Day 3641

I went looking for a Christmas ham this morning. The hams at the little smokehouse where I got last year's ham were ridiculously expensive and the hams at the supermarket were ridiculously cheap. I couldn't decide what to get, so I got nothing. I'll do what I always do in these situations. I'll let Janet decide. She's much better at this anyway.

SpaceFlight Magazine liked the pictures I sent and told me that they were going to postpone their Artemis articles until January because they wanted to expand their coverage of the program. The editor asked if I'd still like to write an article for the magazine. Sure. I'll get started next week. I'm kind of a compulsive writer, so I would have written something anyway. Now, it looks like my story will get published.

I learned that if I'd asked about a month ago, the magazine could also have gotten me a press pass for next Friday's Starliner launch. A little late now. I'll have to remember this in the future. I don't know why I was so convinced that I'd be selected as a NASA guest for this launch. As it turned out, they wanted me to go to New Orleans instead.

It's just as well I'm not going to Florida next week anyway. I forgot that my property taxes are due this month. December is alway full of expenses. At least I finished my Christmas shopping. It's all done on Amazon.com these days. Shopping online is so much easier than going to a shopping mall. No crowds. No parking hassles. And you don't even have to wrap the packages.

It was a beautiful day for a walk. The sky was clear and the air was brisk and cool. Too bad I didn't have more energy. I was really tired after I finished my requisite five miles. I'm starting to see familiar faces when I walk. There are other people who seem to do this every day as well. Most of the regulars are cyclists or joggers, but there are a few other slow walkers as well. It makes sense that a lot of people utilize this park. Walking outdoors is much more enjoyable than walking on a treadmill.

We're doing our last Santa Paws event of the year tomorrow. Dalmatian Rescue did well at the first two events, so hopefully we'll do just as well tomorrow. Five new Dalmatians entered our program recently, so we've definitely got some additional bills to pay. There photo event help. I have no idea how many pets we'll be photographing tomorrow, but I think I'm ready. The batteries are charged and all the equipment is ready to be loaded into the car. I just need to try and get a good night's sleep.

The wildflowers are gone. Most of the trees are bare. All I could find to photograph today was a lone Western Soapberry tree filled with poisonous fruit. The translucent berries look like clusters of grapes, but please don't eat them.

Cookie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3285

I found myself driving all over town today in search of a Christmas ham. When I went to my favorite smokehouse, the guy behind the counter gave me this look that clearly said "Dude, you should have ordered your ham three weeks ago." They told me they wouldn't have any more smoked hams available until after Christmas. I didn't want a grocery store ham and there weren't many places nearby that smoked their own meat. I finally went to a good barbecue restaurant and convinced them to sell me some smoked ham by the pound. They only wanted to sell me a whole ham, but it was huge and I knew it would take Janet and I a month to eat it. "I only need three pounds," I said. "Your customers will order the rest of this ham before you close today anyway." The restaurant was crowded with hungry people and the manager agreed. I got my ham.

I also got the roof fixed today. At least I hope I got the leak fixed. One of the guys on the crew showed me a place where it was pretty obvious that water was getting in. They made their repairs and drove away. We'll see what happens when the rain returns. I'm cautiously optimistic at this point. The weather will still be good tomorrow and the elastomer coating should have a full 48 hours to cure before the rainy weather returns.

I think I'm on good terms with the roofer again. He agreed that even under the best of conditions today's repairs were probably only temporary. Its' going to take some serious work to make this type of membrane roof completely reliable. Silicon definitely preforms well under standing water. That's good. Unfortunately silicon doesn't really stick to anything. That's why the material is often used to make molds to manufacture other products. If I've got a roof that won't stick to the rest of the house, I've got a big problem. It's probably time to forget about high-tech solutions and go back to a conventional roof.

Dash missed the puppy training pad last night, so I was back to going outside in the middle of the night, cleaning his blanket with a garden hose and then throwing it in the washing machine on the high temperature disinfect cycle. Dash moves around too much at night. It's almost impossible to keep these absorbent puppy training pads under his butt. I'm not giving up though. I went to the storage warehouse after breakfast and brought back a large carton of the pads that we used to use for Dot.

Dash got an early Christmas present today. Another box of Devon's Doggie Delights arrived in the mail. It always amazes me when someone manages to build a successful business just by selling to Facebook friends, but the lady who owns this company appears to have done it. Half the people we know with Dalmatians order from her regularly. Devon, not surprisingly is the owner's Dalmatian. Dash absolutely loves these treats. We always know when it's time to order more.

I wish Dash knew when it was time to pee and poop. I think that's too much to ask at this point unfortunately. A good day for Dash is when he is able to get up on his own and walk around for a while without falling over. I guess that's a good day for anyone who's growing older. If I don't fall over tomorrow, I'm going back to the gym. I definitely need some exercise before we eat our Christmas ham.

Two sisters are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day