somehow it doesn't seems that important to build up my strength.

As usual I did very little this afternoon. It's too hot to take a walk or even take Dawn outside for long. The house needs lots of work but it's discouraging to even think about it. There are no movies I want to watch or books I feel like reading. I must be doing something though, because the afternoons usually go quickly. I guess I'll watch the Falcon Heavy launch on the Space X feed later tonight. Dawn did get excited about grocery day, but even she seemed a bit subdued today. The dogs days of summer have definitely arrived. I'm ready for Fall. Even Winter would seems like an improvement right now.

Queenie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4963

I'm glad I didn't go to the Falcon Heavy launch. Last night's launch got scrubbed with one minute left on the countdown clock. The launch was rescheduled for tonight and then subsequently postponed again until tomorrow night. It happens. This would have turned a quick one day trip into a three or four day trip. I'm sure I'll get a chance to be surprised like this again. Quite a few launches I've attended have gotten delayed.

There were no delays or surprises in today's schedule. Basically today was just like yesterday. We had a nice walk with Dawn before the sun came up. I made the bed, ate breakfast, and went to the gym. It's weird how every day seems the same. We see the same people every morning on our sunrise walks. The same people are at the gym too. Usually they are even using the same machines. Today I even got the same parking space that I got yesterday.

I visited Twitter today to see if there were any differences now that the blue bird is gone. I was surprised that I had lots of messages and post comments that I had never answered. The blog gets posted automatically to Twitter, but I never go there anymore. I never go to Instagram anymore either. The only place I visit these days is Facebook and I'm losing interest in that as well. When I reach my 5000 day blogging goal it might finally give me the incentive I need to leave social media entirely. We'll see. I wonder whether I can really quit blogging. I've been doing this so long that it just seems like an integral part of my day.

I'm beginning to wonder whether this oppressive weather is ever going to end. Never ending triple digit temperatures gets old quickly. The air conditioner is running constantly now and I keep hoping that nothing breaks. The electric company probably loves this. When we walk down the street returning from our sunrise walk, all you hear is the sound of everyone's air conditioner compressors. I dread next month's electric bill, but I'm still unwilling to spend the day in a hot house.

I have no plans for tomorrow. I imagine that I'll do the same things I did today. I keep looking at the ceiling and wondering if I can do the sheetrock repairs myself. I haven't gone to Home Depot and gotten supplies yet though. I'll probably just keep thinking about this for another month or so. I did take this week's trash out to the curb. It was probably the only useful thing I did all day. Dawn is probably already thinking about grocery day tomorrow. Waiting for Janet to return with the week's groceries is her big excitement for the week.

Deuce is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4962

Instead of incurring new bills with a last minute trip to Florida, I spent the morning paying old bills. There seems to be a relentless push with online payment systems to get you to sign up for automatic payment plans. Some companies are even charging more if you don't specify automatic payments. I keep doing this manually on my own schedule, but I'm clearly behind the times. Oh, well. At least I'm not taking bills to the post office anymore.

Today was completely uneventful. I'm still glad I didn't go to the launch though. There will be plenty of other opportunities in the future. For the moment I'm just trying to survive the summer. The day always starts well. I really enjoy our sunrise walks with Dawn. The temperature is still in the high 70's and there is usually a nice breeze. I'm glad Dawn gets these walks because the rest of the day isn't worth bothering with.

I still make the bed every morning and have my standard breakfast of shredded wheat and fruit. I always check my messages after breakfast but I don't know why?  There seldom anything in my inbox but spam. I'm beginning to wonder what I'm going to do when I finish with the blog. My 5000 day goal isn't that far away. I still spend too much time at the computer but it's just force of habit. I made my living at this keyboard for decades and old habits die hard. Unfortunately, there is little pleasure in being online these days. Google relentlessly sucks up all your information and then sells it to Facebook, where it turns into ads the next day. It's amazing how thorough this process is. If I write about something on the blog, there will be ten ads about the same thing on Facebook the next day.

Why is everybody continually trying to sell you something? After my gym changed management, they are really trying to push personal trainers and special classes now. Jeez. That's not why I go to the gym. I only go because it's nice and cool in the summer and lately it's been way too hot to walk outdoors. When it cools down a bit I'll quit going to the gym and resume my long walks in the park. I don't even want anyone to talk to me while I'm at the gym. Let me do my three miles on the indoor track, shoot a few baskets and then I'll get out of your way.

When I returned from the gym, I sat outside with Dawn for a little while. True to form, she immediately rolled in the grass. Doesn't she realize that this is what makes her itchy? Dawn loves to lounge in the sun, but I limit these excursions to five minutes at a time because I don't want her to get too hot. It's still nice and cool inside, but I hate to think what our electric bill will be next month.

Janet and Dawn went to training class this evening, but they came home early again. Class got let out early when the dogs started to get hot. Dawn was really eager to go to class despite the heat though. She likes being around the other dogs and probably gets bored just sitting on the bed all day.

I'll watch the live feed of the Falcon Heavy launch on the Space X site later this evening. Weather is good in Titusville and it looks like the launch is going to take place on schedule. Live coverage usually only lasts about eight minutes. If I was actually at Kennedy Space Center the rocket would disappear from view even quicker than this. It really makes you wonder if these launch trips are worth it.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4961

Today's big event was giving Dawn a bath. Well, it wasn't a big event for Dawn. She thought we were going in the car for ice cream until we somehow wound up at the self bathe place instead. None of our dogs have liked getting a bath, although they seem to enjoy how they feel afterwards. Dawn isn't itching and scratching anymore. If we could just convince her to quit rolling in the grass, she probably wouldn't be itching at all. Hopefully she'll stay clean for a little while, but I wouldn't be surprised to see her rolling in the grass again tomorrow.

We had another enjoyable sunrise walk this morning. I wish these pleasant early morning temperatures would last a little longer. As soon as the sun comes up it's all over. At least there are a few benefits to the hot, dry weather. The house has shifted back and all the interior doors close properly again. I've been unable to close the utility room door for months. Of course doors that close properly don't keep the house cool. The air conditioner struggles to maintain the temperature in mid afternoon. I thought the new insulation on the roof would do a better job of insulating us from the heat, but there is just too much glass in the house. I'm just going to have to resign myself to high electric bills for the next several months.

For the past several nights I've had bad dreams when I sleep. This is a new development and I hope it stops soon. A restful night's sleep is one of life's pleasures. At least I don't remember my dreams. Once I'm fully awake the dreams fade quickly. Of course other thoughts fade quickly in the daytime as well. I've learned to write things down if something seems important.

I still have mixed feelings about skipping the EchoStar Jupiter 3 launch. I really didn't have much interest in going to this launch, but I definitely want to keep getting invited to future launch events. We'll have to see whether skipping an invitation makes any difference. I don't know why they are even trying to launch tomorrow. There's been a lot of rain in Titusville recently and there are bad thunderstorms right now. Truthfully, I've spent more time in the rain in Titusville than under sunny skies. I guess this doesn't really matter to the launch teams. All they need is about ten minutes of good weather to get the rocket off the ground.

I wonder when I can start taking my long walks in the park again? There is no end in sight for this hot weather. Once again I headed to the gym after breakfast. Well, actually I headed to the gym closer to lunch. I still think the place is less busy at lunchtime. The trainers must all be on commission because they all seem to be aggressively trying to line up new customers. I hope they leave me alone. If the trainers start hounding me, I'll have to quit coming. I don't want to talk to anyone or have people tell my how to improve myself while I'm working out. I just want to walk around the indoor track in peace and quiet and maybe shoot a few baskets before I return home.

After lunch Dawn got her bath and then I spent the rest of the day doing essentially nothing. There should be more things that interest me, considering how many serious interests I have had in the past. I guess it's just the ebb and flow of life. I'm curious about many things but I don't think I've ever been obsessed with anything. As long as I remain healthy, I guess I'll be fine.

Smokey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4960

My request for credentials was approved with less than two days remaining until the EchoStar Jupiter 3 launch. Jeez. This just isn't going to work. Most flights are already fully booked and the few with remaining seats are ridiculously expensive. I think the weather in Titusville will be OK, but the launch is at night making photography more difficult. All I remember about night launches is getting eaten alive by bugs. Maybe I'm just making excuses. If I really, really wanted to go I'm sure I could make it happen. I'm just not feeling very enthusiastic about anything this summer. Hopefully skipping this launch won't hurt my ability to get credentials in the future.

It's not like I'm doing anything exciting in Dallas on Wednesday. I'm just tired and feeling poor. There have been way too many household expenses this year. Oh, well. There will be other launch opportunities in the Fall. It will be cooler in Florida then and hopefully my enthusiasm will have warmed up a bit.

Today was a typical Monday. We had a very nice sunrise walk with Dawn, but three hours later it was already too hot to spend much time outdoors. The forecast doesn't look very promising. It looks like triple digit temperatures for the next ten days. It's too bad we get most of our rain in early Spring. Summers are often bone dry. We're watering our lawn frequently now, but it is looking pitiful.

Now that the weekend is over, I'm back to eating shredded wheat and fruit for breakfast. I checked my messages after breakfast but my mail is almost entirely spam these days. I didn't get the credential notice from Space X until early this evening. I waited a while before heading to the gym this morning because I've learned that if I go between 11 AM and noon there a much better chance of finding a space in the parking garage.

Today was a little strange. When I went on the court to shoot baskets, one of the trainers seemed to want to shoot with me. He must have been bored or maybe one of his customers didn't show up. I told him I was just shooting free throws, but he kept being encouraging and passing the ball back to me every time I missed a shot. Strangely this made me better. I was eager to get off the court and I made my ten baskets in record time. I'm sure the guy was just trying to be friendly, but he didn't realize what a loner I've become.  At least nobody followed me and encouraged me to walk faster on my three mile excursion around the indoor track.

I tried to stay out of the way this afternoon. Monday is the day Janet cleans the floors and she doesn't like me in the way. Dawn doesn't like me in the bedroom either, so I was stuck in the office for a while. I always feel a bit guilty when Janet cleans. I try to keep the place tidy, but dusting things has never been a priority for me. Cleaning has never been a group activity. I have my household chores and Janet has hers.

Tomorrow will be more of the same. I think this hot weather is going to go on forever. I"ll probably have some regrets tomorrow about skipping the EchoStar Jupiter 3 launch. I'll get over it though. When I finish paying the July bills, I'll realize that I couldn't afford the trip anyway. 

Molly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4959

Not a bad day, even though everything about it was very predictable. We started out with a nice early walk with Dawn. Why can't the weather stay this way all day? The temperature was in the high 70's and there was a nice breeze. It's amazing how quickly things warm up though. The temperature didn't reach 100 degrees today, but it was still a very hot day.

After another big weekend breakfast, I checked my messages and went to the mall. I go mall walking earlier now because the place is quieter and more peaceful. It's surprising how many people go mall walking. It often feels like a normal business day except that the stores aren't open. I've done this so many times that I'm familiar with all the window displays now. Some change weekly and others never change at all. There were quite a few changes today. Maybe stores are already transitioning from Summer to Fall merchandise. It's a mystery how many of the little stores can remain in business. Even when I go to the mall during the week, these stores never seem to have any customers.

It always takes me about an hour to complete my walk. On the way home I usually listen to Stephen Dubner's Freakonomics Radio. Most of what I know about economics comes from listening to this show. Even though I returned home earlier than usual, Dawn was ready to go on her Sunday outing. She knows our routine really well by now, especially when it involves her. It was too hot to take a long walk, but we took a shorter walk in the Sunday park to let her get outside for a bit.

We always end our Sunday outing with a trip to the ice cream store. Technically this stuff is called Frozen Custard, but it tastes like ice cream to me. How much ice cream we get depends on who is serving the cones. Today we got a lot. Dawn loves ice cream, but she is a messy eater. She'd probably love anything that she got to eat in the car.

As usual I didn't do much this afternoon. More bugs seem to be getting into the house this summer. It must be the heat. I had to chase down a wasp and a cricket this afternoon. There are still a ton of things that need attention around the house, but most are projects I've been trying to avoid for years. I hate to paint and sheet rock repairs are so messy. I may end up doing these things myself anyway, just because I hate having strangers around the house. Doing my own repairs will save a lot of money as well.

It's strange that I still haven't heard anything about the EchoStar Jupiter 3 launch. This thing is supposed to take place on Wednesday and credentialing notices still haven't gone out yet. I guess it doesn't matter anyway. I've decided not to go to this one. I really want to see the first Vulcan Centaur launch, but that has been postponed until the end of the year. Oh, well. Winter in Titusville is much more pleasant than Summer anyway.

I have no big plans for tomorrow. No little plans either. So far it looks like it's going to be a long, hot and very uneventful summer.

Jewel is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4958

Today was busy. I surprised myself with how much I got done. I do set the bar pretty low these days though. Maybe I was a bit more energetic because it was cooler today. For the first time in a long time the temperature didn't top 100 degrees. When 90 degrees seems cool, you know it is summer in Texas.

I was hoping to sleep in this morning but Dawn had other ideas. She wanted a walk. It was actually very nice out early this morning. Too bad these sunrise temperatures don't last very long. By the time we finished our big weekend breakfast it was already hot.

I got my grocery shopping finished early this morning and filled the car with gas. My grocery list wasn't long, but I still had to go to several stores. I think grocery store parking lots are more dangerous than most roads these days. People are always racing around looking for the last available parking spot. You've got to be careful or you'll get hit.

When I returned home I defrosted the little refrigerator. I have to do this every few months. It's too bad that these little dorm room refrigerators aren't self defrosting like a regular refrigerator. This thing was supposed to be temporary, but somehow it has become permanent. We can't get a bigger main refrigerator because it fits in a little alcove in the kitchen. A lot of modern refrigerators won't fit in this 1950's sized space. At any rate, a big refrigerator plus a small dorm room refrigerator seems to work just fine.

While the little refrigerator was thawing out, I washed the car. I should just start going to a car wash because cleaning the wheels is harder than it used to be. Whenever I have to kneel down for any length of time, I realize that my knees aren't in very good shape.

Even though the temperature didn't top 100 degrees today, it was still too hot to take my long walk in the park. I went back to the gym again and did my three miles on the indoor track. I was a little slower this morning but I didn't care. No basketball today because other people were using the court. I went back to the store on the way home to pick up a few things I forgot. In retrospect, the day wasn't really that busy, but it was busy enough for me.

I still haven't heard whether I've been approved to attend next Wednesday's Falcon Heavy launch. Approval notices seem to come later and later these days. I guess it doesn't matter because I've more or less decided that I'm not going to bother with this one. It just seems too expensive to make a quick trip to see something I've already seen many times before.

I hate to think what next month's electric bill is going to be. The air conditioner has been running non stop. At least I can do my walking indoors for the rest of the summer. Tomorrow I'll skip the gym and go mall walking instead. Both places are ice cold. I have to wear a long sleeved shirt when I go walking in these places. It remains to be seen whether it will be too hot for Dawn's Sunday outing tomorrow, but we'll go get ice cream cones anyway. We're definitely back to our regular schedule now.

Pongo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4957

There's a Falcon Heavy launch next week that I'll almost certainly get credentialed for. I don't think I'm going to go. Hmmm. This is new. I never turn down a chance to go to a launch. I just don't feel like it this time. Florida in July is not pleasant and I get eaten alive by bugs on night launches. That's not a good excuse though because Texas in July is not pleasant either. Flights are always fully booked now and I always have to pay a lot more to get a seat when approval notices go out at the last minute. Sometimes it's hard to find a hotel as well. I've already been to a bunch of Falcon Heavy launches and it's getting harder and harder to come up with something to write about. I'm also feeling poor. I've had a lot of large expenses this summer and these launch trips aren't cheap. Do I even really need an excuse? I started doing this for fun, and if it doesn't seem fun anymore, why bother.

When I'm sitting here doing nothing next week I might regret my decision, but there are plenty of other launches to think about. I'm sure I'll return to Kennedy Space Center again. I still kind of envy the guys who live in the area and can easily go to any launch they want on very short notice.

Hey, I can still go to the gym on very short notice. It's open seven days a week now. Unless the temperature cools down a bit, a daily trip to the gym is going to be my summer. No complaints though. I'm staying in shape inside an air conditioned building and keeping the car filled with gas is a lot cheaper than a plane ticket. 

Today was uneventful. The only thing that happened out of the ordinary was that Dawn threw up on the bed and we had to wash all the bedding. She wasn't sick. Sometimes when Dawn drinks a lot of water right after she eats, she regurgitates things. This certainly isn't the first time this has happened. It would be nice if she threw up on the brick floors where it is easy to clean things up. She prefers the bed for everything though. It is her safe space.

I prefer the bed too for afternoon naps. It's more comfortable than napping on the sofa. Dawn must have been in a good mood because she seemed happy to share the bed with me this afternoon. It's supposed to be a bit cooler tomorrow. That would be nice. It's already time for me to make a grocery list again. Janet did her grocery shopping today and of course that made Dawn happy. Dawn loves grocery day.

Katie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4956

Another long, hot day. Getting up early didn't really help that much this morning. The temperature was already too hot long before the sun rose. I think others have discovered that this is the best time of the day because there are a surprising number of people out walking before sunrise these days. I'm glad Dawn enjoys these early walks. It's the only time she's active all day.

The replacement for the broken knife rack came today. There was a little note in the instructions that said "don't use with serrated knives." Why? This made no sense, but maybe this was why the old knife rack exploded. We have lots of serrated knives. 

When the mail came there were two letters from the gas company. One letter said my bill was late and the second letter said to ignore the first letter because it was wrong. Strange that both letter came on the same day. I checked and my bill wasn't late. I always pay my bills on time.

I keep meaning to go to Home Depot to get some paint to repaint the trim around the roof and some sheetrock mud to repair some of the minor cracks in the ceiling myself. These things have been on my 

"to do" list for several weeks but I keep avoiding picking up supplies because I don't want to do these tasks. I guess the easy solution with the ceiling is just not to look up anymore. I'd like the house to look nice, but I've grown to hate home repairs. It's still easier to do the work yourself though, because it's so hard to find competent people to do little jobs.

I'm still getting the spoofed e-mail spam that appears to come from my own e-mail address. Should I call my ISP again, or just learn to live with the nuisance?  I've already called twice and tech support said the fixed the problem both times. It appears they actually did nothing. A quick Google search revealed that this is a very common problem that is hard to eradicate. I'm beginning to understand why some of my older friends have just disappeared from the Internet. They're not sick or dead. I think they've just realized that being online is a total waste of time.

I went to the gym after breakfast. I wonder how long it will be before I can take my long walks in the park again? Is it really that important to get at least 10,000 steps everyday? I think that's the only reason I go to the gym. I think I'm in reasonably good shape but I could be fooling myself. My upper body strength is pretty abysmal. A trip to the gym is a good way to kill time though. These days are long enough as is is.

This week has gone quickly. Dawn will be happy tomorrow because it is Janet's grocery day again. I doubt that I'll do anything different. There's a new neighborhood restaurant I could try, but I'll probably just have my shredded wheat and fruit again. This is always a good way to start an uneventful day.

Lady Jane is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4955

I paid for the water heater today. I hope nothing else breaks this summer. I've had enough. The roofing company people called me this morning and tried to convince me to add solar panels to the house. "Are you kidding," I told them. "I just finished paying for your roof." I guess old houses and unexpected expenses go together, but I'm getting tired of this.

I'm also getting tired of triple digit temperatures. Maybe we've had hotter summers before, but I don't remember any. This heat is relentless and there is no rain in sight. The temperature when we get up in the morning is what the high for the day would be in a normal summer. By the time I finish breakfast it's already too hot to do much outside. I put out water for the squirrels now. I don't know how the animals in the park are surviving.

I'm surviving by staying indoors. I go to the gym instead of walking in the park and if there are outdoor chores I do them very early in the morning. Luckily it's still tolerable just before sunrise so Dawn still gets her morning walks. She didn't go to training class tonight though. It was just too hot.

It's probably good that this blog is slowly winding to a close. I'm really running out of things to say. You know the routine by now. I get up. We walk Dawn. I make the bed. I eat some breakfast and check my messages. I go to the gym, walk three miles and shoot some baskets. Then I return home, eat some lunch and take Dawn outside to pee. In the afternoon I think about things I should be doing and then take a long nap. No wonder I get excited about going to Florida for rocket launches.

Maybe I'll think of something interesting to do tomorrow. I doubt it though. There's a new breakfast restaurant in the neighborhood, but I don't go out for breakfast anymore. The clothing store that I used to write for is having their big annual sale, but I've still got clothes from five years ago that I've never worn. Tomorrow will be very much like today except there's an Amazon delivery scheduled and it's trash day. Even when nothing's happening, you still need to take the week's trash out to the curb.

Jade is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4954

This heat wave is starting to feel a little apocalyptic. There is no end in sight. We got up even earlier this morning so Dawn could have at least one decent walk. The temperature already was in the high 80's an hour before sunrise. There was a nice breeze though, so I have no complaints. The complaints always come later in the day.

I quietly ate my shredded wheat and fruit for breakfast and then invented a number of small tasks so I wouldn't end up going to the gym too early. I like to go during the lunch hour because it is less crowded then. I watered the plants in the atrium, did a load of laundry, and took some things out to the curb for bulky trash day. I used to spend a lot of time on the computer, but this is becoming less and less rewarding. Now that the computer is no longer a tool for generating income, it is just a way to kill time. I spend too much time checking my Facebook timeline. Why? Half my feed is just ads now. I've learned that sponsored posts are just clickbait. If something in the picture intrigues you, you will never find the answer by clicking on the link. I used to love looking at pictures of people's dogs, but lately most of the dogs on my feed are desperate pleas for fosters or adoptions before the dog gets euthanized at a pound or animal shelter. There are tons of posts about lost dogs. Jeez. If you have a dog, you really need a fenced yard. You should always walk your dog on a leash as well.

Why is modern life so depressing? I hate to even listen to the news on TV these days. The endless political debates are mind numbingly pointless. Anyone who thinks that the Democratic or Republican party has the answer to our problems is a fool. We apparently haven't figured out that wars are pointless as well. There are people in this country just itching to get more involved with the war in Ukraine. Boeing and Raytheon would love to have a wider war. If we haven't learned anything from Vietnam and the pointless wars in the Middle East, we probably never will.  China probably has the right idea. I think they realized they don't need to have a shooting war. They can just poison our minds with TikTok and poison our bodies with strange new viruses.

One good thing about walking is you don't need to dwell on such things. When I'm walking outdoors I just observe the plants and animals. Ducks are surprisingly interesting. When I'm walking indoors at the gym, I do mental math in my head trying to guess exactly how far I've walked without looking at my watch or Fitbit. I don't have deep thoughts when I walk. Those thoughts are reserved for dreams. I'm glad I don't remember my dreams. When I occasionally wake up in the middle of a dream, it's clear that most of them are a little scary.

I need to get a little more creative with my workout. For over two weeks now I've done exactly the same things when I go to the gym. Today was no different. I walk three miles on the indoor track, trying to keep a pace of around 20 minutes per mile. I usually end up walking about an hour. Next I see how long it takes to complete ten free throws on the basketball court. Sometimes I'm quick. Other times I'm embarrassingly slow. My main goal at the gym is just to find a parking place inside the parking garage, so I don't have to park my car out in the sun.

I didn't do a lot this afternoon. Afternoons are for napping or if I get really bored, for monkeying around with the star tracker. I can't even remember what I did this afternoon, but the day went quickly. Tomorrow will be more of the same. Cooler Fall weather can't come soon enough. 

Beemer is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4953

The temperature wasn't bad when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk, but it didn't take long for it to climb to over 105 degrees. When is this going to end? When I looked at the weather app on my phone it showed triple digit temperatures for the next two weeks. I tried to make the most of the cooler early morning temperatures by finishing mowing the grass in the back yard right after breakfast. That was actually a smart move. By the time I was ready to go to the gym a few hours later, it was already to hot to do anything outdoors. I hate to even think what our electric bill is going to be next month. It's going to be awful.

On the way to the gym I dropped off a few things at the storage warehouse. This trip was depressing because the warehouse is full. I had a hard time finding a place for the few things I brought today. Some of the stuff in storage is useless and could be thrown away, but it's not going to be an easy task. The older stuff is almost impossible to reach because it is hidden behind piles of newer stuff. Some things could be easily sold, but I have an almost deathly fear of interacting with strangers, so I would never put anything on Craigslist or have a garage sale. eBay is too much trouble these days. There are lots of scammers and you have to box everything up and ship it to the buyer. If I had unlimited resources I'd just keep renting additional storage units and let some future edition of Storage Wars deal with the stuff after I'm gone. Does this make me a hoarder? Probably not. The house is still pretty clean and neat.

I'm glad I've got my gym to go to on days like this. They must have some industrial strength air conditioning units because the place is always ice cold, even on days like this. Mondays always seem to be more crowded than other days. I have no idea why. Luckily I found the last covered space in the parking garage today. My gym visits aren't very imaginative. I do the same things day after day. I walk three miles on the indoor track and shoot baskets for about fifteen minutes. My time on the basketball court provides more exercise than you might think. It's probably the most active I am all day.

I spent the afternoon trying to keep out of the way. Dawn didn't want me in the bedroom with her and Janet was cleaning the floors and didn't want me to walk on them while they were wet. I was stuck in the office for a while. The computer used to be entertaining, but there are only three places I visit anymore. I look at Facebook, I read Google news, and I write my blog on Blogspot every night. I should just delete my LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter accounts. I never visit those places these days.

I still haven't heard anything about the Falcon Heavy Jupiter 3/EchoStar launch I applied for earlier. It would probably be a blessing in disguise if I didn't get approved. My car insurance is due and I still haven't paid for the new water heater yet. I was hoping that the new roof would be my only big expense this year, but that hasn't worked out very well. It seems like everything is a big expense these days.

We'll have to get up even earlier to avoid the heat tomorrow. It's a shame that Dawn only gets this one early walk a day now. I guess that's better than nothing though. The heat has gotten so bad that the park department is putting out signs along the paths warning people about heatstroke in dogs and the dangers of them burning their paws on hot asphalt of concrete. If history is any guide, things aren't looking good this summer. It is usually hot until October here in Dallas. I spend the day just hoping that our air conditioner doesn't go out or we have a power outage. 

Riley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4952

Life is back to normal. Dawn was so happy to take a walk again this moring. She could have taken a walk with me every day last week, but she's a strange dog. Unless we're both around, she just retreats to the bedroom. It was surprisingly cool this morning. The temperature was still in the 70's when we woke up. If it wasn't for the sporadic rain showers it would have been a good day for a long walk in the park.

After our walk with Dawn we had a big weekend breakfast and then I got ready to go mall walking. Dawn didn't hide in the bedroom today She joined us for breakfast and even got her own egg. It was nice to be back on schedule again. The long list of daily tasks was gone. All I have to remember now is to feed Dawn her dinner and bedtime snack.

I go to the mall earlier now. This leaves more time later in the day for whatever needs to be done. There were very few changes this week. No new stores opened and almost all of the window displays were he same. I'm still surprised at how popular mall walking seems to be. There are almost as many people circling the perimeter before the stores open as there are later in the day. I really prefer mall walking to walking around the indoor track at the gym. You can only really do this one day a week though when the mall opens for business at noon. On most days the stores open too early to make mall walking feasible.

Dawn got her Sunday outing today. There was a light mist when we left the house, but Dawn still got a chance to walk around her Sunday park a bit before we went for ice cream. There was a big line at the ice cream store drive thru this morning. I guess this is what you do on a rainy day. The cones have gotten more expensive, but I still can't think of a better alternative. This definitely beats getting a soft serve cone at Dairy Queen.

The big pile of stuff in the living room is gone. Janet is a wizard at getting rid of things. Some stuff got thrown away. Other things got bagged up to take to a charity resale shop. The few things that remained all found a new place to reside. It's weird. I would have had a much harder time getting rid of this stuff, but I don't miss any of the things that got thrown away.

Since it was much cooler than I expected today, it seemed like a good time to mow the grass. I almost never mow during the afternoon in the summer, but I knew the temperature was going to be much warmer next week. Luckily the mower still had a charge and I was able to finish the front yard before dinner. The back yard is easier. Maybe I'll do that right after breakfast tomorrow.

I don't have any plans for Monday. I need to take a few things to the storage warehouse and fill the car with gas. I'm sure I'll go to the gym. The temperature is supposed to reach 105 tomorrow.

Laura is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4951

Janet returned home this evening and Dawn is beyond happy. I think a week alone with me is about her limit. For the most part she's been very good, but this morning I was worried enough about her that I almost took her to the vet. She seemed very agitated and tore up her dog bed in the kitchen. Then she tried to hide in all the wrong places, like inside closets and behind the television. I took her outside and she was panting heavily. I don't know whether she had a mild seizure or was just having a panic attack. At any rate after about fifteen minutes she was completely back to normal and there were no problems for the rest of the day. It will be nice to finally go on a walk with her again tomorrow. She has refused to take a walk all week.

The last time Janet went on vacation Dawn seemed to relax as the week wore on. This time she seemed to become a little more stressed with each passing day. She is a very fearful dog and it doesn't take much to get her shivering and shaking. I think today she might have just given up hope that Janet was ever returning and thought she might be stuck with me forever. All is well now though. I hope she remembers that these vacations don't last forever the next time Janet goes someplace. 

Once I was convinced that Dawn was fine I went to the gym. Walking around the indoor track is the only way I'm going to get my steps this summer. It's way too hot to go walking in the park. When I took Dawn out to pee this morning it was already 90 degrees. It didn't take long for the temperature to climb over 100. I didn't stay long at the gym today. I was still a little worried about Dawn and came home as soon as I finished my three miles around the indoor track. I picked up a few groceries on the way home but I'll probably have to go to the store again tomorrow. 

My call to tech support yesterday accomplished nothing. I'm still getting the spoofed e-mail spam that appears to come from me. The person I talked with yesterday sounded pretty convincing and I actually thought the problem was solved. I should have known better. These guys have never really helped me before. Why should they start now. 

I hope Janet has some ideas about how to get rid of the pile of stuff in the living room that used to reside in the utility room. I have no idea where to put these things now that we no longer have a shelf. Our closets are full and the storage warehouse is getting pretty full as well. Some of the things could be thrown away, but at least half the stuff are things we use all the time. All these problems could have been avoided if the building inspector didn't have to inspect new water heaters. The way the shelf in the utility room was attached before worked well for over fifty years. It's a shame that the rules had to change at a time when I've lost all patience with bureaucracies. Getting a new drivers license was a pain. So was getting approved for TSA Pre. I never dreamed that getting a water heater would be a hassle too.

I guess I'm just getting old and grumpy. Dawn and I should get along great because she's old and grumpy as well. Neither of us like dealing with change. All in all, I think we did pretty well this week. We're both glad Janet is back though. It takes a team to keep this house running.

Lizzy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day