Day 3866

We were looking for a place to photograph Dawn this morning and I discovered some Buttonbush trees. Buttonbush flowers have always seemed strange to me, but now they remind me of the coronavirus. I guess there is good reason to be cautious of this plant. It's poisonous. Native people have used the Buttonbush tree for medicinal purposes for centuries, but don't let your dog get near it. One of the only reasons I started learning about Texas plants was to keep our dogs away from the poisonous ones. There's quite a few around here.

We got a late start on our walk this morning, but at least it was overcast so the heat wasn't so bad. It was very muggy though. Sometimes I think Dawn wishes we were lazier and just slept in on weekends. There are always a lot more people out walking on Saturday morning. The coronavirus had definitely gotten more people interested in exercising. We see a lot more joggers and cyclists in the park than we did this time last year. I preferred things when the park was empty, but I guess it's a good thing that people are finally starting to take fitness seriously.

I never can find everything on my shopping list anymore. There were plenty of blueberries today, but I couldn't find raspberries. I finally remembered to get air filters for the furnace and was surprised to see that the new ones were much more expensive. When I looked at the label when I got home I noticed that these filters had a fancy new layer that trapped even microscopic particles. I guess with all the interest in air conditioning systems and clean air these days, the store thought people would go for a more expensive filter. It might help if I looked at labels before I bought things.

I wasted most of the day trying to fix little things around the house. Janet had a battery powered fan that had sat around so long that the batteries had corroded and started leaking. I thought I could clean up the battery mess and fix the fan, but I failed. The fan motor had gone bad as well. There was a flickering light in the bedroom and I couldn't figure out whether the problem was the bulb or the fixture. Something was causing the LED bulbs to get too hot and they would shut off for a while and then come back on after they had cooled. Why now? This lamp has worked perfectly for years. There was also a clogged drain in the shower. Yuk. I hate pulling hair out of clogged drains.

Dawn seems really tired after our morning walks. I hope we aren't pushing her too hard. She is always eager to walk and never shows any of the warning signs of heat exhaustion. She kept up a good pace this morning and wasn't even panting, but as soon as we got home she went straight for her dog bed. Maybe this is normal. I kind of felt like going back to bed myself.

I doubt hat I'll do anything productive tomorrow. I don't feel like going back to the gym yet. Actually, I'm amazed that the gyms are still open. Things look like they are finally starting to improve in Texas but I don't put a lot of faith in these charts anymore. Some of the tests are notoriously inaccurate and it takes so long to get results that you could be negative when you take the test and positive by the time you get the results. Everyone measures things differently as well. Each country, each state, and even each city has a different method of keeping track of things. It would be nice if there was a little consistency.

No comet tonight. Our skies are very cloudy. Even if we do get clear skies in the next few days, the comet is going to be very hard to find. It's getting fainter every day. It still makes me mad that the one clear day I had, all my pictures were slightly out of focus. Hey, that Buttonbush flower is nice and sharp though.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3446

June 1st will always be the day that Dot died. It was two years ago today. What a long journey. It was initially difficult for Dash to adjust to being the only dog. He was just starting to regain his confidence when he began getting sick as well. It seemed like everything we went through with Dot toward the end of her life, we repeated with Dash. At least both dogs had long, healthy lives before they began to decline. Weekends were fun for the dogs. They both loved to go to dog parks and we visited them all. Our cars were basically just dog taxis. There were rescue events to attend, indoor and outdoor dog parks to visit, evenings at dog friendly restaurants, and a weekly training class that we attended regularly for many years. For every sad memory there is a corresponding happy memory. I hope that over time, only the happy memories remain.

It was almost 90 degrees when I woke up this morning and is only 70 degrees now. Today's weather has been a roller coaster. It was hot and sunny on my morning walk and by the time I was ready to take my evening walk there were storm clouds on the horizon and I could hear distant thunder. I probably put too much faith in the weather radar, because I almost got drenched. It was weird to see the storm approaching and people still renting kayaks on the lake. Some folks began paddling for shore as soon as they saw lightning, but others seemed oblivious. I was almost home before the rain started to fall, but when I looked back toward the lake, I could still see half a dozen kayaks and stand up paddle boards out in the water. There were still a few families barbecuing on the shoreline as well. What were they thinking.

Earlier today I was wondering what a lot of dog walkers were thinking. Don't they know the dangers of heat stroke? I could tell that some of the dogs were too hot. Joggers are the worst. Most of them just don't want to stop to give their dog a rest. If you've got to walk your dog in hot weather, be sure to take some water along. If the dog wants to rest, let them. Heat stroke is very real.

This evening was much better dog walking weather. All you had to worry about was getting struck by lightning. I never walked Dot and Dash on a day like today. Neither dog did well in the heat and both were storm phobic. Dot was terrified of storms and once managed to rip out a nail while trying to run back inside after hearing a particularly loud thunderclap. We were one of the first customers for Thundershirts. Strangely, these garments actually seemed to work. Dot wore hers often.

Peaches are finally available almost everywhere now. Have I mentioned that I like peaches? I bought a dozen nice looking ones today. Unlike a lot of produce, peaches still seem to be seasonal and most of them are grown in the United States. Strawberries and blueberries are imported from all over the place, but I've still got to wait for summer to find peaches.

It's still raining, but the pumps on the roof are working. I just need to remember to turn them off before I go to bed tonight. I wonder if the storms will continue tomorrow? The thermostat says no but my phone says yes. It's silly to speculate at this point. It's all going to change by morning anyway.

Charlie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day