Day 4497 - Easter

We had a very pleasant Easter. It was so peaceful and quiet when we took Dawn on her early walk this morning. There was no traffic noise, no planes overhead, and no police or fire sirens. There were very few people in the park and it felt like I remembered it years ago. Of course that would change dramatically later in the day, but for a brief moment in time all was good.

We had a hearty weekend breakfast after we walked Dawn and afterwards since the weather was cool and traffic was light on our street, I thought I'd try to mow the lawn. It's still a loathsome job, but I did it. It actually didn't seem any harder than it did the previous year, so that was encouraging. I'm glad I mowed when I did. The grass was starting to get thick. On most days I hate mowing where our yard meets the street. The traffic has gotten much, much worse during the thirty odd years we've lived here. People don't even slow down when they pass me mowing along the edge of the yard. They barrel by at 40 to 50 miles an hour. I miss the days when our street was relatively quiet.

After I finished mowing and rested a bit, it was time for Dawn's Sunday outing. The weather was still cool and cloudy, so we had a nice walk. The parks weren't quite so empty this time. Families were starting to arrive for Easter picnics and barbecues. A few children were having an egg hunt. We encountered some people on horseback during our walk. Dawn doesn't react to horses the way some of our other dogs have. She pretty much ignores them. After walking about a mile and a half, we went looking for ice cream. I really expected the ice cream place to be closed for Easter, but we were pleasantly surprised to discover that the place was open. They raised their prices again. The cones weren't any bigger though. So it goes. Absolutely everything is getting more expensive these days.

I don't know why I still felt like taking a long walk later in the afternoon. Probably because I couldn't think of anything better to do. This time the park was a zoo. The place was completely filled with families having large picnics. Many groups brought tables and chairs with them. Some set up tents as well. I was surprised at how many families brought their own barbecue grills since there are already lots of permanent grills in the park. There were lots of games for children. One group even set up an elaborate zip line between two trees for their kids to ride. It looked like everyone was having fun. I'm not a fan of crowds in the park, but it was hard to find fault with any of this. In today's increasingly weird world, it was nice to see families acting like regular normal families.

When I finished my third walk of the day I'll have to admit that I was tired. Hey, I got 22,000 steps though and I mowed the yard. Not bad for an old guy with bad feet. I doubt that I'll walk nearly as far tomorrow. The highlight of our day was Easter dinner. A smoked ham has become a tradition on Easter Sunday. You've got to have candied yams and a green bean casserole too. We finished our meal with a delicious carrot cake. I ate too much, but that's what holiday meals are for. It looks like we'll have plenty of leftovers for the rest of the week.

Tomorrow it's time to visit the rescue Dalmatians again. I hope potential adopters are looking at these dogs. They're all great and it's time for each of them to find their forever homes.

Bella is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4119 - Easter

The picture is old, but I still like it. Dot was a great dog. She was a patient soul who let us dress her up in all manner of ridiculous costumes. I doubt that Dawn would wear bunny ears. They would just be one more thing to be scared of. We wanted Dawn to have a nice Easter, so we drove her to another park this morning where we knew she would have new things to explore. Dawn really enjoys these outings even though she's not fond of riding in the car.

We had a relaxed and very enjoyable Easter. Janet went to church yesterday to avoid the crowds and today was just a low-key day around the house. Dawn was in a good mood today and took two walks. We were impressed. After we took her to a new park in the car, she did her familiar one mile loop later in the day. The park was busy, but it wasn't nearly as crowded as in previous years. Covid has changed everything.

Janet joined me on my long walk today. A walk is always a good time to talk and catch up on things. I managed to keep up a pretty decent pace and my foot didn't give me any major problems. Although it was overcast today, the weather was mild and I didn't need a coat. We've lived in this area for a long time and it's weird how much the neighborhood has changed. Even the park has changed quite a bit. It was largely undeveloped when we moved here. I think I liked it better then. At some point the city passed a huge bond issue with the money designated to go toward improving the park. Over time the area became a popular destination for people all over North Texas. They come to birdwatch, to hike, to cycle, to kayak and sail, and to have picnics and barbecues. It's really a wonderful park now, but I still liked it better when it was wild and undiscovered.

By mid afternoon the house began to be filled with the smells of a delicious meal being cooked. While Janet was cooking, I tried to clean up the yard. There are still lots of leaves trapped under the dying ground cover in the back yard. We haven't tried to rake this area because it would pull up the remaining Asian Jasmine that managed to survive the big freeze. I thought I'd try to blow these leaves away with a leaf blower. I was partially successful. I removed a lot of leaves, but unfortunately the entire area doesn't look any better. It's going to take a long time for this part of the yard to recover.

After I gave up on yard work, I practiced processing some of last October's astrophotography images in Photoshop. I watch a lot of YouTube videos and bookmark tutorial sites. I continue to learn and the results are beginning to show it. I'm getting better at this odd and often difficult avocation. I walk to keep my body active and I write and keep learning to keep my brain active. I may be wrong, but I'm convinced that staying active like this is the best way to avoid dementia and maybe even Alzheimer's. I've seen way too many people my age begin to decline the minute they give up and quit learning.

Our Easter dinner was delicious. The small batch meat company that hand smokes the hams I get every Easter is amazing. This stuff is addictive and surprisingly easy to cook. Janet made candied yams with marshmallows on top and green beans with bacon and peppers. We topped everything off with a cherry pie for dessert and we are both pleasantly stuffed.

It looks like I'll have some tasty leftovers for the rest of the week. I hope Dawn continues walking. She did well today. She even came out of the bedroom and joined us at dinner for a while. Easter is supposed to be a hopeful time and today felt good. I'm not typically an optimistic person, but today I'm more than willing to give it a try.

Dottie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4116

The furnace wasn't working when I woke up this morning. Damn. This always seems to happen during the very last days of winter when you don't think you are going to need the furnace anymore. I wasn't looking forward to taking the unit apart to clean the flame sensor again. The flame sensor is almost always the problem. Before I went to all that trouble I gave the tried and true method for fixing anything electrical a try. I unplugged the furnace, waited thirty seconds, and then plugged it in again. I also reset the thermostat for good measure. Amazingly, this worked. The furnace fired up and roared into life. The flame sensor probably is dirty, but with any luck I won't need to deal with it until next Fall.

I managed to find a nice little smoked ham today. I don't know why I thought there was going to be a run on Easter hams. When I went to the smokehouse, I was the only person in the store. There were even several small hams to choose from. I was surprised. Did Covid change something? In previous years I've had a terrible time finding a good smoked ham this close to Easter. 

I received a message from the Air Force, or I guess it is the Space Force now, saying that my press credentials have been reinstated for another year. Yay. I'm good to go for 2021. The message seemed to imply that the Air Force wasn't working as closely with NASA anymore. My credentials might only be. good for military launches. That's OK with me. I think the Space Force will be launching a Falcon Heavy later this year. A Falcon Heavy launch is always spectacular because both side boosters return to the Cape to land.

I wasn't expecting much on my walk today. When I woke up this morning I felt like a cripple. My left foot hurt. My right knee felt stiff. My hip felt sore and my shoulder still felt loose. Oddly, walking seemed to help loosen up these aching joints. I certainly didn't set any records today, but I completed five miles in a little more than an hour and a half. That's slow, but it will have to do for now.

I began to familiarize myself with the new star tracker this afternoon. The unit is sturdy and seems to be extremely well made. I don't think it is going to be easy to use unfortunately. A star tracker is basically a small German equatorial mount that holds a camera instead of a telescope. A motor slowly rotates the unit at 15 degrees per hour to counteract the rotation of the earth. You can take a lot longer exposures since the stars aren't moving from the camera's perspective. Like most telescope mounts, you have to assemble and balance the tracker in the field. There are several little adjustment screws that will fall off and get lost if you loosen them too much. You also have to align everything very exactly with Polaris. I know how to do all this in theory, but it's harder to do in the dark. Have I mentioned that I am very clumsy.

My Fitbit isn't tracking my sleep anymore. Maybe it's getting old and needs to be replaced. I always liked the sleep tracking capability. I have no idea whether it is accurate or even produces meaningful results, but I like to look at it in the morning and discover that I slept better than I thought I did. About half the time it does the opposite and shows me that I didn't sleep well at all. I probably don't need a Fitbit to tell me that I'm not sleeping well. My weird dreams tell me all I need to know.

Yesterday I got an e-mail from the Dallas arboretum asking me to review them on Facebook. A few minutes ago I got an e-mail from the smoked meat company where I got the ham, asking for a review on Facebook. The appliance repair company asked for a review after they fixed my washing machine a few weeks ago. Does everybody do this now? Couldn't we just go back to word of mouth? A world addicted to social media feedback is not a good thing.

Haley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4113

Somebody bought Charlie and Cooper a yellow football with a squeaker inside and it was their new favorite toy this week. We discovered that both dogs would make pretty good wide receivers because you could toss them the football and they would catch it in the air surprisingly often. We met some new employees today. Like most Dallas businesses, the kennel seems to be slowly returning to normal. I'm glad they survived the pandemic.

When we returned home I went out and got a new pair of walking shorts. I was down to a single pair and I knew they wouldn't make it through the Summer.  Amazingly, I found some shorts that were exactly the same brand and style as the ones I bought three years ago. In theory, buying something that I didn't need to try on first should have saved me time. It didn't. There was only one person working at the checkout counters and the person ahead of me in line was trying to return something without a receipt. It took me forever to get out of the store, but I still like to support local business whenever I can.

Dawn did well on her first walk this morning, so we thought she'd enjoy a second walk after we returned from the kennel. Apparently not. We couldn't even get her down to the park. She froze in place and wouldn't go any further before we had even gone three hundred yards. Oh, well. At least she got a good walk this morning. Janet returned to the house with Dawn and I continued walking.

I wonder how long this nice Spring weather is going to continue? The weather has been almost perfect for over a week and there is no rain in the forecast. The pleasant weather is probably why I thought about getting shorts today. I've been wearing shorts and a t-shirt all week. Right now, the heat comes on when we wake up in the morning and then the air conditioner comes on later in the afternoon. I'd better enjoy this while it lasts. Pretty soon it's going to be way too hot.

I had a good walk this afternoon, even though I am still embarrassingly slow and every step reminds me that I'm almost 73 years old. I have so many aches and pains that I feel like an old rusty machine. I think things would be a lot worse if I didn't keep moving. Would I feel more fit if I moved even more? I guess I'll never know unless I return to the gym. When am I going to find the time though? I'm so slow that a few chores and a long walk fills my entire day.

I'm surprised that I still haven't heard from NASA or the Air Force about the launches I've applied to attend in April. Jeez. It's almost April. I hate to make plans at the last minute. I haven't heard anything from the magazine I write for either. It's starting to feel like everyone has forgotten about me. I'm torn between wanting a full schedule and the realization that I could never afford a full schedule anyway. I do get published, but the magazine never pays for my expenses when I travel. Does this just make my space journalism quest an expensive hobby? Who knows. 

I'm thinking about getting a smoked ham for Easter again. Janet thinks about the true meaning of Easter, but I usually just think about smoked ham. I'd better go look for something tomorrow. It may be too late already.

Elliott is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3762 - Easter

You know something, I don't want to go back to normal. Normal wasn't that good. I'm not typically an optimistic person, but I see a unique opportunity in the days ahead. The world has been given a once in a lifetime chance to wipe the slate clean and start over. Everything has been so fundamentally disrupted that there is no reason to go back to what we were doing before.

Personally, I like the fact that everything has slowed down a bit. Streets are much quieter now. It's rare to hear an airplane overhead. They say crime is down in many cities. Maybe I'm imagining things but people even seem more polite. Who knows. Maybe we should have been staying six feet apart all along.

Easter is a time of rebirth. Why not give it a try. I'll be the first to admit that it won't be easy. If we continue our political bickering here in the United States it will be impossible. Don't the Democrats and the Republicans seem almost irrelevant now? They don't have the answer. It's time to stop blaming each other. The virus isn't Trump's fault or Pelosi's fault. It's a plague. I'd like to see a third person unaffiliated with any party come out of nowhere and capture the country's imagination. Neither party deserves to win at this point.

The problem with starting over is that your idea of a brighter future might be a lot different than mine. What would I do? Probably the same things I've been doing for years. I certainly don't find the answer in government. It's time to start taking personal responsibility for our own lives. Nobody owes you anything. Start eating healthy food. Get outside more. Quit smoking, vaping, and putting anything other than air into your lungs. So many of of our problems are caused by bad lifestyle choices. If we were a healthy nation both physically and mentally, the next few months would be a lot easier.

We need to realize that global pandemics are a consequence of a global economy. We need to think small again. A bunch of small economies, each making what they need for themselves ensures that nobody can bring the entire house of cards tumbling down. I hear people wondering why we don't have enough masks and gowns for doctors when we're the richest country in the world. Duh. We don't make anything anymore. The countries that actually make the masks and gowns have people dying too and are keeping their production for themselves.

It doesn't really matter what things cost if people have secure jobs and there is food on the table. When I was growing up every little town had a factory. We made everything here. Wouldn't you like to have those factories back now? Sure, your TV and sneakers would cost more, but who cares. The world is telling us, "you can pay me now or you can pay me later."

Back in the day it use to cost a lot more to fly, but was your last trip to a business meeting really even necessary? People used to fly me to Germany just to go to meetings. I didn't even speak German. It was silly. Lets get back to basics. Make the things you need. Use the things you need. Develop self-sufficiency as a person and as a country.

I like analogies. It is Easter. Maybe people are dying for our collective sins. We have an opportunity to start over as a society. Call it a resurrection if you will. We got so many things wrong, but there's no reason we can't get it right this time.

Nellie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3761

Fifty years ago today Apollo 13 started it's journey to the moon. We all know what happened a few days later. An explosion ripped the service module apart and the astronauts were rapidly losing oxygen and electrical power. The world held its breath as an amazing team of scientists and engineers did the impossible and brought the astronauts back alive. Even now, what they were able to accomplish with so few resources to work with is impressive. Hopefully, somewhere tonight there are other teams of doctors and scientists trying to unravel the mystery of the coronavirus against equally daunting odds.

I don't know if it is fair to compare the Apollo Program to medical research. During the Apollo 13 crisis, three lives were in jeopardy instead of millions. The three astronauts were part of the problem but there were also part of the solution. They were all extremely smart and resourceful. If they weren't, none of the solutions mission control proposed would have worked.

How do you eradicate something you know nothing about? The virus might as well be a species of tiny aliens. Here's how little we know. Everyone has been begging for mechanical ventilators for weeks. Now it turns out that 80% of the people who get put on a ventilator die. Doctors are starting to say that being on a ventilator might actually make the situation worse. There is anecdotal evidence that Germany has had far fewer deaths than other European countries because German doctors didn't think that high pressure mechanical ventilation worked. Along with increased testing, they tried other therapies.

It's kind of sad that most learning is accomplished through failure. That's how it works though. NASA learned an enormous amount after the Apollo 1 fire and Apollo 13 explosion. I imagine that doctors are learning more about how the virus behaves every day. I hope they get the ventilator situation sorted out soon. Ventilators work well for bacterial pneumonia. A ventilator is only used until the antibiotics kick in and the inflammation in the lungs begins to subside. Usually this is less than two days. This virus acts much differently and antibiotics don't work at all. A ventilator was never meant to be used for weeks at a time.

I know virtually nothing about medicine, but if I were writing a sci-fi thriller here's how all this would go down. Chinese scientists create the perfect bioweapon. It is extremely infectious and virtually undetectable until the damage is done. Since there are billions of people in China, the leadership decides that losing a million is a small price to pay for total world domination. They infect a large city and then let several hundred thousand scared residents escape to other parts of the world before making the rest of us aware that the virus even exists. Then they make a good show of stamping the virus out so the world won't blame them for anything. China emerges strong and the rest of the world is descimated without a shot being fired. It probably didn't happen this way, but it sure seems plausible. It still seems odd to me that there were no huge outbreaks in other Chinese cities. Somebody was very well prepared for this.

The United States wasn't prepared at all. Apparently we learned nothing from the anthrax scare right after 9/11. I'm convinced that we need to get back to the kind of country we were during the Apollo program. We were smart and resourceful then. Every single nut and bolt in the Apollo rockets was made right here in the United States. A huge percentage of what what we used everyday was made here as well. We didn't need China. Wouldn't you have rather have paid a little more for your flat screen TV than see the country go trillions of dollars in debt because of this debacle. I would have gladly paid 30% more for everything to avoid this mess.

I did find some toilet paper today. I guess that's a good thing. Janet will be watching Easter services on her iPad instead of going to church, but we'll still be having a smoked ham for Easter dinner. I love a smoked ham. I hope Easter and Passover is still a joyful time for those of you who believe. It's important to believe in something.

Tyson is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3405 - Easter

It was a very quiet day. After breakfast Janet joined me on my morning walk. She's in better shape than I am these days and I had to walk a little faster to keep up. We both do a pretty good job of staying active. Janet just enjoys the activity more. I go to the gym once a week out of necessity. She goes almost every day for fun.

I was surprised that the park didn't seem very full today. The weather was beautiful, but there were very few egg hunts and family gatherings. Usually this place is a madhouse on Easter morning. Maybe traditions have changed. We saw lots of cyclists and joggers today, but there weren't a lot of children.

I finished clearing the water off the roof today. This is how I get my exercise. No spin class or yoga for me. Just drudgery. I'm glad it's getting warmer because the water evaporates faster. There really wasn't that much standing water today. Of course, I don't think it has rained since Thursday. I may have to continue this task indefinitely. The bids for replacing the roof are much more expensive than I anticipated. It's a shame that it is so complicated to add a slight slope to the roof so the water drains properly. The hole in the center of the roof where the atrium is doesn't help matters. Maybe I'll just continue patching things.

I watched a show on Easter Island this afternoon on PBS. Later, there was another segment on Sixty Minutes about Easter Island. This seemed like a strange coincidence to me until I remembered that today was Easter. Easter Island was discovered on Easter. Of course the people who live there discovered the island thousands of years earlier. It would have probably been better if Westerners had never discovered the place. The tiny island has become a tourist trap. It is a destination for cruise ships now.

Even though I rarely cook, I've always liked The Great British Baking Show. There was an Easter Special today about making traditional Easter pastries. I'd never have the patience to make my own puff pastry. Even making Hot Cross Buns seemed far too complicated for me. Nevertheless, I enjoy seeing these creations come together. Bread is a forbidden pleasure for me. I could live on bread and pasta, but my body wouldn't be happy. I do better if I avoid the stuff.

I looked up the theater where High Life is showing. Parking is bad and there are no early matinees. This probably gives me the excuse I need to just wait until the film is available on iTunes. It really doesn't take much to convince me to stay home. If a movie happens to be playing at Northpark, I might convince myself to go. Other theaters just aren't very appealing.

I was surprised that my pharmacy was open today. I could have waited until tomorrow to pick up my prescription, but like I said earlier it was a very slow day. Going to a strange theater may seem daunting, but I have no phobias about going to the pharmacy. I go there all the time.

Joe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3404

Maybe getting enough sleep is overrated. I've been getting almost eight hours of sleep a night for the past several days and I still feel tired. I get up, make the bed, and follow my routine, but it feels like I'm sleepwalking. It's hard to find a reason to do anything. Time fixes these things. It has in the past and it will now. Time moves very slowly though. It's going to be a long Summer.

I don't know why I thought the gym would be crowded today. It wasn't. There were even fewer people on the floor than there are on Sundays. The younger people were probably doing something outside today because the weather was beautiful. I probably should have been doing something outside too. When my workout was finished I felt like I'd actually gotten more exercise on yesterday's three mile walk. The walk felt more strenuous anyway. I guess the trip to the gym was worthwhile. I was very coordinated on the basketball court this afternoon. I wonder why some days I can sink baskets like clockwork and other days I can't hit anything? Try as I may to be consistent, it doesn't always happen.

I bought some socks on the way home from the gym. Socks don't last very long with me. Pants will last several years and shirts will last forever, but socks don't hold up well. They all develop holes in the heel very quickly. It probably doesn't help that I never wear shoes in the house. I wear socks like slippers. They're comfortable and keep my feet from getting cold on the brick floors. I don't understand the whole concept of sandals. I want my feet to stay warm.

I finished cleaning the car today. Cleaning the car is so much easier than cleaning the house. A car is small and manageable. The house just seems like a bottomless pit. I cleaned all the black gunk off the wheels with soap and water. Land Rover wheels always seem to be dirtier than other cars. Older Mercedes seem to have this problem as well. I don't drive much, but I can never seem to keep these wheels clean. I think as the brake pads wear down, they deposit a thin film of black residue on the wheels. I may be wrong though.

I'm getting tired of the huge sizes at Sam's Club and Costco. Buying in bulk saves money, but where do you put the stuff? I think I've reached the point where I'm willing to pay more for smaller packages of paper towels and toilet paper. We just don't have room for 45 rolls of toilet paper. I don't need a gallon of Windex either. A little bottle will do just fine.

Passover and Easter coincide this year. It has always seemed curious to me that these holidays don't always coincide. Occasionally Passover and Easter are a month apart. It's all the Moon's fault. The date for Passover is determined by the Hebrew Calendar and the date for Easter is determined by the Gregorian calendar. Both holidays are supposed to fall on or near a full moon in early Spring, but a lunar month isn't exactly 28 days and a solar year isn't exactly 365 days. It can get complicated. You'd think that after all these years we could have come up with a better way to measure time.

It seemed like Sunday today because I went to the gym and Janet fixed a special meal. I'm confused. I wonder what it will seem like tomorrow?

Wilson is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3020 - Easter

Janet and I have been watching old World War II bombers fly over our house for the past week, so we decided to go see them today. A traveling exhibit called Wings of Freedom was in Dallas this week which included some of the last remaining examples of legendary planes like the B-17, the B-24, and the P51 Mustang that are still in flying condition. You can even take rides in these planes although it is pretty expensive. I had no idea how a thirty minute flight could cost $450 until Janet and I climbed inside the B-17 parked on the runway and took a look inside. Good Lord. How do these things still fly? It might be pretty exciting to ride inside one of these ancient bombers, but bungee jumping seems safer. The planes looked huge on the outside but were claustrophobic inside. The B-17 only has room for 7 passengers and costs $4000 an hour to fly. No wonder rides are expensive. You have to always watch your step, because there are few areas where you can stand up and lots of sharp things to bang your head on. These bombers were state-of-the-art in the early 1940's, but seem primitive by today's standards. It's amazing how much the world has changed. I don't know if I'd have the nerve to fly in one of these things, but I have a lot of admiration for the men and women of my Dad's generation who did.

I was surprised at how cold it was this morning. I'm sure glad I fixed the furnace. Maybe it was a little premature to think that Spring was here to stay. Hey, at least we aren't getting snow like some parts of the country. The cooler weather didn't deter the hordes of people who descend on the park every Easter. People were already staking out their territories when we took Dash on his sunrise walk. Later in the day the place looked like a rock concert. I don't know where these people come from, but they sure don't believe in picking up their trash. Every year, the park is a disaster on the day after Easter. Lots of garbage get blown away by the wind and never gets picked up. The rest sits around for weeks until the sanitation department finally gets around to removing it. For the next three weeks I'm going to have to watch carefully to make sure that Dash doesn't eat chicken bones or children's Easter candy. The stuff is everywhere.

It's a shame that Dash wasn't feeling great today, because Janet and I had a delicious Easter feast. We enjoyed a traditional meal of smoked ham, candied yams, green beans, corn on the cob, and spiced baked apples. Dash had an upset stomach and was reluctant to eat his favorite dog food. He must have experienced another vestibular event. Even though Dash seemed normal for much of the day, he ended up throwing up twice as evening approached. Hopefully, the worst is over now and he'll be able to hold down his evening meds. It's always important that he takes his phenobarbital.

It was enjoyable to get out of the house today. While we were at Love Field we stopped to visit the Frontiers of Flight museum. The museum is home to the Apollo VII capsule and they were getting ready for a fiftieth anniversary celebration of the launch later this year. Has it been that long? Jeez. I'm really getting old. I remember each of the Apollo launches quite vividly. There were a couple of World War II vets touring the B-17 with us. I imagine they felt even older.

It was nice having a holiday weekend, but it's back to normal tomorrow. I might even have to mow the grass.

Haley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3018

The house was cold this morning when I woke up. The thermostat said the heat was on, but no air was blowing through the vents. Yep. On probably the last cool day of the year, the furnace broke. I was actually surprised that we made it through the winter with no problems. I looked at the furnace and the fault alert LED was blinking seven times. Hmm. I think I've seen this before. I unplugged the furnace and laid out my tools on the kitchen counter. When I returned from breakfast, I would have one more thing to fix.

Breakfast was actually pretty decent this morning. I gambled on Eggs Benedict and for once it was prepared correctly. I was surprised at how crowded the restaurant was today. I guess a lot of people had the day off. I picked up groceries after breakfast and the store was even more crowded than the restaurant. The deli section featured braised brisket, matzo-ball soup, kugel, and other Passover favorites. I still wanted an Easter ham, but I wasn't going to get it here. There is a great little store in our neighborhood that smokes their own meat.

When I returned home I disassembled the furnace to gain access to the flame sensor. I suspected that this was the problem. I've spent a fortune on furnace repairs over the years before a friendly technician took pity on me and showed me how to clean the flame sensor myself. If the flame sensor is not very clean, it will not send the signal to turn the main burners on after the pilot light ignites. Occasionally components break or wear out, but most furnace problems have something to do with the flame sensor. Sure enough, when I cleaned the sensor with fine grit sandpaper and reassembled everything, the furnace worked perfectly. Let's hope the air conditioner works as well, because we're going to be using it very soon.

Dash's new boots arrived today. Janet and I had been looking at this well known Dalmatian on Facebook wearing these fancy Ultra-Paws boots all winter and finally decided to try a pair ourselves. The boots were a little pricy, but they do seem to work. I can get them on myself and Dash doesn't seem to mind them at all. He's been test driving them all evening.

I think I've found a new use for Shoe Goo. After Superglue failed several times, I used the Shoe Goo to repair the silicon strap on my fitness tracker. I let the repair dry for 24 hours and so far it's been holding up pretty well. Ordinarily, I would have just bought a new fitness tracker, but the Jawbone company has gone out of business. I think my choices are Shoe Goo or nothing.

Dash got me up twice last night to go outside and poop. I try my best to get Dash to do his business before we all go to bed, but Dash just thinks I'm crazy. He's just not going to go before he's ready. Things were easier when Dash ate dry food and didn't take so many pills. I'm not sure what to do at this point, but naps during the day are certainly an option. I'm definitely not very busy anymore.

The roof is drying out, but there's an ugly rust colored stain in the sheetrock. I've left several messages for the roofer, but I'm sure he's got his hands full with bigger leaks than mine. I hope I don't have to go buy more of the messy elastomer material myself, but it may come to that. I'm always fixing something.

Sparky is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2670 - Easter

It hasn't seemed like Easter for a long time. When I was young, I remember Easter baskets and going to sunrise services in our pajamas. We could get away with pajamas because the service was held at a drive-in theater. We stayed in the car and listened though one of those speakers that clamped to your window. I think the choir and the preacher were up on the roof of the concession stand. Since the service was outside, we actually did see the sun rise.

That was a long, long time ago. Now, what I remember most about Easter are the hordes of people that descend on the park for egg hunts and family picnics. I never realized that Easter picnics are a big deal, but apparently they are. Easter is the busiest day of the year in the park. I kind of dread walking Dash on this day because there are tons of loose dogs and copious amounts of candy and chocolates strewn in the grass. We did OK today until some kid flew a drone right over our head and it scared Dash. That was the end of the walk for us. Dash turned around and immediately set a course for home.

My gym is closed on holidays, so I got my exercise cleaning the house. Vacuuming has replaced mowing the grass as the chore I hate the most. It has become almost impossible to keep things clean with all the traction rugs we've spread everywhere for Dot. Some of the rugs are thin, so they get sucked up and jam the vacuum. Others are porous, so dirt gets under them. You've almost got to clean the house twice. The rugs need to be cleaned and then they need to be pulled up so you can clean under them as well. The Dyson Animal does pretty well with pet hair, but it sure is heavy. I'm always tripping over the cord as well. I think going to the gym would have been a lot easier.

I caught the end of the tribute to the Bee Gees on TV this evening. Barry Gibb can still sing. Jeez, the guy has to be over 70 now. I'm amazed at how well the music of my generation has held up over the years. I still think we had the best music growing up. Many of the greats have died over the years, but the Rolling Stones are still performing. Paul McCartney is still performing. And Barry Gibb can still hit the high notes.

Janet cooked a fabulous Easter dinner tonight. Elaborate meals are a rarity now. We are both old and tired and generally it just isn't worth the trouble. Mostly we just eat take-out these days. It was a treat to sit down and enjoy a really nice home cooked meal. It was kind of like getting an Easter basket when I was a kid. Even the dogs were well behaved this evening. I immediately forgot the aches and pains of vacuuming.

Although Dot continues to get weaker, she had a surprisingly good walk this evening. It probably helped that I waited until sunset when the weather was cooler. We'll see how tomorrow goes. We don't even try to make it to the back door anymore. I just put some puppy training pads next to her bed and let her pee there as soon as I get her up in the morning. Things keep changing and I continue to improvise in an effort to make the best of things.

Becker is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2294 - Easter

I think I've finally got all my tax information in order. I keep postponing this task longer and longer because it's so discouraging. This is the one time during the year when it becomes abundantly clear that I'm not making much money anymore. What's even worse it that I know that my accountant will charge me more than he did last year to tell me that I made less than I made last year. I certainly don't begrudge my accountant for raising his rates every year. My dentist and my plumber do the same thing. Just about everybody raises their rates except for web designers, who are expected to work for much less than they did ten years ago.

We're still supposed to get some severe weather later in the week, but today was perfect. The dogs loved the crisp, clear Spring day and we were able to take two nice walks. We certainly weren't the only ones in the park today. The place was full of family Easter celebrations. Every open field was filled with children looking for Easter eggs. I wish people still hid real eggs. Hard boiled eggs would be fine, because if the children didn't find them, animals would eat them or they would just rot and disappear. Plastic eggs filled with candy and trinkets tend to stay around forever. From now through May, I'll have to be on the lookout for candy on the ground, because Dash will smell the stuff and try to eat it. Chocolate is really bad for dogs and a lot of these plastic eggs are filled with chocolate. Nobody seems to care about littering anymore. Public parks just seem to be a designated place where families can litter with impunity.

In addition to working on my taxes today, I was also able to catch up on a few things around the house. I went up on the roof and cleared away the standing water from last week's rain. It was nice to see that some of the water had already evaporated. The warmer it gets, the faster the water evaporates. When I was working, I noticed several new worn places that will need to be patched. Patching the roof after the Spring rains has become an annual ritual. I need to call the roofer, as well as the landscapers and a tree trimmer this week. It's that time of year. Hopefully, I won't need to buy a new lawn mower. I seem to need a new mower every four or five years. I'll see if I can get the current mower started tomorrow. If I wait much longer, the front yard is going to be full of weeds.'

I tried to superglue some broken stuff back together this afternoon. I think I was successful with the Nike running shoes, but the watch band was a dismal failure. I need to remember that superglue and duct tape are not the answer to every problem. As careful as I try to be, I always manage to get some superglue on my fingers. It's almost impossible to get this stuff off. I usually try acetone or Janet's nail polish remover, but if I wait too long, even that won't work.

I'm not sure what I'll be doing this week. Work has often been slow at the first of the year, but it's not the first of the year anymore. This slow period has lasted a lot longer than I anticipated. It's beginning to look like this might be permanent. I wish I knew how to get clients who would pay me what I made in 1995. I wish I knew how to get clients period. My business grew through referrals from existing clients and everyone is retiring now. It's the end of an era.

Chloe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 2292

My accountant told me that he needs to receive all my tax preparation materials by Monday and I haven't even started yet. Guess what I'll be doing this weekend? I don't think I've ever been this disorganized before. I'm behind on literally everything. It's hard to even prioritize at this point. Dot needs lots of attention. The website updates I do for clients take a lot of time even though they don't bring in a lot of money. For the past several days the process of migrating my website empire to a new server has been consuming me. It's hard to remember why I did something in 1995. A lot of old code on the site doesn't work on the new server and it's a very tedious process to de-bug everything.

The main problem is that I'm just not getting enough sleep.  Last night I woke up at 2 AM when Dot pooped in her bed. I woke up again at 4 AM for no reason at all. And then we all had to get up at 6 AM so the dogs could take their morning walk before Janet went to work. All this would have been fine if I hadn't stayed up until 1 AM the night before. Late to bed and early to rise is not a good combination.

I went to the new restaurant this morning. My breakfast was excellent, but why do they have to serve everything in cardboard take-out boxes? The place doesn't use plates at all. The lack of proper dishes probably makes kitchen cleanup a lot easier, but would it kill them to serve my breakfast on a plate?  This is the trouble with hipster ambience. They like this sort of thing. My old restaurant occasionally irritated me with plastic forks, but at least they had real plates. Truthfully, breakfast would be a lot more enjoyable if there were white table cloths, nice china, and friendly, knowledgeable waiters who refilled your coffee cup every five minutes. I can't complain about the food though. The food is fabulous.

I got the watch back today that I took in for servicing a few weeks ago. One down; two hundred and fifty to go. I'll never get all these watches running again. I wonder if I should even bother. Friends tell me that I should sell some of the unwanted watches, but I hate dealing with eBay. I used to buy and sell frequently on eBay, but the place is full of scammers now. It's just too much trouble to deal with them. Craigslist is even worse. I wouldn't even consider selling anything on Craigslist.

I spent an enormous amount of time today trying to figure out why none of the scripts in my cgi-bin work anymore. Everything worked fine on the old server, but now the scripts are useless. I'm sure that only a few lines of code need to be changed, but which lines? I called tech support at the new hosting company several times but never connected with anyone who knew how to write Perl scripts. I know how my mind works. I'll figure this out eventually and get everything working again, but the effort will be a complete waste of time, since I don't even need the scripts anymore. I'm just curious why something that works on one server won't work on all servers. I should spend my rather limited energy doing something useful, but I probably never will. That's not how I roll.

I wonder if the gym is open on Easter Sunday. I bet not. Ironically, I drove right by the gym this afternoon. I should have just stopped and asked.

Petey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1937 - Easter

I had a feeling that lots of egg hunts and Sunrise Services were spoiled this morning when I woke to the sound of pounding rain on the roof. We actually needed the rain to help the new grass root properly, but it would have been nice if Easter Sunday was as beautiful as it was yesterday. There was no need to get up until the rain subsided, so we all got some extra sleep. Dot and Dash didn't even need to stick their nose out the door to know it was raining. They both just curled up on their blankets and waited for the rain to stop.

It's so nice that Dot doesn't have her incontinence problems anymore. During her cancer treatment I often had to take her outside in absolutely atrocious weather. It couldn't be helped. When you've got to go, you've got to go. Today, the dogs were content to wait until 10 AM to do their business. That's when the weather radar said the rain would stop, and that's exactly when it did. We all had a leisurely breakfast and then I took Dash for a walk while Janet took Dot for a much shorter walk up and down our street. The wet weather made things a little slippery for Dot, but she still did pretty well.

Since it was such a dismal, cold day I thought it would be a perfect time to watch the Interstellar DVD on my computer. I've heard both good and bad things about the movie, so I was curious to see if it lived up to my expectations. It did. I just didn't realize that the movie was so long. Dot will rest quietly for up to two hours at a time, but after that, there's going to be a lot of barking unless I'm there to cater to her needs. I never ignore her barking because when she gets excited, she poops. Believe me, it's much better to pause a movie than to clean up dog poop in the house.

As science fiction movies go, Interstellar was pretty good. I liked the way they described wormholes. It seemed to make more sense than Farscape, Sliders and many other films that have utilized wormholes in the plot. Of course since nobody knows if wormholes even exist, I'll be the first to admit that films like Interstellar are really just Harry Potter movies for people like me. I think wizards and zombies are rubbish, but am perfectly willing to to believe that wormholes could whisk someone from one galaxy to another in a matter of seconds. You almost have to believe in wormholes if you think the human race is going to reach the stars someday. The two voyager spacecraft have been traveling for decades and they've barely reached the edge of the solar system. We need wormholes. And maybe we need wizards too.

It's hard to believe that it's going to be 85 degrees tomorrow, since it's only 50 today. The air conditioner was on yesterday, but overnight the fancy new thermostat automatically switched things back to heat mode and we woke up toasty and warm. I got an e-mail recently saying that I was eligible for an upgrade to the WiFi thermostat that would coordinate our energy use with real-time weather patterns and automatically keep the house at the perfect temperate. This sounded intriguing, but I was a bit suspicious. The whole idea felt a bit too much like driverless cars to me. I want to be the guy setting the temperature, not a computer off in the cloud somewhere. I didn't click on the "lets get started" button, even though the ad said it would save me hundreds in electricity bills.

Tomorrow is Monday. Monday's are usually pretty boring. I'll bet I'm going to wish I'd waited another day to watch that movie.

Angel is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1935

I never could decide what day it was today. Janet was off work, so it seemed like Saturday when I woke up. After I walked Dash, I went and had my regular Friday restaurant breakfast anyway and then it seemed like Friday for a while. A lot of people seemed to be having a holiday picnic in the park today, but the mail got delivered and the bank was open. My Jewish clients took the day off for Passover, but very few of my Christian clients took the day off for Good Friday. I wonder why the stock market was closed and the banks were open? For most of the morning I thought it was Saturday and then several of my clients started sending me website revisions and I thought it was Friday again. It was a very confusing day.

Dot seemed tired today. I hope we didn't work her too hard on the treadmill yesterday. Janet thinks I worry too much. The vet thinks I worry when I should. And I always think that I'm overlooking something terribly important that could cause a setback. I don't spend much time thinking about my own health, but I really want Dot's recovery to go as smoothly as possible.

I learned how to make those transparent frames that you often see on birthday card websites. These frames allow people to superimpose their own uploaded pictures inside a transparent area on a pre-existing template to create their own customized postcards to share on social media. I knew Photoshop could do this, but it took me a while to get all the layers in the right order. I finally figured everything out and uploaded the finished template to my client's iPhone app. Yes, clients aren't content with websites anymore. They want their own iPhone and Android apps. I guess this makes sense, since everyone except me finds most of their information using their phone these days. Call me old fashioned, but I still use the desktop computer for almost everything. Just about the only thing I use my phone for is to take pictures and to check how many steps my UP band has logged for the day.

Every once in a while Facebook is actually useful. A friend was complaining about telemarketers on her feed a few days ago and someone else left a comment said she ought to try Nomorobo to eliminate all the robo-calls. I was intrigued and looked up Nomorobo on Google. It was free and seemed to work with my U-verse phone system, so I installed it. Almost immediately, the number of telemarketing calls I receive dropped dramatically. I don't really know how this works or why it is offered for free, but I'm glad someone told me about it. Telemarketers are the bane of my existence. Sometimes I get fifteen calls a day. If this service can cut that number down to five calls a day, it is definitely worth it.

Since I thought it was Saturday for most of the day, I'll probably think it is Sunday tomorrow. It really doesn't make much different which day it is. Weekend errands are still just weekend errands on either day. There are still bills to pay, groceries to buy, and a new lawn that needs to be watered.

When I was a kid, my parents always use to wake us up really early on Easter morning and take us to an Easter Sunrise Service that was held in a drive-in theater for some reason. My Mom, if she were still alive, would be upset that I haven't maintained this tradition. If I see the sunrise at all, I will be walking Dash.

Lexi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1587 - Easter

I hope everyone had a pleasant Passover, Easter, or just a nice day. I certainly did. I knew it was going to rain sometime today, so I thought I'd get up early and get a lot done while the sun was still shining. As luck would have it, the skies were clear and sunny for most of the day. I got the lawn mower running and got the front yard looking decent again. I think the cause of my battery problems is my battery charger. It no longer shuts itself off when it reaches a full charge. I'll have to remember to manually unplug the thing this Summer after it charges for about three hours. Otherwise, I'll burn up the new battery fairly quickly.

After I got the yard looking nice, I weeded a few flower beds. I encountered quite a few honeybees while I was working. Hopefully, they were just passing through gathering pollen. I certainly hope they aren't planning on building another huge hive in my house. Once you've been stung by a bunch of angry bees, you don't tend to forget.

I took some more stuff to the storage warehouse this afternoon. If I lived in a rural area and had a bigger yard, I'd buy one of those metal warehouse buildings that all farmers seem to have. I'd fill it with industrial metal shelving and alphabetize each aisle from A to Z. I'd take great pleasure in categorizing and archiving all my stuff, until the zombie apocalypse came and I realized that all my treasured tools were hopelessly rusty with completely dead batteries. Janet thinks I'm dangerously close to becoming a hoarder, but I think my pack-rat tendencies are no worse than her own tendencies to always buy in bulk to take advantage of sales. I may still have every Macintosh I've ever owned, but at least I'm not responsible for the year's supply of soup in the kitchen pantry.

Today is a huge day for family picnics in the park. Typically, one family member arrives early in the morning to stake out a picnic table and the rest of the family arrives later. Some people erect elaborate tents and put up volleyball nets. By ten-thirty AM, the air is thick with the smell of barbecue and smoked meats. I try to walk the dogs in secluded areas on days like this. Dash loves an audience when he poops and never fails to embarrass me by pooping right in front of a large table of people eating their holiday dinner. There's way too much candy littering the ground too, since the kids seems to only find 50% of what their parents hide for the egg hunt. Easter candy is the last thing the dogs should be eating. Chocolate is poisonous to dogs.

The rain did eventually arrive late in the day, but we were all safely back inside by then, eating our Easter dinner. A great dinner is always a nice way to end a good day. Tomorrow, Dash goes in for his fifteenth radiation treatment. I'm on the home stretch of my own Hepatitis-C treatments as well. I usually don't look forward to birthdays, but this year might be different. By June, most of this Spring's long medical journey should be in the past.

Wilson is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1586

I got lucky today. When I went to the Interstate battery store to get my lawn mower battery repaired, the technician noticed that the defective cells he was removing from the case were still under warranty. The one year warranty on the two battery cells was going to expire in four days. I had forgotten that the old battery even had a warranty. I've just gotten used to replacing these batteries every year. At any rate, the technician refurbished my battery for free. If I had waited until next week to take care of this chore, it would have cost me $90.

I finally made it back to the gym this afternoon. I really need to figure out how to do these workouts on a more regular basis. It was starting to seem easy when I went three times a week. Now that I can only make it to the gym sporadically, these workouts are killing me. It took me about three months to build up a good rhythm and now it appears I'll have to start all over again. No rest for the weary, I guess. I don't even like going to the gym, but I do like the results. I'd hate to start gaining weight again.

While I was at the gym, Janet called and said she'd lost her car keys at the grocery store. I drove home and found a spare pair of keys to take over to her. While I was home looking for the spare keys, the dogs were very indignant that I wasn't feeding them their dinner. Both of them started barking loudly when I left the house again about five minutes later. You'd think having their dinner thirty minutes late was the end of the world.

I got another letter from the city today saying that Dash's animal registration had expired. This happens every single year. I always get new city tags for the dogs when they have their annual physical exam. My vet sends the updated information to the city immediately, but somehow the city is permanently three weeks out of sync. If they would just wait a few weeks before they send out this noncompliance letter, they might realize that Dot and Dash always have current city tags.

The park is going to be a disaster area tomorrow. Every Easter, throngs of people descend on the park to have family Easter egg hunts. Nobody hides real eggs anymore though. They all just hide candy for the kids. For weeks after Easter, I have to be especially vigilant when walking the dogs. There are are tons of candy left in the grass that the kids failed to find, along with assorted chicken bones, beer cans, and dirty baby diapers. I liked this park a lot better before the city discovered it. It's still nice on weekdays after everybody has gone to work, but weekends and holidays are a madhouse.

I'm not sure what I'll do tomorrow. If the weather's nice, there are still a ton of chores with my name on them. Mowing the grass will probably be at the top of the list. If it rains tomorrow, I'll probably just take a long nap  with the dogs.
 

Marley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day