Day 4701

The day started out normally enough. It was already light outside when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk. It was also very warm and muggy, but I didn't give that any thought. I ate my breakfast and took my long walk in the park. There was no wind and I thought it was just going to be another overcast day, but about five minutes after I returned home the skies opened up and it started pouring rain. What was this about?. I'm usually right on top of changing weather, but this downpour caught me completely by surprise.  

Actually the entire day caught me by surprise. I finally got hold of the restaurant where Janet and I wanted to have Thanksgiving Brunch and they told me that the event was already completely sold out. I must have acted surprised because the person I talked to on the phone said that some people had made their reservations two to three months ago. What has changed? I have made reservations several weeks ahead of time at this restaurant many times before and never had any problems.

I tried to remember other places we've gone on Thanksgiving and our second choice wasn't even doing a Thanksgiving Brunch this year. I did a Google search and found a couple of other places, but when I called I just got a voicemail message. We may have to come up with a plan B.

I have a feeling that the November 14th Artemis launch isn't going to happen. Nicole is a named storm now and is headed toward Kennedy Space Center. I got a message from NASA this morning saying that all media activities are subject to change. A lunar eclipse photo opportunity has already been canceled and remote camera activities have been postponed. If the storm strengthens and becomes a hurricane, I suspect that Artemis will be rolled back to the VAB again. Things are changing quickly though. There may not even be time to roll the rocket back to the VAB. This launch appears to be cursed. I hope they don't wait until the last minute to make a decision about the launch date. I need time so that I can cancel my reservations without penalties if necessary. Right now it appears that they are just going to leave the rocket on the pad during the storm and hope for the best. I have a bad feeling about this. If they just cancel the attempt on the 14th and push everything back to the 16th at the last minute I doubt that I'll be able to find a hotel. At any rate, I'll be checking the weather in Florida very carefully as the week continues.

I was surprised at how heavy today's rain was. I just got lucky that I wasn't caught out in it. At this time of year I need to remember to always check the weather before I do anything. Storms can appear out of nowhere during the rainy season. Oh, well. At least I don't have to worry about an approaching hurricane. The pumps are still working on the roof and so far we have had no water leaks.

I hope our weather improves tomorrow. I have a doctor's appointment and it looks like it will be a busy day. I hope I can still find someplace nice to go out for dinner on Thanksgiving. We weren't really planning to stay home and cook. I'm still disappointed that our favorite restaurant is completely booked. They stopped doing their Thanksgiving Brunch during the Covid years and Janet and I were both looking forward to a return to normalcy. This should probably be a lesson for me. There's a good chance that nothing will ever be normal again.

At least all the annoying campaign ads and commentary on TV will be gone after tomorrow. I'm sick of all the hysteria. The world isn't going to end no matter who wins. It will just slowly continue to deteriorate.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4353

I called the restaurant today to confirm our Thanksgiving reservations for tomorrow. I didn't really need to do this, but I don't trust my own memory anymore. I am always checking things that I've already checked. I check the stove several times a day to make sure it is turned off. I check the door locks multiple times before I go to bed. I'm always checking the locks on the gates in the back yard. I don't think Dawn would ever run away, but you never know. Uncertainty makes me nervous and life is full of uncertainties. It's a dilemma.

Today was pretty much a repeat of yesterday. It was cold when we got up, but warmed up quickly. Dawn is back to her short one mile loop. We tried to tempt her with other options today, but she wasn't interested. I started a new box of shredded wheat this morning. The only significance of this is that I won't have any crumbs in my cereal for a few days. I felt good on my long walk today. My pace was good and there was very little foot pain. I wonder where the eagles are? I haven't heard of any reported sightings recently and I certainly haven't seen the birds myself. I keep looking though. It gives me something to do while I'm walking.

I wrote some letters to friends today asking for contractor suggestions. I'm still so old school that it feels more natural to ask a friend for suggestions than to use an app to find suppliers. Almost everyone who has ever worked on the house has resulted from a friend's referral. Most of these suggestions have been good ones. Maybe I'll use The Good Contractor's List or Angie one of these days, but I'm not quite ready yet.

I am ready to return to Kennedy Space Center, so I wrote another letter to a NASA contact asking how to apply for long term credentials. Right now I always apply for daily or short term credentials when I want to attend a launch, so it can be difficult for me to assure the magazine I write for that I'll be able to cover a story they might be interested in. Sometimes I get accepted and other times I don't. If I could manage to get yearly credentials, life would be a lot easier for me.

I'm starting to see a lot of for sale signs in the neighborhood. Are people becoming more transient, or are they just trying to take advantage of today's high real estate values? When we first moved here, all our neighbors had lived here forever. They never moved, but they eventually all died. I miss these people because they represented a world that has largely disappeared. Janet and I are old enough now that we get brochures from retirement communities. I don't think we'll ever move though. It's just too much trouble.

Every Wednesday evening Dawn has training class. I used to go to these classes when we had Dot and Dash. With only one dog to train now, only Janet goes. I'm always happy to hear that Dawn is starting to do better in class. She isn't as scared anymore. You have to be patient with Dawn, but he is starting to relax. Maybe she's finally starting to realize that her old life is over and this new life she's got now isn't so bad. 

Maggie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day