Day 4790

Shopping is not a pleasure anymore. Traffic is unreal these days. Even at 10 AM Northwest Highway looked like the worst evening rush hour I've ever experienced. Where are all these people coming from? It feels like the population of Dallas has doubled overnight. Stores are crowded and shelves are empty. I routinely have to go to several stores to find things that I used to find in a single location. Prices keep rising and in an effort for keep prices lower, many stores are replacing familiar national brands with their own private labels. Most of these private label brands seem to be of lower quality. It's sad. As soon as we reset our expectations and learn to accept this new reality, I suspect things will get even worse.

What happened to our ice storm? It's like it never even happened. The weather was nice today. It was much warmer and the ground is almost dry again. We had a great walk with Dawn this morning. She really missed her walks during the storm. I think we're almost back to normal now. I cleaned and put most of the buckets away and did a huge load of wash. It seems like every towel and cleaning cloth we own was put to use when there were leaks everywhere. I thought all the leaks were gone, but after the temperature warmed up a very small leak reappeared in the office. This leak has finally stopped as well, but I'm still leaving a container under it just in case.

The roof estimator wanted to come over a little early, so I postponed my long walk until after he finished looking at things. He seemed a bit overwhelmed by all the problems I was having. The guy was young and I don't think he had dealt with many flat roofs before. He took a lot of pictures and said he was going to confer with someone at the company who had a lot of experience with my type of roof. Later in the day I got a call from someone who seemed to have a wealth of knowledge about anything related to roofing. She didn't even live in Dallas and said she worked with roofing companies all over the country. She seemed to know a lot about my particular roof and had the exact dimensions, even though the guy who came out never took any measurements. She said there is a company that uses satellite and drone imagery to provide this information for roofing companies. Welcome to a new world where practically everything is outsourced. The woman said that she would have a specialist in residential flat roofs contact me next week. So far, so good I guess. This wasn't what I was expecting, but I will say that this company has been very responsive. I'm going to stay optimistic even though there is more rain in the forecast for next week.

My long walk was slow today. I had a lot of foot pain. There's not a lot you can do about osteoarthritis. Bone on bone contact of any nature is going to be painful. They say that a change in diet can slow down the degeneration of cartilage, but it may be too late for that already. I don't know if I could do it anyway. You are supposed to give up alcohol, red meat, cheese and other dairy products, refined carbohydrates and sugar. Jeez. What's left?

I did get my steps today. I've been surprisingly active lately. At least working on the roof had a few benefits. I got 24,000 steps yesterday and 22,000 steps today. Walking is still enjoyable, but it's starting to take a toll on me. I feel quite tired after I finish my long walks these days. I guess that's the point, isn't it? You are supposed to feel tired after exercise. 

It looks like it is going to be nice tomorrow, so Dawn will get her Sunday outing again. I'll probably go mall walking as well. I don't get as many steps when I go walking at the mall, but I need a change of pace from my walks in the park at least once a week. Mall walking when the stores are closed is strangely peaceful.

Duke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4615

Today was busy. Our rain and cooler weather is just a memory now. The temperature didn't set any records today, but it is definitely still summer. We took Dawn on her sunrise walk, had some bacon and eggs for breakfast and then went to move the rescue Dalmatians. The move took longer than expected and there were several complications, but we got the job done.

When we returned home I did my grocery shopping. I'm beginning to think the preppers might be right. Almost every week something on my list seems to be in short supply. Are we headed toward Armageddon? So far, the shortages appear to be random. You never know which shelves are going to be empty. I can still find what I need, but I often have to go to several stores. Janet thinks that things are going to get worse. I hope not. I'm not used to seeing empty shelves in grocery stores.

I picked up a prescription while I was shopping. GoodRx is still a lot cheaper than my prescription drug plan. Why am I paying so much for my Part-D plan when it doesn't even give me the best prices? Medical costs are a mystery. There is no rhyme or reason to anything.

The oil light came on in Janet's car when we were moving the dogs, so I picked up some oil for her at Auto Zone. Oil is another thing that has gotten real expensive. I remember when engine oil was only a couple of dollars a quart. Now most later model cars require synthetic oils and the prices are over ten dollars a quart.

I went to the gym later this afternoon but I didn't get to stay as long as I usually do. The gym closes early on Saturday and I got a late start. I managed to get my steps on the indoor track, but ran out of time on the basketball court. I'd never stayed at the gym until it closed before. Someone comes around to all the stations at closing time and shoos everyone out. The gym is closed tomorrow, but I'll probably go mall walking again.

I picked up Chinese for dinner tonight. I hope the little neighborhood restaurant that Janet and I like manages to stay in business. It hasn't been very busy the last several times I've been there and this evening the place was completely empty when I came to pick up my order. The food is good but I don't think we can keep the place going on our own. Chinese food once or twice a month is plenty.

I need to remember to do my mall walking early tomorrow so we can still take Dawn on her Sunday outing. There are still a lot of things that need attention in the yard, but I'm going to wait until it gets a little cooler. 

Emma is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4426

Life is back to normal. It was much warmer today and the snow and ice has virtually disappeared. Dawn was happy to get a morning walk again. It was still chilly early this morning but the temperature was above freezing for most of the day. 

The roads are no longer empty. When I did my grocery shopping this morning the traffic was as bad as it ever was. The only thing strange today was that the grocery store shelves were surprisingly empty. I guess there was a lot of panic buying before the storm and nobody has had time to restock yet. I did manage to find what I needed though. All in all, this winter storm wasn't nearly as bad as everyone expected. We've seen a lot worse. Hopefully this is as bad as it gets this year. I have my doubts though. We've seen a lot of nasty weather later in February.

The leak in the office finally stopped. The leak stopped for a while last night when everything refroze, but started dripping again this morning. Luckily, this was the only leak this time. I can see a little staining in the living room ceiling where I carefully bleached everything clean just last week. This means that some moisture is getting in, but not enough to actually cause a leak. I'm glad I didn't attempt to repair the sheetrock yet. Now I'm going to have to bleach the ceiling all over again. I knew this was going to happen. Leaks always occur when the roof freezes over. I actually think the roof leaks started many years ago when a thick canopy of ice covered the roof for weeks during an extended cold spell. At least the pumps are working again. I pumped quite a bit of water off the roof today. I'm not climbing up there though. With my foot pain, a bad knee, and a poor sense of balance, it wouldn't be a wise thing to do. I'm really hoping to replace the roof this Spring. Still got to find a good contractor though.

Janet has returned to the gym, so I walked by myself today. Most of the roads and trails were dry and I was able to wear my Hoka shoes again. I'm sure this helped, but my feet still hurt. I'm still walking the same distance, but my pace has really slowed down. It's really pathetic how slow I'm walking lately. Just about anybody can pass me now. At least I'm still moving. That's the important thing.

The two eagles that have taken up residence in the park have become quite the local attraction. People call them Nick and Nora now. There was quite a crowd watching the nest today. There are always a lot more people in the park on weekends. I didn't bother to join the group this time. I've already seen the two eagles many times and once I managed to get a few good pictures my interest has started to wane. I'll probably get a few more pictures in the days ahead. There's no hurry though. The pair is expected to remain in the area until Summer.

I didn't bother to monkey around with the star tracker today. The next step will be to take it outside at night and actually try to track and photograph something. It's still too cold for that though. I don't expect any dramatic results because there is so much light pollution in Dallas. Orion is bright enough to see from our back yard though. That's a good place to start. 

I think it's going to be even warmer tomorrow, so it looks like Dawn will get her Sunday outing. Even though Dawn is a lazy dog who loves to lounge on the bed, I could tell that she missed her walks the past several days. It will be good to resume our regular routine again. The regular routine definitely includes ice cream. We all love ice cream.

Zorro is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3734

I'm glad my gym was still open this morning. There were a few additional signs about wiping down the machines after use, but just about everyone did that anyway. The only changes I noticed were that the water bottle and paper cups had been removed from the water dispenser and all the magazines had been removed from the magazine rack. All the gym rats were still there. I don't think anything would deter these people from exercising.

The gym seemed comforting and familiar, but the grocery store certainly didn't. I've never seen the shelves so empty. Bottled water, toilet paper, cleaning products, diapers, and many other items were completely gone. There was a long line of people waiting for something at the back of the store. I don't know what they were waiting for. When I got my items and left the store, the line was still there and nobody had moved.

When I went to pick up a prescription at a pharmacy located inside a different grocery store, the situation was the same. Empty shelves everywhere. Conditions like these are what causes panic buying. You can't help but thinking that all the other people must know something you don't.

Before I headed home again, I went to Home Depot to look for an in-line dimmer switch for a floor lamp in the living room that had broken. Apparently they don't make these things anymore. I needed to find something to turn the lamp on and off and ended up buying a WiFi plug that claimed it would let me switch things on and off with my phone. The high tech switch turned out to be even harder to connect to the network than our new petcam, but I ultimately got it to work.

It's raining pretty hard now, so the time I spent on the roof removing all the standing water this afternoon was a totally wasted effort. Janet said the pumps on the roof were working while I was gone, but they must not have been working well. There was a lot of water on the roof. This roof is almost as frustrating as the virus. The problems never seem to end.

Janet and I both thought we had plenty of food on hand, but rumors are swirling now about a 14-day lockdown. We both made a list of things we might need if the grocery stores and restaurants were closed and will go shopping again tomorrow. Most of the things we like to eat are only available fresh, but a lot of fresh meat and vegetables can be frozen. We'll try to be creative. Neither of us plan on eating canned beans for the next month.

Dawn doesn't appear to be afraid of storms at all. There is lots of thunder and lightning right now and she is snoozing calmly on the bed. Dawn has seen some hard times in her life, but she seems to have learned to handle almost anything. She is one of the most calm and well adjusted Dalmatians I've ever seen. If the world continues to go to hell in a handbasket, she'll be good to have around.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you already know that I'm not a big fan of globalism. I wonder if people will start listening to me now? We need to start making the things we need ourselves again and quit being so dependent on China. What we are seeing now is what happens when you outsource everything just to save a few bucks. It is unbelievably that we get most of our medicine from China. Who let this happen? We need to rethink a lot of things as a country. I hope we can finally put and end to all our political bickering and get to work.

Carmine is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day