Day 3508

The September issue of Spaceflight Magazine has finally arrived. Since I doubt if many of you subscribe to this British publication, I thought I'd just upload a PDF copy of my article to Facebook. Oops. You can't upload PDF files to Facebook. Weird. Why didn't I know this already? I guess I never tried to post a PDF file. There's always a solution though. I just put the file on my website and made a link. If anyone's interested in reading the article, just click here or on the picture to your left.

The good news about all this is that the magazine is interested in having me cover future launches for them and can even get me a press pass. I might have found my calling. I doubt if I can do this sort of thing all that often because it can get expensive. Nevertheless, the road ahead is something to look forward to.

When I went to the new neighborhood restaurant for breakfast this morning, I was surprised to see that it was completely full. There was even a small line out front. How did this happen? I've been going to this place fairly frequently on Friday mornings and it's never been full before. Oh, well. I'm not big on standing in line, so I got back in my car and drove to the hotel instead. The restaurant at the hotel never seems to be full. I ordered the French Toast like I always do at the hotel and daydreamed about traveling to rocket launches. The hotel reminds me of the old days when I used to do a lot of business travel. How did I transition from a road warrior to a person who rarely leaves the house? Life is strange. I don't even question a lot of things like this. We all go through stages.

I'm starting to see more birds at the lake. I wonder what this means? August doesn't seem like a time for migrations. I've seen a lot of Great Egrets lately as well as a few Great Blue Herons. I've seen smaller Cattle Egrets as well. I need to get some pictures of these birds because I don't know how long they will stay. This might be a project for the weekend. It will probably be easier to find the birds than to carry the camera on hot days like this. I sure wish Apple would invent an iPhone with a telephoto lens. Putting a phone in your pocket is a lot easier than carrying a big camera on long walks.

Janet has convinced me to try wearing ankle socks on my walks. The combination of long shorts and equally long wool socks has given me a very weird tan. Basically, it's just a dark stripe on my legs. I tried the shorter socks that everybody else seems to be wearing but I didn't like them. I came home with a blister on my heel. The Nike Air shoes I'm wearing now are fairly comfortable, but I guess I need the extra cushion of the thick wool socks as well. Who cares if I look ridiculous. Most old men look ridiculous anyway.

The security light in the back yard has started acting up again. It will come on around sunset but will go off again a few hours later. The lamp hasn't burned out or anything, but I have to go behind the greenhouse and flip a switch on the breaker box to get the light to tun on again. This involves walking through spider webs in the dark and getting bitten by chiggers. It's irritating. When this used to happen I had the electrician come out several times and they could never find anything wrong. They replaced the photocell twice and it didn't make any difference. Even though the dogs are gone and we don't really need the light anymore, this flaky fixture still bothers me. Why do things break so often? I want a world where everything is dependable.

One thing I can depend on is more hot weather tomorrow. I'm ready for winter.

Scout is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3191

I hate when I fail to notice that a prescription has run out and I have to scramble to get new pills before they're all gone. This happens to me and it happens to Dash. I called in a renewal for Dash's Plavix this morning and the automated message said that no more refills were available. Not good, because no more pills were available either. I called the vet at the cancer center and asked if they could refill the prescription in a hurry. I still don't understand why pills that need to be taken for a lifetime are generally only renewed for six months at a time. I should have noticed the tiny type on the bottle that said there were 0 refills available, but I never notice tiny type. I can't even read small type anymore without my reading glasses.

I managed to get the prescription refilled in the nick of time, but I know this will happen again and again. It's equally hard to remember to change the air filters in the furnace. I appear to have a very selective memory. I always remember to give Dash a walk. I never forget to pay my bills on time. There are some things I'm oblivious to however. I need to pay more attention to those pill bottle labels.

One of the auction houses wanted more information from me today. It seems like they have plenty of information already, but I dutifully printed the forms they sent, filled them out by hand, and then scanned everything so I could convert the forms to PDF files and send them back. It seems like in this day and age, you'd be able to fill out and sign just about any type of form on your computer, but it seldom works that way. I wonder what people do if they don't have a scanner? It seems like I'm scanning documents all the time.

For the past couple of nights, I've been waking up when Dash typically needs to go outside, only to discover that Dash is still asleep. I woke up twice like this last night while Dash continued sleeping through the night. He didn't wake up at all. I felt like waking Dash up myself, but that would have been silly. I've been hoping that Dash would get to a point where he was sleeping all night again. Now that he is, I've just got to start sleeping better myself.

I formally ended another client relationship today. It was kind of sad. I've worked with these folks for decades. Things change though. I guess I could still pretend that we were working together, but I haven't had a project for almost a year. I think there's only one client left now and I haven't been doing much for them either. It's time to to face reality. This stage of my life is over. I have retired.

At least Dash had a good day. He was fairly strong on his walks and he's still eating well. I made sure he has a new supply of Plavix and we broke in some brand new boots and socks. I think we're ready for another day.

Rhett is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3088

I kind of miss paper. I had to sign some documents today and it took forever. The sender had to scan the documents and turn them into a PDF file. I had to download the file and print it out so I could sign everything. Then I had to scan the signed documents so I could turn them back into a PDF file again. It kind of makes me miss the days when the FedEx man used to deliver these type of things.

My Friday morning breakfast tradition is hanging by a thread. I'm not that hungry anymore and am running out of interesting places to eat. The only reason I went out this morning is that I'd run out of the fresh fruit I use to make my morning smoothie. I need to alter the recipe for my smoothie too. My original recipe makes way too much. Like I said, I'm not that hungry anymore.

Dash and I got an early start on our morning walk so we could beat the heat. This usually works pretty well as long as we leave around sunrise. It's amazing how quickly things warm up once the sun clears the top of the trees. The temperature can go from 80 to 90 in less than an hour. Dash still likes his walks, but we're going to have to curtail things soon. Summer heat and a dog with a weak heart aren't a good combination. Dash and I will both be looking forward to those rare cooler days.

I've been trying to get hold of the landscaper to tell him about the dead grass. Not surprisingly, I haven't had much luck. It's going to be an uphill battle to get the roofer and the landscaper out here again. I've noticed that when you want something from somebody, they tend to disappear. When they want something from you, it's an entirely different story. The galleries and auction houses have been super cooperative with me this week because they want something from me. I think the roofer and the landscaper just want me to go away.

After I watched the latest episode of The Expanse, I got curious about what happens next and learned that there is enough material in the James S. A. Corey books that the series was adapted from to extend the series for ten seasons. The books go on and on. Maybe I should read the books. Whenever I see a movie that has been adapted from a book, I almost always like the book better.

I'm getting closer to parting with the art I've been considering selling. I've been wondering what to hang on the empty walls and then I remembered that I have lots of pictures of dogs. I'll fill the house with dog pictures. Dogs have more meaning to me anyway.

Lacey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1911

It was still dismal and grey today, but thankfully, the rain appears to have moved elsewhere. Drier skies meant that it was much easier to take Dot outside and Dash got to enjoy his normal walks again. There were still muddy shoes and even muddier paws at the end of these walks, but a little mud is nothing when the alternative is getting soaking wet.

Since things are starting to dry out, it was a good day to get the water off the roof. When I removed this week's standing water, I was appalled to discover two spots that already looked like they needed to be patched. I shouldn't have to patch anything yet, since the current roof is relatively new. As soon as the roof is completely dry, I'll call the roofers to come take a look. They should just give me a big can of the epoxy material they use to coat the top layer. I really wouldn't mind patching things myself, since I'm up on the roof so much anyway. At least if I did the repairs myself, I'd know the job was done right.

Since I'm more or less caught up with website work for the moment, I used the day to write. I got a lot done, but what I really wanted to do was sleep. Although reducing Dot's prednisolone dose yesterday was  supposed to make her pee less frequently, I haven't noticed any immediate changes. I still had to get up twice last night to take Dot outside. The second time I took her out, she didn't want to go back in her crate, so I just pulled out a blanket and went to sleep on the floor next to her. It was almost morning by then anyway, but I sure could have used a couple of more hours of shut eye.

At some point during the morning, I noticed that the metal staples holding Dot's incision together felt hot. I was initially alarmed and then I realized that Dot had been sleeping next to a heater vent. One more thing to watch out for. Dot has always liked sleeping near the heater vents in the floor during the Winter, but that's not a good idea when she's got metal staples in her back. Luckily, the staples come out later this week. Having her sutures removed will be Dot's first post-surgery milestone. I doubt that getting her stitches out will make Dot walk any better, but it still seems like progress.

I called my broker today to ask why I hadn't received my tax reporting statement yet and he told me that the statement had been available online for several weeks now. Damn. One more company to deal with that wants to go paperless. I hate this movement to go paperless. It's much easier to organize a stack of papers in file folders than it is to download and print out PDF files. I've noticed lately that when I renew subscriptions to trade magazines, they ask whether I'd like to receive a printed or electronic copy. I always check the box to get the printed copy. A real magazine makes good bathroom reading. A PDF file is just a nuisance.

So far, the weather looks good for the rest of the week. I wish I could get a sleep forecast that looked good for the rest of the week. I've never had kids, but this must be what it's like to have a baby. A solid eight hours of sleep never looked so good.

Ely is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 958

I burned some PDF files to a CD and drove them over to a client this morning. It was easier to drive across town than it would have been to explain yet again how to use YouSendIt or Unzip large files. Sometimes I worry that I could lose all my clients at the drop of a hat. None of them are very tech savvy, and most don't seem to have any use for the Internet at all. One client still prints out their website so they can read it on paper. You might think that dealing with Luddites would be stressful, but I find the old ways reassuring. Truthfully, it's still a lot easier to send a fax than it is to communicate using GoToMeeting or Evernote.

It appears like I'll never be able to completely relax when walking the dogs. There is always some sort of danger on the horizon. Last week I noticed that a guy with two aggressive dogs had moved into one of the rent houses down the street. The house where the guy lives has a very rickety back fence. I know that the previous renters who lived in this house have had their dogs escape through this fence. When I see the aggressive dogs racing around in the back yard, I have this sinking feeling that this isn't going to end well.

I just don't have a whole lot of faith in my fellow man anymore. Some of the nicest people I know are completely incompetent. On the other side of the coin, many of the most competent people are complete jerks. Where is the balance? It seems like there should be more people who are brilliant, completely practical, and nice all at the same time.

The new website I launched yesterday seems to be getting good reviews. This is a huge relief to me, because I don't think that all the king's horses and all the king's men could put the old site back together again. When I was going through the process of updating the site, I frequently became baffled by the code I wrote in 1995. What was I thinking? A lot of this code doesn't even make sense to me anymore. Of course, the Internet was different then. Most of my clients were using Windows 95 and Flash hadn't even been invented yet. Those were the days. I don't think I would even hear about PHP, API's and all the other complexities that bedevil me today until quite a few years later.

Penny is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day