Day 4837

I attempted to check a few small things off my list today with even smaller results. I called a music store to check on some gear I still have on consignment and discovered that nobody I knew still worked there. The guy who answered the phone said he wasn't familiar with my stuff but that he would look for it and to call him tomorrow. It's probably my fault for not having called the place since before Covid, but I wasn't expecting the gear to be lost. Hopefully they can find this stuff. The synthesizer and mixing board are old and probably obsolete, but they were still working fine when I consigned them three or four years ago. They'll make a great addition to the storage warehouse if they can be found.

I've been wanting to repair my large format printer, so I called the company I used to use and discovered that their printer technician had retired and they no longer service printers. I called a second company that was recommended and they lost their printer technician too. Evidently fewer people repair their printers these days. They just buy new ones because it is often cheaper than the repair. I finally found someone who still works on my type of printer. He seemed knowledgable, but he had bad news. Many parts are no longer available for the printer and the ink has gotten really expensive. A set of eight cartridges costs over $800 these days.Yikes.  Janet says it is stupid to buy a large format printer if all I want to do is print three or four photos. I'm sure she's right, but I always liked that printer. Making huge prints is awesome.

Today was even warmer than yesterday. I can't imagine that we will get any more freezing weather at this point. We will get more rain though and that means I'm going to have to start mowing the grass soon. I'm one of the few people in the neighborhood who still mows his own grass. Just about everyone else uses a lawn service. I've grown to hate these services because they are always around with their loud leaf blowers. The neighborhood just isn't very quiet anymore. One of these days I'll probably have to start using a lawn service myself. It's getting harder and harder to push the mower up the hill in the front yard.

Dawn is almost back to normal. We took her on a longer walk this morning and she did fine. She's getting better at going up and down her step to the bed as well. Her front legs are still a little shaky, but she's definitely getting better. We thought she was well enough to get a bath today, so we took her to our local self bathe place. I still have to ride in the back seat with her to keep her from sliding off the seat, but probably by next week she'll be ready to return to her training class. At least she's clean with trimmed nails again.

Even though I wore shorts, I still got hot on my long walk. It felt like summer this afternoon. I think I saw one of the bald eagles again. It was flying overhead and I didn't get a good look, but I suspect that it was an eagle because there were a number of photographers with long telephoto lenses in the area. There must be some sort of network among birders for eagle sightings because every time I see the eagles I also see photographers. I made terrible time on my walk today, but I'll give myself a pass. I was very tired.

Janet and I are both thinking of getting new phones, but the whole process is frustrating. All the major phone companies seem to get horrible reviews. Nobody seems to like their service provider. I don't want an iPhone 14, but the 12's and 13's seem to be in short supply. I still like a SIM card that can be removed from the phone. My current phone plan has been discontinued and I'm kind of grandfathered in at a ridiculously high rate. I guess there are better plans, but when I read the fine print, there's always something I don't like. Why do I even need a phone? I hardly ever call anyone. I just use the thing to take pictures and check on the weather.

Ariel is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 1094

Did any of you see that 12/12/12 benefit concert on TV last night? What an amazing group of musicians on the same stage. The concert certainly brought back memories. I hadn't seen Pink Floyd perform in years and they reminded me of a time long ago when dimly lit rooms filled with marihuana smoke were the order of the day. The Who's extended set reminded me of a time in the mid 70's when I saw the group perform live in Seattle. Times were good. Both the Who and I were at the top of our game in those days. The Rolling Stones looked a little worse for wear, but so do I. Ever since I heard "Satisfaction" playing on a local radio station when I was in high school, the Stones have been the sound track to my life. I joined a band and bought a tear drop shaped Vox Mark VI guitar just like the one Brian Jones played. Later, I remember producing an advertising jingle for a sea food restaurant in the same recording studio where Mick Jagger had re-recorded some vocals a few days earlier. Light years separated us, but I still thought it was cool that we used the same studio. Eric Clapton provided the impetus for me to learn to play a musical instrument decently when he was in the Yardbirds. Eric was so good and I was so bad. I simply had to get a little better.

Since I stayed up way too late watching the concert last night, I had a bit of trouble getting up this morning. The dogs made sure I didn't dawdle to long however. Dot and Dash like everything on schedule. After returning from our morning walk, I got a call from the printer repair store, saying that Janet's printer was ready. The repair was quite reasonable. It actually cost less to fix the printer than to fill it with ink. I'm convinced that Epson is really just an ink company that makes various types of gizmos that force you to buy their expensive ink.

I lost another website maintenance client today. Once again, it was a large, industry specific web developer who lured the client away with a sophisticated and very inexpensive template site. People don't seem to care about having something unique these days. They just want all the bells and whistles at the lowest possible price. Increasingly, I feel like the large template shops are Walmart and I'm the little store on the town square that they're forcing out of business.

I wonder what's next for me. I've always been able to roll with the punches and re-invent myself when necessary. This chameleon-like quality has served me well over the years. Things are different now, I suppose. I used to be excited by the future. Now, I find myself repelled by it. Kind of puts me between a rock and a hard place, don't you think?

Cookie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day