Day 4458

Another slow day. Dawn still won't walk in the morning because it's too cold. We go down to the field behind our house and as soon as she poops she wants to come back home again. For a dog that's scared of everything, she's incredibly stubborn. When she's ready to go home, nothing can make her move forward. Until Spring really arrives, we're just going to walk her in the afternoon. The temperature warms up quickly. It went from 30 degrees to 60 degrees today.

After breakfast I filled out my application for 2022 press credentials with the Space Force. I've been credentialed for the past two years, so it shouldn't be a problem. You never know though. I don't take anything for granted anymore. I'm not even sure the magazine I write for likes me these days. Something has changed but I can't quite put my finger on it. At any rate, I hope everything goes smoothly. I still want to attend the Artemis 1 launch. I watched this spacecraft being assembled at Michoud Assembly Facility and have followed its journey for several years. Hopefully when the time comes I'll be able to afford airfare. I have a feeling that the cost of a plane ticket is going to be a lot higher in a few months from now.

I wasted a lot of time this morning trying to get my Dreamweaver software to work better. My plan was to boot the computer from an older system that I was using about the same time I bought my Adobe CS-5 software. Surprisingly this actually worked, but my WiFi was really slow because I was running an old operating system from an external hard drive. The website files I needed weren't on the drive either. By the time I finished transferring everything I realized that this was a pretty stupid plan. I guess I'll go back to using my semi-broken copy of Dreamweaver on my main computer.

I got my 20,000 steps again today but it wasn't easy. My feet felt terrible. Usually the last mile is the worst. At least I dressed appropriately this time. It was pretty warm by the time I took my long walk and I wore a light jacket that I could easily tie around my waist as I warmed up. I didn't see any ducks of geese this afternoon. I doubt that I'll ever see the eagles again. I wonder where the birds went. Parks and Recreation has been doing a lot of work in the park lately. Maybe all the noise is disrupting things. I haven't seen this much activity in many years. I may be wrong but it feels like the park department is trying to use up the remaining money in their fiscal year budget before it disappears.

I still think we should be doing more to help the Ukrainians. What good are NATO and the United Nations if all they can do is issue proclamations? I seem to remember no fly zones being established in almost every major conflict during the past thirty years. So now it's too dangerous to have a no fly zone? Basically the Ukrainians got screwed. When they broke away from the Soviet Union and became an independent country, they voluntarily relinquished their own nuclear weapons in exchange for protection from the West. It sure doesn't seem like we are doing much to protect them from Putin.

Janet said that Dawn did really well at training class tonight. We definitely won't be going to training class while she's away on vacation. The way things are going, we might not even leave the backyard.

Bacardi is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4455

I didn't pay enough attention to the weather this morning. I decided to take my long walk early and didn't even get to the end of the street before it suddenly started pouring rain. I quickly turned around and headed home, but it was too late. I was soaking wet. This was a strange little downpour. It didn't last long and it seemed to have been timed specifically to get me wet. It wasn't raining earlier when we took Dawn on her morning walk. And it wasn't raining later when we took her on her Sunday outing.

While my clothes were drying, I thought I might as well make use of my time, so I reluctantly started working on my taxes. While I was preparing my Quickbooks files for my accountant I noticed that my expenses had gone up in almost every category. Even though I drove less in 2021 I paid more for gas. Annual utility bills were considerably higher. Company expenses were about the only thing that went down. Makes sense I guess. I didn't have any business.

I've heard that our unseasonably warm weather is about to end. It got up to 80 degrees again today but tomorrow's high is supposed to only be in the mid-fifties. Later in the week we will be taking our morning walks in freezing weather again. This is basically par for the course. Almost every year we have a late freeze that kills all the early blooming flowers. Despite the odd weather, Spring is definitely getting closer. Things are starting to turn green in the park. It won't be too long before I start seeing baby ducks.

Dawn enjoyed her Sunday outing today. Maybe I was imagining things but she even seemed calmer in the car. I must have been feeling better too, because for the first time in over a month I was able to keep up with Dawn and Janet. My feet didn't bother me much today and I was able to make another attempt at my long walk later in the day after we returned home. We all enjoyed our ice cream cones today. A walk with Dawn followed by ice cream has become a Sunday tradition.

Basically all I did today was walk and do a little work on my taxes. I've had three 20,000 step days in a row now. That's not too shabby for a guy who can barely move when he gets up in the morning. I'm still not sure why my foot pain varies so much from day to day. Based on what is actually going on with my bones, you'd think the discomfort would be more or less constant. Maybe there is something to the old adage of mind over matter. I do tend to feel a little better on days when I'm in a good mood.

I'm about as anti-war as you can get, but it still bothers me that we aren't doing more to help the Ukrainians. At the very least, these guys should have iron dome defense shields around their cities like the Israelis do and  A-10 fighters to take care of the columns of Russian tanks and armored vehicles. Why was it OK for the United States to go into Iraq when virtually none of the locals wanted us there, but it is not OK to get involved with the Ukrainians when they are begging for our help? Yeah, I know the answer is Putin's nukes, but he still needs to be stopped.

Three of the four puppy mill Dalmatians will be at the kennel when we go to visit tomorrow. I can't wait to meet them. None of the dogs are ready for adoption yet, but I will take their pictures for the website anyway. I saw a few pictures of the dogs that were taken while they were at the vet. One of them looks a lot like Dawn. There certainly seems to be a family resemblance. I wonder if she could have been one of Dawn's puppies?

Anne is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4453

What was I thinking when I convinced myself that I could post something interesting for 5000 days? There are a lot of days where nothing interesting happens at all. I really don't have a lot of wisdom to share. Each morning I reluctantly get up. We take Dawn on a morning walk. I come home and make the bed and then I eat breakfast. Breakfast is the only time I watch television during the day. I wonder why I continue to do this because the news is universally dismal. Watching the morning news doesn't give you a lot of faith in humanity. After breakfast I turn on the computer and check my e-mail. The mail is almost entirely spam these days. I did get a message from the Space Force this morning reminding me to reapply for 2022 press credentials. I'll do that tomorrow. Sometimes I take my long walk in the morning and other times I wait until the afternoon. It all depends on the weather and how my feet are feeling.

I almost always walk the same route. This route has become so familiar to me that I could probably do it with my eyes closed. The long walk is a little over four and a half miles. With Dawn's shorter walks, this give me a total of at least six miles every day. Lately I've enjoyed watching the renovations that are taking place to the main trail that circles the lake. The work is pretty impressive. If only they built our city's roads this well. There are a few ducks and geese I see every day. I haven't given them names yet, but maybe I should. Two of the resident geese have disappeared and I haven't seen the Muscovy Ducks for a while. Whenever I start thinking that these birds might have died, they suddenly reappear. Usually by this time of year I start seeing wildflowers. Not this year. I've seen nothing so far, which is kind of odd.

My seasonal allergies are so bad this year that they actually help take my mind off my feet. The allergies are so pervasive that I occasionally think that this might be some strange undocumented Covid symptom. I've always tested negative though so I suspect that this is just is just a bad case of ordinary Hay Fever. I shouldn't complain about things like this because I know so many people who are dealing with far worse. It is irritating though to have a continual runny nose.

I'm glad to see that the fundraiser for the puppy mill Dalmatians appears to be going well. With this kind of support, it looks like we will reach our goal. I wonder what the dogs think about their new life. They are all scared right now, but it won't take them long to realize that their lives have dramatically improved. These dogs are all going to get really good homes.

I have mixed feelings about the war in Ukraine. I really think the United States should stop getting involved in foreign wars while at the same time wondering why we aren't doing more to help the Ukrainians. There is an impressive amount of unity among the Western nations. You'd think that with everybody on the same page we could do a lot more to stop Putin. What do you do in a situation like this? You can't let Putin get away with anything he wants. At the same time you don't want to start a nuclear war. I'm glad I'm not making the decisions. I have a feeling that it is a no win situation.

Janet's trip is getting closer and I still haven't won Dawn over yet. This will be interesting. Dawn tolerates me but I don't think she trusts me. This is understandable considering what she went through at the puppy mill, but I still wish I could convince her that I'm OK. I do think I'm making progress, but Dawn is not a young dog. Do I have time? At any rate, I've got my work cut out for me while Janet is on vacation.

Orion is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4452

I started working on my taxes today. I didn't get very far but at least I've got a folder to put my information in. I haven't done my own taxes for many years but there is still a lot of information to pull together for my accountant. Why do retired people even have to pay taxes? It's called an income tax and I don't have an income anymore. It wouldn't be so bad if people could choose what their taxes were used for. If I had a choice I would send mine to help the people in Ukraine this year. I'm fairly certain that the money will be wasted or spent on some government program I hate. At least I live in Texas. We don't have a state income tax.

I've finally seen pictures of the four new Dalmatians that the rescue program is picking up. They all come from a puppy mill in Marshal, Texas that hopefully is finally shut down for good. The dogs are all in bad shape, but they are at our vet now and will receive the care they've been needing for a long time. One of the females is pregnant and will have puppies soon. Dawn was rescued from this same puppy mill so I know how bad the conditions are there. All of Dawn's fear and nervousness came from this place. If you would like to help these dogs, a fundraiser has been created to provide for their care. If you are reading the real blog on my blogspot page, you can click on this link to donate. If you are looking at my JPEG images on Facebook, just look for the Dalmatian Rescue of North Texas page. 

I wonder how long this warm weather is going to last? The temperature topped 80 degrees today. It felt more like Summer than Spring. I'm happy for the warmer temperatures. They certainly beat the snow we had in March a few years ago. It's weird to have your furnace and your air conditioner both working on the same day. When we wake up in the morning the furnace is running. By mid afternoon, the air conditioner kicks in. I think that Dawn likes this warmer weather. There's a sunny spot in the bedroom that's become her new favorite place.

My allergies are worse than ever this year. I wonder why? Are pollen levels higher or is my resistance lower? It's hard to tell. It is irritating to blow you nose all day long though. It's definitely not as much fun to walk when your nose is dripping and you are constantly sneezing. I've had seasonal allergies for as long as I can remember. Unfortunately antihistamines make the problem even worse for me. I can't remember exactly when this is over for the year, but I hope it's soon.

I can't believe that Russia just bombed Europe's largest nuclear power plant. The place is on fire now. This is insane. Didn't these guys learn anything from Chernobyl? The fact that the rest of the world seems paralyzed by the fact that Putin has nuclear weapons seems as good a case for banning all nuclear weapons worldwide as I've ever seen. Who would enforce this though? It would probably be impossible unless space aliens stepped in. Humans have been fighting each other since the dawn of time. I don't have a lot of faith that this sad episode is going to bring us to our senses.

This week has sure gone quickly. I've already taken this week's trash to the curb and am ready to start all over again. Every Friday I toy with the idea of resuming my Friday morning restaurant breakfasts. I doubt that I'll go out for breakfast tomorrow, but one of these days I will. It's long past time to start having fun again.

Maggie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4451

It continues to be unseasonably warm. I wonder if the weird weather is affecting my allergies. My nose was running like a faucet today. My nose runs so much that I can't use regular Kleenex. I have to remember to always carry a couple of those heavy duty blue shop towels with me. Other than my perpetual seasonal allergies it was a great day. I hope we don't have a late freeze. With all this warm weather the trees are already starting to bud.

It was a pretty quiet day. I went to the bank and filled my car with gas. That was about it. I need to remember to always run errands like this when other people are at work. There were no lines at the gas pumps or the bank drive up window. 10:30 in the morning is great. Rush hour is over and people haven't started going to lunch yet. Now, I just need to break my habit of always doing my grocery shopping on Saturday. The first rule of retirement should always be to never do things when everyone else is doing things.

I was able to complete my full six mile walk today. My pace is considerably slower than it used to be unfortunately. I have to walk slowly and carefully now to minimize the foot pain. I stay on pavement or smooth trails more than I used to as well. I really don't want to twist an ankle. It's still good to be active though. I spend over two hours a day walking and that burns quite a few calories.

I avoid current events and politics like the plague, but Ukraine has captured my attention. I think this country has shown the world what real patriotism looks like. The Ukrainians make all the squabbles between the left and right in our own country look ridiculous. I wish there was a way we could help these guys a little more without starting World War III. I keep thinking if the Ukrainians had a few of our A-10 Warthogs they could take care of that forty mile convoy headed towards Kyiv fairly quickly.

There is a new update to the star tracker software. I hesitate to even use it because each new update seems to fix something while breaking something else. The Polaris tracker is still a work in progress and I am still basically a Beta tester. You'd think testing something like this would be interesting for me, but for the most part it is just irritating. I expect machines to work. Car problems, furnace problems, computer problems, and now star tracker problems are just an added nuisance in a world that is already too complicated.

My press credentials at Patrick Air Force Base have expired and nobody has contacted me yet about renewing them for another year. I hope this isn't a problem. I really want to go see the Artemis-1 launch later this year and I could usually count on the Air Force to get me on base even when NASA turned me down. I'm beginning to feel like I'm not in the loop anymore. There are a lot of launches at Kennedy Space Center now and I can only afford to go to a very few. It's too bad the magazine I write for doesn't pay for travel.

Janet said Dawn did really well at training class tonight. Dawn is starting to enjoy these weekly classes and has even made some dog friends. It's nice to see her overcome her fear and become a normal dog. She's still a little uncertain about me, but we're working on it.

Tucker is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4449

We spent quite a while at the kennel today. Not surprisingly it takes twice as long to visit four dogs as it takes to visit two. Next week there could be eight Dalmatians at the kennel. I've heard that the rescue group will be picking up four more soon. Hopefully each of these dogs will find their forever home quickly. It gets expensive caring for this many dogs. Willie and Jo Jo are both adjusting to kennel life nicely. It's fun getting to know each dog's personality. They are all very different, but you would never mistake them for another breed. Dalmatians are unique in so many ways.

We had a nice walk before breakfast with Dawn this morning, but I waited until we returned from the kennel to take my long walk. It was warmer to walk later in the afternoon, but I forgot that the days are still pretty short. By the time I got back home again the sun was already setting. I think I saw one of the eagles again today, but I'm not sure. The bird was pretty far away. It used to be easy to find the birds. If you saw a group of people with cameras, you knew the eagles were nearby. Now that the crowd have gone and nobody is sure where the birds are, they are much harder to spot. I'm not even sure that they are still in the area. There are lots of large hawks in the park. I might have seen a hawk today.

Apparently there is a new form of auto theft in Dallas. High tech thieves have discovered a way to take control of your key fob starters remotely and are able to start and steal your car without actually having the keyless starter. The remedy for this is a Faraday bag. You drop the starter in the bag and it blocks radio waves. Janet got a couple of these little bags for our keys and they do work. If the keys are in the bag, you can't open the car. Unfortunately this is one more example of why we can't have nice things. Home delivery was a nice thing until porch pirates began following the delivery trucks and stealing packages. Now with these Faraday bags I can't just leave my keys in my pocket and forget about them. I'm not a political person, but I think I'd vote for anyone who had a really good plan for getting rid of all the criminals. I don't care what you do with them. Just get rid of them.

I still haven't ordered any Hoka boots even though my feet still bother me every day. The shoes I wanted have been out of stock for quite a while. They were supposed to be available again in February and then in March, but I noticed today that they have quietly disappeared from every website. Even the Hoka company website doesn't offer them anymore. There are several new boot models but they are all lighter and don't seem as substantial. Snooze, you lose. I guess I should have bought these boots last year.

It's weird that Covid has almost completely disappeared from the news. Has Covid really disappeared or is the media only able to handle one panic at a time? Now there is 24/7 coverage of the events in Ukraine as if nothing else is happening in the world. In truth, the situation in Ukraine is probably even worse than the news media is reporting, but it can't be the only thing happening. Where are the forest fires, floods, and trucker convoys? I guess it's hard to top a madman invading neighboring countries and threatening to use nukes. After the past several years I hate to think what's next. We've gone from bad to worse. Maybe an invisible asteroid is on a collision course with earth.

Connor is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4448

It was a little chilly this morning but it certainly was a beautiful day. It was hard to believe how nasty the weather has been for the past several days because it was all blue skies today. Dawn got a nice early walk, plus another later in the afternoon. We didn't take our Sunday outing today for a variety of reasons, but Dawn didn't seem to mind. She doesn't like to ride in the car and it was too cold for ice cream anyway.

I didn't do much of anything today and was amazed that the day went so quickly. I paid some bills and finally got around to updating the Dalmatian Rescue website, but that was about it. I still waste too much time looking at Facebook even though there is little to see. Mr. Zuckerberg seems to think I like reading about aging rock musicians and exotic cars. I'm really just checking up on my favorite dogs. My Facebook feed is 90% dog pictures these days.

A few of the Dalmatians I regularly see online are located in Ukraine. I guess I never realized this until the war started. I hope these dogs and their owners are OK. It is really sad to see what is happening because it is all so pointless. In an odd way Putin has done the impossible. He has united the entire world against him. Democrats, Republicans, and just about every country on the face of the earth condemns the invasion. Even the Russian people are not in favor of what Putin is doing. Volodymyr Zelenskyy has become a worldwide hero overnight and Putin has become a pariah. I may be wrong, but I think that whatever happens, Putin is done.

The Benro company wants me to document some of the problems I'm having with the Polaris star tracker. Communication has been difficult with this Chinese company and I'm not entirely sure what they want me to do. I'll try to work on this sometime next week although I'm really not that interested. My inclination is to just put the tracker back in the box and wait until someone else solves the problem. I'm sure there will be several more firmware updates in the coming months and one of them will probably take care of the crashes I am currently experiencing. I doubt that I'll be attempting any night sky photographs in the near future anyway. It's too cold outside. What a wimp I've become. It's a good thing I've got the blog. Blogging give me the perfect excuse not to go outside at night.

Speaking of blogging, my Google blogspot theme seems to have fixed itself. I noticed last night that the old layout is back and everything is just like it used to be. This is all a mystery to me. I was never given any notice when the theme and layout broke and there was no notice when things were fixed again. I did learn when things were broken that my theme is considered obsolete and is no longer supported. This makes the fact that it was repaired seem even stranger. At any rate, I hope my theme keeps working for at least 500 more days. I have no desire to change it at this point.

February is almost over. March is a transition month and we still may have some bad weather ahead, but I'm already looking forward to Spring. Oddly I have seen no flowers. Often I start seeing the earliest wildflowers in late February. Maybe it was too cold this year. I haven't even seen any daffodils or grape hyacinths yet.

Princess is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4447

Another cold, grey day. We were finally able to take Dawn on a walk before breakfast and she seemed to enjoy it. We had a big weekend breakfast and then I went and did my grocery shopping. I left a little early this morning because I thought it was going to rain. Actually it did rain, but not until much later in the day.

The shelves are still looking a little bare in most stores but I still found everything I needed. I was going to get gas, but there were lines at Sam's Club where prices are lowest. I can wait. I drive so little that my tank won't be empty for a long time. Prices in the stores still seem high, but that is probably because I never used to look at prices. Now that I've become more aware of what things really cost, it all seems expensive.

I've been worried about falling for months, but it was Janet who actually fell. She stumbled while running in the park this morning and got some nasty looking scrapes and bruises. Hopefully no harm was done, but falling on pavement is never fun.

I dressed warmly for my long walk today. It wasn't as cold as yesterday, but it still felt very chilly to me. Nobody seems to dress as warmly as I do. I don't see how some of the people I see in the park can stand the cold. On cold days I wear a light down ski jacket under a heavier down outer jacket. The inner jacket has a hood and I wear a wool hat under that. Add a pair of lined leather gloves and I'm ready for anything.

So far no roof leaks today even though we got quite a bit of rain later in the day. I'm glad the pumps are still working because I have no desire to go up on the roof these days. My sense of balance isn't as good as it used to be and there is no reason to be tempting fate.

I'm still working on getting Dawn to trust me. She's fine when Janet is in the house, but still seems nervous around me when we are alone together. I don't know what to expect when Janet goes on vacation. I guess she'll either get used to me or it will be a very long week. I don't think I'll be able to take her on walks while Janet is away. If she froze in place a long way from home I would be out of luck. Right now it's hard enough for both of us to get Dawn moving again when she has these periodic freezes. I don't think the refusal to move is stubbornness. It is some kind of fear or panic.

I follow space more than politics and have been surprised that even this tiny little slice of reality has been affected by the crisis in the Ukraine. A major component of the Cygnus rocket that resupplies the international pace station is manufactured in Ukraine. Without this component there will be no more launches from Wallops Island. The Atlas 5 rocket which has been used for years to launch the majority of research satellites uses Russian engines. The fuel used to keep the international space station in a stable orbit comes from Russia as well. If the supply for these things is disrupted, the space program slowly grinds to a halt. It's sad how little I knew about Ukraine before this crisis. I still thought that Chernobyl was in Russia. And when did the spelling and pronunciation of Ukraine's capital city change from Kiev to Kyiv? Is this recent or am I just another unaware American?

I think it is supposed to be sunny tomorrow. I sure hope so. There's been too much gloomy weather on top of all the world's gloomy news. I want an early Spring, a friendly dog, and lots of wildflowers in the park. 

Bingo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4446

The cold wave continues. We didn't even try to walk Dawn this morning. She hates the cold and we don't want walking to feel like punishment. Dawn is a smart dog. I think she's realized that if she runs out in the back yard first thing in the morning and does her business quickly, she can forget the walk and spend the rest of the day resting on the bed. We were hoping that temperature would warm up enough so that we could all take a walk in the afternoon, but the weather did not cooperate. It stayed cold all day.

I typically channel surf the news channels while I'm eating breakfast and I've just about had enough. There is no such thing as objective news anymore. Everyone has a narrative they are trying to push and they gather just enough plausible information to support their pre-drawn conclusion. It doesn't matter what the subject is. Vaccine mandates, inflation, trucker convoys, January 6, climate change, and even Ukraine. Take your pick. 

There are opposing narratives on just about everything. If you don't agree with something, you just call it fake news. Although most people seem to agree that what is happening in Ukraine is terrible they certainly don't agree on what to do about it. The recommended responses range all the way from doing nothing at all to preemptively starting World War III. I remember a time when the country agreed on the important things. The memories are getting fuzzy though. It's been a long time since we've been able to reach a consensus on anything.

The trouble with pushing a narrative is that it makes it impossible to see the big picture. You only see one side of what is usually a very complex story. People are very poor students of history and they forget that what is happening now has been happening over and over again since the dawn of time. The dawn of time for humans is just a grain of sand in the ocean too. We haven't been around nearly as long as the dinosaurs.   During our short time on this planet we have been constantly fighting with each other. Archeology is basically a study of ancient conquests. The boundaries of every country on earth have been established through countless wars. You can virtue signal all you want but you can't erase the fact that humans are pretty nasty creatures.

I think about things like this while I am walking. Probably even more so while I'm looking at the stars at night. What I see is only a tiny fraction of the know universe. The earth and its inhabitants are almost inconsequential. Humanity is here for a while but our fate will probably be just like the dinosaurs. Something else will replace us. This is why it is so insane to spend so much time fighting. In cosmic terms we are only here for the blink of an eye. Why can't we enjoy and make the most of the short time we've been allotted?

I'll admit that I didn't have a lot of deep thoughts on my walk today. It was so cold that I just concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. I don't do a lot of sightseeing or even hear much on cold days like this. My parka restricts my hearing and side vision. I'm usually just looking at the trail immediately ahead so that I don't trip on anything. It's still peaceful walking in the woods though. Even the coldest day outside is better than watching the news on TV inside.

After hauling the week's trash out to the curb in the cold last night, the trucks didn't even come to pick it up today. It was this way last week as well. Getting back to normal after Covid is proving to be much more difficult than many people expected. Admittedly, these are first world problems. I'm worried about garbage pickup while on the other side of the world people are wondering if they've got a country left.

Cookie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day