Day 3871

We knew it was going to be a hot day so we got an extra early start on this morning's walk. You could still see a few stars and several planets as we left the house. Mars was almost directly overhead, reminding me that the Mars 2020 launch would take place while we were walking. I watched it all on video later after I finished my breakfast. Watching a launch on the computer makes it seem kind of weird that I used to travel so far to see these launches in person. The entire event was over in just a few minutes.

Our timing was good this morning. We reached the halfway point in our walk before the sun rose and there was a nice gentle breeze the entire way. Things heat up quickly once the sun is above the horizon unfortunately. It quickly became warm enough for Dawn to choose the shorter route home.

When I was watching the launch coverage on my computer this morning I looked for familiar faces in my Facebook feed. I recognized a couple of launch photographers I'd met earlier who still seemed to have media credentials. There always seems to be a race to see who can get their pictures on the Internet first. These guys were definitely fast. I wonder who you have to know to maintain media accreditation these days? I'm definitely not in the loop. Oh, well. Maybe some day things will return to normal.

After breakfast I decided to go up on the roof and remove the standing water from the rain we got a few days ago. It was so hot that I was surprised that the water hadn't evaporated yet. The metal handle of the push broom I keep on the roof was almost too hot to touch. The white surface of the roof itself was hot enough to burn your hands. I had to bring a wet rag with me to place on the edge of the roof that I use to steady myself when I lower myself down after I'm done. There was no rain in the forecast when I cleared the water away this morning, but ironically there is a thunderstorm headed our way right now. This always happens. We'll have rain again before I go to bed tonight.

It doesn't look like I'll be getting a Bronco any time soon. I read an article today that Ford already has well over 200,000 reservations for the new 4x4 and the entire 2021 production run is sold out. Seems weird that so many people would decide to buy a car based entirely on pictures and reviews they see on the Internet. What happened to kicking the tires? It's probably just as well that there will be nothing to tempt me at a dealership for a while. At the rate I'm driving these days, my current car will last forever. Eventually, I'd still like something reliable and easy to service for trips to West Texas. Hey, a guy can dream.

My days are still extremely slow. I've got to think of a project for now instead of for later. Right now I occupy a lot of my time thinking about telescopes I might buy for future dark skies, cars I might buy for future travels, and future launches I'd like to attend when I can get my media credentials restored. Nothing wrong with this of course. I guess it just tells me that there is very little about Dallas that intrigues me anymore.

Penny is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3870

It's been exactly one year since I received the press proofs of my first article for SpaceFlight Magazine. A second article was published about six months later and a third is still scheduled for publication in September. It was a good beginning, but I thought my budding career as a space journalist be a lot further along by now. I certainly thought I'd be down at Kennedy Space Center tomorrow morning for the launch of the Mars 2020 Perseverance mission. Oh, well. It wasn't meant to be. Little did I know back then that the world was about to change. I keep trying to get media accreditation again, but it might be a while. In a post-covid world, newcomers go to the back of the line.

I shouldn't complain though. My problems are small compared with what other people are going through. I was going to get a haircut later in the week, but my stylist got laid off at the salon. Another covid casualty. I know someone locally who got infected now. He's OK, but it makes me realize that the disease is all around us. Most of my friends are healthy and continue to lead normal lives. A few seem to have flipped out and are way too angry for their own good.

Sometimes when my day is uneventful it is tempting to go on an angry rant myself. It would certainly be an easy way to fill up space. The problem is that I'm not really angry. I'm still very detached. I think this is the secret to social distancing. I look at the world like it is an episode of Black Mirror or the Twilight Zone. It is not my world though. I try to navigate the pandemic and the social unrest like everything is covered in a sticky glue that you can't let touch you. You have to plan your moves very carefully.

I have a few farmer and rancher friends that I envy. I keep thinking that their farms are so remote that they are completely unaffected by all this turmoil. This probably isn't true though. Farmers and ranchers might not have to worry about riots in the city or getting killed by a random cough at a grocery store, but some of them are probably having big problems selling their cattle or their crops. The whole supply chain is screwed up now. We are in the middle of a global mess that affects all of us.

You'd think we could all rally together to find a solution. That's what my parents did during World War II. It's not happening though. I have never seen so much anger and division. Much of the rancor takes place on Facebook. I look at what some of my friends say online and think "Do I even know you." I think there are going to be articles in prestigious medical journals for years to come about how social media causes mental illness.

The solution for some of us has always been dogs. It's hard to be angry when you've got a good dog. Dawn continues to be a joy. She certainly came into our lives at exactly the right time.

Tink is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3855

We got up early enough this morning to see the comet if it hadn't been cloudy again. Cloudy was good though. It kept our morning walk nice and cool. We keep leaving earlier and earlier in an attempt to avoid the heat. I used to think 7 AM was early. Now our goal is to be out of the house before 6 AM. The extra hour makes a big difference. There are fewer people on the trails and the weather is noticeably cooler.

Dawn did well today, but it is still the middle of July. It's going to be a long march to September. Dawn has the right idea about surviving summer. She went back to sleep on the bed while I had my breakfast. I usually watch TV while I'm eating breakfast. The news is still dismal, but the stock market was having a good day. It's kind of a mystery to me why the stock market has made such a dramatic recovery in recent weeks. What do other investors know that I don't. People are even starting to buy cruise line stocks again. I wouldn't feel comfortable taking a cruise for a long, long time.

I got Luckie up on the Dalmatian Rescue website after breakfast. I'm glad the rescue websites I work on are fairly simple. I've lost some of my skills. I haven't created a complex website in quite a while now and it shows. Use it or lose it has been my motto for many years. When it comes to web design, I think I've lost it.

I mowed the grass in the front yard this afternoon. It was too hot to be outside, but if I keep waiting for cooler weather, the yard is going to look like a jungle. Since I survived this task, I decided to go ahead and take my afternoon walk to get my 20,000 steps. It's a simple and at times mindless life, but I do have goals.

I went out and looked for the comet again a few minutes ago, but there were thick clouds on the horizon to the Northwest. I'm still not sure how the comet can be visible in both the morning and evening skies for the next several days, but that's what I keep hearing. Pretty soon it will be evening skies only. I think the best viewing opportunities will last for about a week. I'm hoping that we'll get clear skies on at least one of these days. I keep seeing cool pictures of the comet all over the Internet and I haven't been able to see it at all.

It looks like the new Ford Bronco is going to be incredibly popular. They are taking reservations online like Elon Musk now, and one model sold out in a single day. They say dealers are going to be charging a premium for the Bronco for at least a year. I don't know why I'm even interested. My car is running fine. It still looks almost new. I guess planning to buy a new car is just so much easier than planning to move to a new state.

I've already decided that it would be stupid to travel to Florida right now but I'm still wondering why I haven't heard anything about media accreditation for the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover launch. Usually when a launch is only several weeks away, all these details have been worked out. You'd think I would have at least received a rejection notice by now. Who knows. Maybe I'll hear something tomorrow. Otherwise, the big event of the day might be looking for blueberries.

Dolly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3821

What a difference a day makes. The weather this morning was beautiful. A rare Summer cold front swept away yesterday's dust and cooled things down significantly. It was only 68 degrees when we woke up. Needless to say, Dawn loved her walk today. I felt pretty good myself. The sky was clear and the air even felt fresher. My seasonal allergies are finally gone. It's kind of amazing how little it takes to put me in a better mood. A nice day isn't going to change the world, but I'll take what I can get.

The day got even better when I checked my e-mail after breakfast. I finally heard from the Air Force. They said they were beginning my credentialing process this week and that they would let me know when I was good to go for 2020. I haven't actually received media clearance yet, but the upbeat tone of the letter made it seem like this was only a formality. I've also applied for NASA media accreditation, but I'm not as optimistic about this route to attending the Mars 2020 launch. NASA has already said that they are still limiting the number of journalists that can attend launch events because of the coronavirus.

I hope there isn't a huge spike in virus outbreaks in the weeks ahead. I'm OK with traveling now, but things could change quickly. The virus definitely isn't under control yet and both Florida and Texas seem to be heading in the wrong direction. I could easily change my mind about attending the launch if things start heading downhill. I'm eager to return to being a space journalist, but I'm not stupid. You've got to be careful where you go these days. I'm not planning any trips to Seattle either.

The weather was so nice today that I thought I'd better mow the grass while I had a chance. This might be the last 70 degree day we have for quite a while. The yard looks a lot better now and I managed to accumulate 23,000 steps today as a bonus. My day was so productive that I even managed to fix the carport security light. It doesn't work quite as well as it used to but if a moose or large cow walked by it would probably trigger the sensor. I probably should have just bought a new motion detector, but I still feel compelled to fix things.

My dentist called today and finally wants to reschedule my appointment. My gym said it is reopening next week as well. Everyone is starting to seem almost desperate to return to some form of normalcy, but the virus doesn't appear to care. Protesters don't appear to care either. I really hope we don't have a second wave of outbreaks in the Fall because that might be the last straw that brings everything crumbling down. We're only holding on to sanity by a thread right now. It wouldn't take that much to push civil society right over the edge. Hopefully the world can get its act together. There are still things I want to do. I definitely don't want to spend my old age living in a dystopian nightmare.

Escher is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3817

Another hot Summer day. The park was full of people early this morning, all trying to beat the heat. I like weekdays better. On Saturday, you realize that you really do live in a big city. It was worth the effort to take our sunrise walk though. Even though it was already eighty degrees, it was still the nicest time of the day.

I had to go to several stores to find butter today. How has a toilet paper shortage turned into a butter shortage? The whole supply chain still seems disrupted. All four stores I visited during my weekly shopping run were very busy. Dallas seems to have decided that the pandemic is over. I guess we'll see fourteen days from now whether they were right. Even though it seemed like a normal Saturday, I felt a bit uncomfortable being around so many people. It wasn't a fear of the virus that made me uneasy. Maybe I'm just tired of living in a city. I miss the wide open spaces and quiet emptiness of West Texas.

I went with Janet today when she took Dawn on her regular car training trip. We went to another nearby park and walked around for a while. This is the place where we used to take Dot and Dash for training classes. We want to get Dawn familiar with this place, so that when training classes resume sometime later this Summer we can take Dawn. I'm a little apprehensive but Janet thinks she'll enjoy the experience. On the way home from this little excursion, we stopped for ice cream cones. Dawn loves ice cream. I have a feeling that all dogs love ice cream.

I don't know why I even bother to take an afternoon walk anymore. It's way too hot now. I guess it's just a good way to kill time. If I stayed home, I'd be compelled to start some household repair project I've been trying to ignore. It's always nice to get 20,000 steps too. Such a simple life. What did you do today? Oh, I took 20,000 steps.

There was another chance to see the International Space Station this evening, but this time the path the station took was obscured by trees in the back yard. I would have had to walk about half a mile into the park to get a clear view. Never mind. I don't need to see the ISS again. Not now anyway. It's a shame that I don't feel comfortable walking alone in the park after dark. I enjoy the night. I just don't enjoy living in the city.

I applied for NASA media credentials to attend the Mars Perseverance launch in late July. I'm not terribly optimistic about my chances, especially since coronavirus cases seem to be spiking up in Florida again. I haven't heard from the Air Force yet, so maybe one of these two alternatives will work out. I know a few people are still getting launch access, but most of them seem to live in Florida. I've learned to never give up though. If you want something, you've got to keep trying.

I wonder when I'll be able to resume going to the gym on Sunday? Janet has already gone to her gym twice but mine hasn't even set an opening date. The place is definitely not open tomorrow so it looks like I'll be taking more long walks.

Wendy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day