Day 4961

Today's big event was giving Dawn a bath. Well, it wasn't a big event for Dawn. She thought we were going in the car for ice cream until we somehow wound up at the self bathe place instead. None of our dogs have liked getting a bath, although they seem to enjoy how they feel afterwards. Dawn isn't itching and scratching anymore. If we could just convince her to quit rolling in the grass, she probably wouldn't be itching at all. Hopefully she'll stay clean for a little while, but I wouldn't be surprised to see her rolling in the grass again tomorrow.

We had another enjoyable sunrise walk this morning. I wish these pleasant early morning temperatures would last a little longer. As soon as the sun comes up it's all over. At least there are a few benefits to the hot, dry weather. The house has shifted back and all the interior doors close properly again. I've been unable to close the utility room door for months. Of course doors that close properly don't keep the house cool. The air conditioner struggles to maintain the temperature in mid afternoon. I thought the new insulation on the roof would do a better job of insulating us from the heat, but there is just too much glass in the house. I'm just going to have to resign myself to high electric bills for the next several months.

For the past several nights I've had bad dreams when I sleep. This is a new development and I hope it stops soon. A restful night's sleep is one of life's pleasures. At least I don't remember my dreams. Once I'm fully awake the dreams fade quickly. Of course other thoughts fade quickly in the daytime as well. I've learned to write things down if something seems important.

I still have mixed feelings about skipping the EchoStar Jupiter 3 launch. I really didn't have much interest in going to this launch, but I definitely want to keep getting invited to future launch events. We'll have to see whether skipping an invitation makes any difference. I don't know why they are even trying to launch tomorrow. There's been a lot of rain in Titusville recently and there are bad thunderstorms right now. Truthfully, I've spent more time in the rain in Titusville than under sunny skies. I guess this doesn't really matter to the launch teams. All they need is about ten minutes of good weather to get the rocket off the ground.

I wonder when I can start taking my long walks in the park again? There is no end in sight for this hot weather. Once again I headed to the gym after breakfast. Well, actually I headed to the gym closer to lunch. I still think the place is less busy at lunchtime. The trainers must all be on commission because they all seem to be aggressively trying to line up new customers. I hope they leave me alone. If the trainers start hounding me, I'll have to quit coming. I don't want to talk to anyone or have people tell my how to improve myself while I'm working out. I just want to walk around the indoor track in peace and quiet and maybe shoot a few baskets before I return home.

After lunch Dawn got her bath and then I spent the rest of the day doing essentially nothing. There should be more things that interest me, considering how many serious interests I have had in the past. I guess it's just the ebb and flow of life. I'm curious about many things but I don't think I've ever been obsessed with anything. As long as I remain healthy, I guess I'll be fine.

Smokey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4802

Dawn got a bath today. That was probably the big event of the day. Dawn, like most dogs, doesn't really like getting a bath, but she tolerates it. We take her to a neighborhood self-bathe place where there are lots of other dogs and she is always well behaved.

Luckily, last night's severe weather alert never materialized. It didn't even rain. I keep looking at the weather forecast with trepidation. I'd really like it to stay dry for a while. So far, there is no rain in the forecast until next Wednesday with a 30% chance of showers. I can live with that.

It was quite cold today. I didn't dress warmly enough when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk, but I didn't make that mistake again when I took my long walk later in the day. Dawn seems to enjoy the cold. She was full of energy this morning. I definitely wasn't full of energy when I took my long walk, but I did manage to complete my six miles. There weren't a lot of people on the trails today for obvious reasons. There are always a few die-hards like me though. I recognize them now but have no idea who they are.

I had several errands I needed to do today but never got around to doing anything. I need to renew a prescription before it runs out and I need to get a new bulb for one of the living room lamps before it burns out. There are other things that can probably wait until this weekend. At the rate I'm going, I suspect that everything will wait until this weekend.

The only real connection I have to the Space Coast is what I see on Facebook. Almost every day I see cool photos of launches that I missed. There's always a lot going on down at Kennedy Space Center but unfortunately I can only afford to travel to Florida several times a year. I kind of envy the photographers who seem to attend every single launch, but I wonder if I would have their stamina if I actually lived there. I tend to get bored quickly. There are a lot of things that have captured my interest in the past. Most of them are just distant memories now. Realistically, going to a few important launches a year is plenty. They are all more of less the same anyway.

I'm really tired of having a runny nose. I don't do well with decongestants, so I'm blowing my nose constantly. This seems more like seasonal allergies than a cold, but I've had enough. Since this happens every year, you'd think I'd have come up with a solution by now. Nope. So far, I'm just burning through a lot of blue Scott shop towels. At $20 for a six pack, this turns out to be pretty expensive Kleenex.

This week has gone quickly. When I took this week's trash out to the curb this evening, Mars and Jupiter were already low in the Western sky. It seems like they were overhead just a few weeks ago. I wonder what stars will be overhead the next time I'm out at McDonald Observatory. It might be a while.

Joshua is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4536

Today's big event was giving Dawn a bath. I didn't think Dawn was too dirty and probably neither did Dawn, but she likes to roll in the dirt and Janet likes a clean dog. We always take Dawn to a self bathe place in the neighborhood. She hates getting in the tub, but always seems to relax when we apply the shampoo and rinse her off with warm water. By the time we dry her with a couple of bath towels, she seems like a happy dog. I kind of feel the same way about taking a shower. I hate getting wet, but it does feel better being clean.

It was surprisingly cold when we took our sunrise walk this morning. The furnace was on when I woke up and I actually needed a coat when we went outside. I thought I was done with Winter coats for the year, but maybe not. The weather here is full of surprises. Dawn approved of the cooler weather and really enjoyed her walk this morning. I thought she might want to take a longer walk, but she was more interested in returning home for her breakfast.

I always take Dawn outside around 11 AM to pee. I sat outside with her for about fifteen minutes and she did nothing, so we went back inside again. I then went out in the front yard to pull weeds in a little garden area and when I returned not more than ten minutes later I discovered a trail of pee leading to the back door. Dawn never does this. I wonder why she didn't go when I had her outside a little earlier. I hope she isn't getting senile or has some kind of medical issue. She's been fine the rest of the day, but it's something to keep an eye on.

My long walk this afternoon was curtailed by foot pain again this afternoon. I was lucky to get 10,000 steps today. It's a shame that my feet have been bothering me when the weather has been so nice. This would have been a great afternoon for a long walk. As much as I hate driving in city traffic, I'll probably have to start going back to the gym soon. I have a feeling that my feet need a rest and I probably need to start doing some alternate exercises anyway. My upper body strength is terrible now. It's a shame that it is so easy to lose muscle mass as you get older, but so hard to gain it back again. 

I've got to stop using Facebook. It's become totally irritating lately. Whenever I see an interesting story, it always ends up being hidden behind a paywall. I hate those paywalls and steadfastly refuse to subscribe to anything. Newspapers and magazines are the worst. Now that nobody reads the printed page anymore, all these publications seem to be trying to recreate their subscription models online. Even in the old days I used to read magazines in libraries. I guess I've always thought that information should be free. Almost as irritating as paywalls is the proliferation of sponsored articles on Facebook. These are all clickbait. If you click on an interesting headline and picture, you are led through an endless series of pages filled with ads and other nonsense, all trying to get you to hit the next button that will lead you to your destination. Usually I realize that I've been scammed after hitting the next button a few times. I should have learned by now that these sponsored posts are all worthless clickbait.

Where has this week gone? I've already taken the trash out to the curb and and am contemplating going out for breakfast on Friday again. Maybe I will one of these days. I think the magic is gone unfortunately. I don't enjoy eating as much as I used to. Exploring new restaurants used to be a big adventure. Now eating a perfunctory bowl of shredded wheat is just the easiest way to get some food in my belly.

Chief is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day