Day 3582

I went to the dentist today and got impressions made for my new retainer. It actually took longer to drive to my appointment than to make the impressions. I was in and out in fifteen minutes. It always seems weird when the dentist fills your mouth with what looks like bathroom caulk and has you bite down on a spacer that presses the stuff into your teeth. I'm always convinced that this mess will stick to my teeth and be impossible to remove. After two minutes the goop hardens and pulls away cleanly though, making a perfect impression of your teeth. This will serve as a mold to make the actual retainer which should be ready on Thursday. I asked if they could just mail it to me, but the dentist needs to make sure the retainer fits properly. Looks like I'm going to have to drive all the way up to the dentist again.

It rained again during the night and this morning I noticed what appeared to be a small leak in the office. The water looked like it was coming through a can light in the ceiling. I've never had a leak in this spot before, so this was very disappointing. It's too bad it rained on the same day I got the silicon roof coating. Due to the weather, I still haven't been able to make any repairs. I cleared away all the standing water after I took my walk today and am hoping for the best. The long range forecast says it's not going to rain again until next Monday. Hopefully I can patch things before then.

This weather is driving me nuts. This Fall we have already had two cold fronts that only lasted one day each. Yesterday it was back to ninety degrees and today was super muggy. The humidity was so high that my shirt was drenched before I even finished my first mile. Tomorrow it is supposed to be cold again. I think the temperature at sunrise is expected to be fifty-five degrees. At least it isn't going to rain tomorrow. I've really got to get this roof fixed.

My allergies have been terrible this week. The windy days and swiftly changing weather probably have something to do with it. I was afraid I was going to be blowing my nose and sneezing on the dentist while he was making my impressions, so I took an antihistamine this morning. I rarely take antihistamines because they make me feel terrible. My nose stops dripping, but my entire head feels like it is wrapped in a blanket. I get an odd buzzing feeling that is hard to describe. I didn't want to sneeze on the dentist today, but generally I'd rather go through a box of Kleenex every hour than feel this way.

Janet is traveling again. This means I have to start cooking for myself again. Cooking to me generally means just heating something up in the microwave. I still like those Cadence Kitchen flash frozen meals though. You just heat them up in a skillet on the stove and ten minutes later you have a tasty and reasonably healthy meal. I like their Mexican Style Pulled Pork and Chicken Tikka Masala. I think they make a Paella Valenciana now too. There is a little too much salt in these meals, but not as much as I'd get if I went to a restaurant.

I can't decide whether to write the roofer again. He'd probably just ignore me. The gift of a $250 bucket of liquid silicon is his way of saying "don't bother me anymore." It's irritating to still have a leak though. The roof shouldn't be leaking. If he'd gotten me the silicon coating back in July, I probably wouldn't be having this problem.

Camp is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3494

After breakfast this morning, I went and got groceries for the week. Usually Janet cooks on the weekends and I eat leftovers during the week. No leftovers this week. Janet is on vacation with her sister and the refrigerator is empty. I'm not much of a cook so I got some more of those Cadence Kitchen flash frozen meals. I was real excited when this concept was initially introduced, but I'd almost forgotten about the stuff. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the company had added a bunch of new dishes to their repertoire. I will be eating Pesto Shrimp, Creamy Arbol Chicken, and Pulled Pork with Pineapple this week. Did I fix any of these things tonight? Nope. I just had a hot dog.

The backyard birdbath sculpture is back together. I took the pieces over to the Creative Arts Center where my friend is teaching a metal arts class. I thought it would take weeks to fix the sculpture, but she welded it back together on her lunch break. I was surprised that the Creative Arts Center has been around since 1966 and I'd never even heard of it. It wasn't that far away either. There was some really impressive work on display and a ton of interesting classes that were open to anyone. Maybe I should take a class. Or maybe not. I am very ambivalent these days. It's nice to know that a place like this exists. At any rate, if I ever feel the urge to carve stone, fuse glass, throw pots, or learn to weave I'll know where to go.

There is so much information online about the Apollo Fiftieth Anniversary that I have become overwhelmed with facts and figures. I read the articles and watch the YouTube videos wondering why it took fifty years for the world to become interested in this stuff. Probably as soon as the anniversary is over people will forget about the moon again. When I read some of the biographies of people who worked on the Apollo program, I'm amazed at how young many of them were at the time. Some of the engineers manning the consoles at mission control weren't much older than I was. I never realized when I was in architecture school that there were people my own age working on the space program. Of course there were many people my own age fighting in Vietnam as well. All these programs about the Apollo 11 Anniversary are making me realize that 1969 was a long time ago.

I took my morning walk an hour earlier than usual today. It didn't make any difference. It was still way too hot. If I was smart, I'd get up really early like I used to when I walked Dot and Dash. Unfortunately, I'm still enjoying getting a good night's sleep. You can't really walk and sleep at the same time. I'm trying to convince myself that sweating profusely is good for you. Who knows. Maybe it is. I do drink lots of water when I return home, and I always wear a hat now, so I'm probably OK.

I wonder how long I can avoid mowing the grass. It's starting to get long again. I'm ready to patch the tears in the roof coating but the roofer hasn't delivered the silicon yet. There's a new Dalmatian that needs to be photographed too. I guess I'll start by getting more fresh fruit tomorrow morning. I'll eat a peach and then decide what to do next.

Beemer is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day