Day 4927 - Summer Solstice

Not a lot happened today. We're still dealing with a heat wave that destroys your will to do anything. At least our air conditioner is still working though. Our sunrise walks with Dawn are the only tolerable part of the day. The temperature was already in the mid-80's on our early walk this morning, but there was a nice breeze. The sky looked like it was going to rain and sure enough it did later in the day. Unfortunately, the  rain didn't cool things down much. It still feels like a sauna outside.

I didn't even think about walking in the park today. I went to the gym after breakfast this morning and walked three miles around the indoor track. I didn't really feel like doing anything else. When I got home there was a message from the gym saying my membership had expired. What? This seemed odd since the app on my phone still let me check in today. I've been thinking that my gym has changed ownership lately. A lot of things seems different. I hope they haven't dropped the annual membership provided by my supplemental health insurance. I don't know if this gym means enough to me to pay a monthly fee. I guess I'll find out what is going on the next time I go.

My editor at SpaceFlight wrote today with questions about some of the facts in my latest article. I know I didn't just make things up, but I couldn't find the source of the information I was writing about. The information probably came from one of the interviews I had with Axiom executives down at Kennedy Space Center. Unfortunately I erased the interviews as soon as I finished the article because they used up all the space on my phone. I actually think I was wrong because I couldn't find the dates I mentioned in the article anywhere. Oh, well. So it goes.

I've been thinking about getting a new phone but I'm having second thoughts now after seeing the problems Janet is having getting some of her favorite apps to work on her new phone. Electronics are getting to be such a hassle. Everything keeps changing and not always for the better. I was happier with my phone and computers ten years ago than I am now. Twenty years ago everything was perfect. I made my living designing websites for many years, but I don't even enjoy visiting them now. All the news sites have paywalls and most of the others use widgets and special coding that is not supported by my aging browsers. It's irritating. Every day things crash or freeze and I have no idea why. I was a good designer too. I just don't deal with change very well.

I was originally planning on attending an upcoming Delta IV Heavy launch down at Kennedy Space Center. I'm glad I didn't go though because the launch keeps getting delayed by bad weather and mechanical problems. The launch is now supposed to take place early tomorrow morning at 3:25 AM. Why do I still want to see these things? I'd really rather be asleep in my own bed at 3:25 AM.

We got a lot of rain this evening and the roof still isn't leaking. That's good. It's not draining well though. That's not so good. I looked early this morning and there was still standing water from an earlier rain three days ago. I hope this company stands behind their warranty because I'm afraid this roof is going to spend a lot of time under water.

Barley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4923

Very little happened today, but it still seemed like a long day. We had to get up very early this morning because Janet had an all day event to go to. For the first time since last winter, we took our sunrise walk in the dark. Dawn wore her lighted coller and I clipped a small LED light to my shirt. It was just like old times.

After breakfast I checked my messages and got ready to do my grocery shopping. My list wasn't long this week, but it still takes a while. I've started shopping earlier recently. The stores aren't as crowded and the selections seem a little better. The only downside to shopping early is that I've got more time to fill when I return home.

I had planned on going to the gym again today, but there was a nice breeze and it was overcast outside, so I decided at the last minute to walk in the park instead. It would have been cooler inside the gym, but I just didn't feel like driving anymore. Even though the humidity wasn't as bad as yesterday, I was still soaking wet by the time I returned home. In retrospect, it might have been better to go to the gym.

The light inside the refrigerator burned out today. It took me a while to figure out how to replace it. The light was behind a translucent cover and I couldn't figure out how to get the cover off. I save everything, but couldn't find the manual to the refrigerator. I tried to find a service manual online, but I couldn't find our particular model. Maybe the refrigerator is too old. I eventually got the cover off without breaking it and then wasted even more time looking around the house for a 40 watt appliance light bulb. I knew I'd bought this type of bulb before, but it's been a while. After a major search, I found a single 40 watt bulb left at the bottom of a shoe box full of old incandescent bulbs. Mission accomplished.

This afternoon was uneventful. I did a load of laundry and paid some bills on the computer. Dawn was in a bad mood because she thought Janet had been gone too long. She wasn't excited at all when I came home with my groceries. I eventually got her to go out in the back yard and pee, but all she really wanted to do was sit in the bedroom and sulk. I've really got to figure out a way to bond with this dog before Janet goes on vacation again.

I need a project, but I don't feel like starting anything new. All the old standbys don't seem to work anymore. I don't play my guitar or write songs anymore. I've already photographed every inch of the park and am losing interest in carrying a camera around. The last thing I want to do is start a home repair project, even though there are plenty of things that need attention. I would like to spend more time down at Kennedy Space Center, but that's just too expensive. It's too bad that Dawn doesn't like me to nap with her. A long nap always sounds good.

Finally it seems like there is no more severe weather in the forecast. It's going to be hot for the next week, but I can always go to the gym or just stay inside here at home. I'll go mall walking tomorrow morning. Hopefully, Dawn will still get her Sunday outing. If it's too hot we'll just go for ice cream.

Bali is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4913

I changed my phone plan today. I thought this would be easy, but nothing is easy these days. When I got home from the phone store my e-mailed receipt showed that my new rate was almost double my old rate. The whole point of the change of service was to save money, not to pay more. I called the store but they said I needed to call someone else. It turned out that a bunch of small mistakes were made and services I didn't want or need had been added. Everything is fixed now, or at least I think it is. We'll see when I get my new bill.

It was a slow day. I took the letter I wrote yesterday to the post office and called in a prescription renewal. That was about it. The rest of the day was just walking and eating. I did end up watching a live stream of the first static fire of the new Vulcan Centaur rocket. The excitement lasted about two seconds. I'd like to see this launch when it is scheduled later this year. I'm not sure how often I can afford to return to Kennedy Space Center though. 

Dawn's early morning walks are always enjoyable, but the temperature rises quickly. By the time I took my long walk later in the morning, it was already too hot. I keep saying that I'm going to start going back to the gym, but when the time comes it's always easier to just walk out the back door and go to the park. Sometimes I wonder why I keep doing this. The walks are boring and not really that strenuous. If I really wanted some serious exercise, I could do a lot more at the gym. I guess the walks are just an ideal way to kill time. I write articles for SpaceFlight from time to time and still update animal rescue websites, but I'm not that busy. I kind of miss the days when there was a deadline to meet every morning.

I've been hearing thunder all evening, but so far no rain. It's a big relief not to have to worry about roof leaks every time there is thunder and lightning. Now that the roof is no longer a problem, it has become even more evident that there are still many other problems with the house. Hopefully, it won't take me as long to fix the other things as it took to replace the roof. Problems are no longer a challenge. They are just a nuisance. I long for a world where nothing breaks or needs to be replaced.

When I went to the phone store today they tried to sell me on the idea of getting rid of U-Verse and getting a streaming service instead. They said they don't even sell U-Verse anymore. Streaming might be a good idea. I looked at the channel guide for U-Verse recently and half the channels are just ads or informercials now. Too bad I hate dealing with change. U-Verse is being discontinued. My computers are obsolete. My car is getting old. It's frustrating. I'd be happier if everything was just like it was in the 1980's. The 70's weren't so bad either. 

Janet said that Dawn did well at training class tonight. She doesn't listen to me, but she's a very smart dog. We'll see if anything interesting happens tomorrow. I still need to fix that screen door.

Domino is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4907

I didn't accomplish much today. Somehow it's June already and it still seems like it should be February. I guess I've done a few things this year, but it doesn't seem like much. What happened to all the goals I used to have? I wake up, wonder what I'm going to do today and always end up doing the same things I did yesterday. There are really only two goals I have left. I want to continue walking six miles a day as long as I can and I want to finish my quest to write 5000 consecutive blog posts. Both of these are kind of silly goals. Is six miles a day really any better than four miles a day? It's just an arbitrary distance I picked a long time ago. I'm pretty sure that completing 5000 blog posts is no different than completing 4000 blog posts, but that's the number I chose. I'll be glad when I'm done because I really don't have that much to say.

We had a nice early walk with Dawn. The park seemed unusually busy this morning and I have no idea why. It wasn't a holiday but there were a ton of bicycles to avoid this morning. Dawn definitely gets the best walk of the day. It's almost always pleasant before sunrise. When I took my long walk later in the day it was way too hot.

When I checked my messages this morning there was a thank you note from my editor at SpaceFlight. I always feel better after I get some kind of acknowledgment that these articles I write have been received and are appreciated. One of these days a story will be rejected. I'm kind of surprised that all my stories have been accepted so far. I have absolutely no connections within the aerospace industry and don't really know that much about rockets. I can't even remember how I got interested in writing about space. Hey, it gives me something to do. All old people need something to do.

I had to go to the bank this morning but had no desire to go anywhere else. I just made a quick trip and came home again. I've probably driven more in rent cars in Florida this year than I have in Dallas. I do walk a lot though. Getting 10,000 to 20,000 steps a day seems far more important to me than what I see on these walks. I just walk the same route over and over again. The area where we live is pretty compared to the rest of Dallas, but after thousands of walks I hardly notice things anymore. I'm pretty sure I could do the walk blindfolded these days.

Now that the roof is fixed the other flaws in the house seem even more noticeable. The stained and cracked sheetrock in the ceiling really needs to be fixed. The sliding glass door to the atrium needs to be repaired as well. The whole house needs paint and new carpets. I'm sure there are many other things as well. The main drawback to making these repairs is that I hate having strangers in the house. Unless I want to learn how to do everything myself, I probably don't have a choice.

I've taken this weeks's trash to the curb, so this week is over for me. Tomorrow is Janet's grocery day and is Dawn's favorite day of the week. She gets so excited when Janet comes home with groceries. I'll continue watching the mail for my new driver's license. I'll feel a lot better about traveling when it arrives.

Charlie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4884

Another slow day. It's a good thing I handle boredom well because every day is virtually the same. We get up and take Dawn on an early walk. I make the bed when we return and then I eat my breakfast. Breakfast is the only time I watch TV and I often wonder why I even bother. We have a new dishwasher but I always wash the breakfast dishes by hand. It's just a habit. I turn on the computer and check my messages after breakfast. They are mostly all spam. If it looks like it's going to be a hot day, I take my long walk right away. If it's cold, I wait for things to warm up. The long walk is completely predictable. I take the same route every day. The park is huge and I could take many different routes, but like I mentioned earlier, I'm a creature of habit.

There seems to be an unusual number of wildflowers this year. This is probably because we had a very wet Spring. I photograph these flowers and have learned to identify most of them, but this isn't really necessary. I've photographed almost every variety of native plants many times over the years. It's actually been quite a while since I've seen anything new in the park. I always look for the Muscovy Ducks and count the small gaggle of geese to see if anyone is missing. I used to see coyotes frequently but I haven't seen any this year. There are also bobcats in the park but I've only seen two in the past ten years. I'm glad these birds and animals are still abundant. When we first moved here the park was wild and largely abandoned. Now it is full of people and has a huge staff of caretakers. The place has become a destination for all forms of outdoor recreation. I can't even remember why we ended up living here, but it ended up being a good choice.

I thought about practicing using the star tracker today, but it was easy to talk myself out of it. I'm never going to spend a lot of time pursuing astrophotography unless I go out to McDonald Observatory again. I think I've already proved that the star tracker works. I just haven't proved that I'm seriously interested in astronomy. I wish the observatory was closer. It is a very peaceful place to visit. It might be a while until I get out there again though. It is much easier to fly to Florida for a launch than to drive to West Texas.

I wonder how Facebook chooses things for me to see? It makes sense that I would see a lot of posts about Dalmatians. It probably makes sense that I see lots of things about guitars and astrophotography as well. Why do I constantly get posts about WWII Battle Tanks though? And why do I need to know about the giant trees of Ohio. I used to get posts about Elvis Presley every day and then they went away. Facebook seems to think I'm real interested in ships at sea and alcoholic beverages. I think they are just grasping at straws. I delete the cookies on my computer every evening and erase my browser history as well. I don't want to make it easy for these guys, but they keep trying. 

The weather forecast says it's going to be raining when we wake up in the morning. I hope the forecast is wrong. Dawn always needs a walk in the morning and I need my long walk as well. I know we need the rain, but the rainy season is always a big nuisance. If it didn't rain so much, we wouldn't need a new roof at all.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4859

I received author copies in the mail today for one of my magazine articles. That was a nice surprise and added to my growing collection, but I was really hoping to hear about press credentials for the Viasat-3 launch. I've still heard nothing and am beginning to think this isn't going to work out. Oh, well. There are a ton of interesting launches later this year and I've only got limited travel funds, so I need to just chill out and be patient.

Our clear skies have disappeared and for a while it felt like it was going to rain today. It was still a nice day for walking though. I actually prefer overcast days. I keep following the same routine day after day even though I realize that I should try changing things up once in a while. A little monotony is fine, but too much monotony is bad for the soul. At the very least, I should try walking on the other side of the lake. I used to do this occasionally and it's not that difficult. If I was really ambitious I could walk all the way around the lake. Janet did this once. The distance seems daunting to me, although I could easily circle the lake in less than half a day. I just don't have a strong desire to do this. Six miles a day seems plenty.

Today would have been a good day to finish raking the leaves, but I keep hoping that they will just blow away. I watered the grass instead. It's been over a week since it's rained and things are beginning to look dry. Our water bill goes way up in the summer. I don't know how people with large yards can afford to keep things looking nice.

Earlier this year the magazine I write for asked me if I wanted to participate in a media day for the CHAPEA Mars habitat down at Johnson Space Center. I said I was interested and to send me more information about a time and date. I never heard anything further and totally forgot about the media day until I started reading articles about CHAPEA in other publications a few days ago. They were even talking about the Mars habitat on the Gutfeld show last night. Oops. I guess I missed the media day. I don't think I ever got an invitation, but maybe I did. A ton of mail winds up in my spam folder and I've been known to erase some things by mistake.

I wrote a letter to my sister this afternoon but didn't bother to go to the post office. I can do that tomorrow when I do my Saturday grocery shopping. Janet did her grocery shopping today, which always gets Dawn excited. Grocery day is her favorite day. Today she sat at the front door and whined for about an hour before Janet returned. In Dawn's world everything needs to happen right on schedule. I need to feed her at the proper time and she makes sure we always walk her on time. I don't know how she has such a good little internal clock. Her sense of time is much better than mine.

Maybe I'll hear something about the Viasat-3 launch tomorrow. I'm running out of time to make reservations. I still need to make a grocery list for tomorrow, but that should be easy. I always buy the same things every week.

Flash is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4856

Another slow day. At least the weather was nice. Dawn enjoyed her early walk this morning and still seems fine after we discontinued her pain medication. I'm glad she's feeling better. I still see people photographing the baby owls when take our walk. Those little owls are getting a lot of exposure.

I still haven't heard anything about the Falcon Heavy launch next week and am beginning to wonder if I've been forgotten. Usually I get some sort of notification even if my application for credentials has been rejected. There's still time, but the launch is getting pretty close. Is chasing rockets even worth it? I wonder. I probably should be planning a trip to Brownsville for the first Starship orbital launch next week, but I have little interest in going to South Texas. I guess I'll just wait and see if I hear anything from NASA later this week.

You'd think I'd find something new to occupy my time, but I keep following the same routine day after day. My long walk has become extremely predictable. So many things are the same that I keep an eye out for little differences. There's always something new. Sometimes the air smells different. Sometimes I catch a glimpse of illusive park animals. Occasionally I see rare or strange cars. Park department workers are always doing something different. This week they are making large piles of brush along the shoreline that will get hauled away later by other park workers. They always seem to be mowing the grass.  I'll be glad when the mowers make it around to our side of the park again. The grass in the meadow behind our house grows fast.

Since it was a nice day, Janet and I tried to rake up the remainder of the leaves in the back yard. Since a lot of the remaining leaves were in the Asian Jasmine ground cover, it was hard to remove them without ripping up the ground cover. We did our best. The yard does look better now. Dawn watched us while we worked and ended up completely flattening a small patch of Monkey Grass that was just starting to grow. She loves to roll in the grass, which I guess is better than rolling in the dirt.

I have little interest in yard work or home repairs anymore. You can't ignore these things though. I wish it were easier to find people I trust to do these things for me. My problem is that I don't really trust anyone. The office is filled with things to occupy my time, but I've lost interest in most of them as well. It's been ages since I've picked up my guitar. I can't even remember how to use some of my recording gear. I still have a passing interest in photography, but that's fading as well. I guess it's a good thing that I still enjoy chasing rockets. Everybody needs something they enjoy.

Tyson is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4849

Another slow day. A few things got done, but not very much. I had a telephone meeting with my financial advisor this afternoon. These meetings used to happen more frequently, but I don't have much to say anymore. The market goes up and the market goes down. You really can't outsmart it indefinitely. I basically just wished the guy luck. I certainly don't think I could make better financial decisions on my own.

I got a message from my accountant that he'd finished doing my taxes and they've been filed. I think I lead a simple life, but my tax return always looks complicated to me. At least taxes are done for another year. Now the only thing on my to-do list is renewing my driver's license. It's kind of depressing that I'm not making money anymore, but I had some good years. Things could be a lot worse. I need to remember that I'm not in debt or losing a lot.

The weather continues to baffle me. I was surprised at how cold it was this morning since the temperature was over 90 degrees yesterday. It warmed up later, but I had to wear a jacket on our early walk with Dawn. The day was kind of dismal. It looked like it was going to rain all day, although it never did. There is more rain in the forecast late tonight. Luckily there are no severe weather warnings.

I tried again to find out whether I've been credentialed to cover the upcoming Viasat 3 Americas launch. No luck so far. The friends I wrote in Florida haven't heard anything yet either. I guess I'm just going to have to live with last minute notices and higher airfares. I did receive a notice from the National Reconnaissance Office asking me if I'd like to attend a pre-launch Media Day for the NROL-68 mission. Sure. I'd like to go to all these things. It's just a shame that travel is becoming so expensive.

At least walks in the park are still free. I hope these walks are doing me some good, because they are becoming boring. I could always walk somewhere else, but that would involve getting in the car and driving somewhere. It's so much easier to just head out the back door. I walk the same route every day and usually see the same ducks and geese. A lot of times I see the same people too, although I don't know who they are. I guess a lot of people like to exercise in the park.

I think Dawn is back to normal. She hasn't fallen or appeared to be in any discomfort for over a week. We're going to discontinue her remaining medication in a few days an see if that makes any difference. We're trying real hard to keep her from jumping, but that's hard to do with a Dalmatian. At least she's getting better at using her step to get on and off the bed. We all continue to take things one day at a time. Luckily, most of the days are good.

Dottie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4844

There are critters everywhere this Spring. Last night there was a bunny in the yard when we were taking Dawn out to pee. It took me forever to get the bunny to leave because I didn't want Dawn to get it. Finally, I got it to go out an open gate and then we let Dawn outside. I did close the gate again after the bunny left. 

We've never had a dog with a really strong prey drive, but Dot killed a squirrel once and Gretta killed a bird. Dogs will be dogs. I've always been worried that our dogs would want to tangle with a possum. We see possums in the yard almost every week. There have also been racoons, armidillos, and the ocassional snake. Dawn pretty much ignores the squirrels. There are so many of them that they aren't interesting anymore.

This weather is driving me nuts. It's cold. It's hot. It's wet. It's dry. You never know what to expect. It was really chilly early this morning, but by mid-afternoon it felt like summer. When I wear a jacket on my walks I try to pick something that is easy to take off and tie around my waist. I'm usually cold on the outbound leg of the walk and hot on the return.

I still haven't gotten the grass mowed. My long walk always takes priority and by the time I get home I'm too tired to push the mower. I need to ask my neighbor's landscape crew how much they'd charge to mow my front yard while they are at her house. It's a very small yard and it would only take them a few minutes. Whatever they'd charge, I'd probably think it was too much. I've taken care of the yard for decades and am not used to paying for lawn care. Something's got to change though. I just don't have the energy that I used to.

Yesterday I tripped and fell while I was walking Dawn and now my back hurts along with everything else. Sometime I don't know how I manage to keep walking six miles a day. I've got bad knees, a dislocated shoulder, and some pretty nasty foot pain. I don't think the fall did any damage, but I've really got to watch my balance on uneven ground. Truthfully, I've got to watch my balance walking around the house. This is probably one more reason that it isn't a great idea to go back to the observatory and spend the night outdoors photographing the stars. There are a million ways to fall out there.

Very little happened today. I walked the same route I walk every day and then came home and charged camera batteries and backed up the laptop. There is very little need to back up the laptop since everything gets transferred to the desktop computer anyway. I hate seeing that little message saying "no backups in 208 days" and I guess today was the day to make it go away for a while.

There is more rain in tomorrow's forecast. Hopefully we will be able to get Dawn walked before the rain starts. Hopefully the roof won't leak either. I'll probably miss the rain when the ground is parched and dry this August. Right now I've had enough of the stuff. This has been a very rainy Spring.

Sparky is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4843

Where did today go? I don't think I did anything worth mentioning all day. It was too cold to mow the grass and I didn't feel industrious enough to start anything new. I just shuffled through my regular routine and before you know it, the day was over. 

Lately I've been preoccupied with aging equipment. My computers, phones, and watch can't be updated anymore because latest operating systems aren't supported. In prior years this would have been a good excuse to buy something new, but I have no desire for new gadgets anymore. My frustration isn't that the stuff is getting old, it's that Apple doesn't support it anymore. I have no real desire for a new large format printer either, but I hate broken stuff. I feel compelled to fix or replace the broken printer even though I will probably never use it again. I tried to convince myself that I need a large format printer to make huge prints of my rocket and milky way photos, but there is no wall space to hang more pictures. That was used up years ago. It's silly to buy an expensive printer to make three or four prints anyway.

Our pretty Spring weather seems to have disappeared. There was some light rain early this morning and more is on the way tomorrow. This didn't stop me from walking though. Dawn got a nice early morning walk and I took my regular long walk later in the day. I discovered that the photographers I've been seeing weren't looking for the eagles after all. Evidently there was an owl in a nearby tree that had babies recently. I already have pictures of an owl tending babies, so I doubt that I will join the other photographers. Owls are interesting to photograph though and they don't tend to fly away as you approach them.

It's amazing that the days go by so quickly since I basically only do two things each day. I try to walk at least six miles and I write my blog. I know that it's good to have goals but these are kind of silly goals. Why six miles instead of five and what's so special about 5000 days? These activities do provide structure though and they eat up a huge amount of time. I'm not sure what I would do if I didn't walk everyday. I don't really think of the walks as exercise anymore. It's just a way to spend the day.

We thought Dawn was well enough to go back to her training class tonight, but she had to come home early because she seemed to be favoring one of her front legs during an exercise. She seems fine now and seemed fine during the day, but it's really hard to tell how she's really feeling. Dogs hide pain well, especially if the pain is minor. All we can tell is that is walking normally again and the swelling in her neck has subsided. I wish she didn't shake her head so much, but she has always done this and I doubt she's going to stop.

I wish I'd hear something about the April launches I've applied to attend. Sometimes I don't know whether I'm going to get press credentials until a few days before the launch. This means that I never get any bargains on airfare and sometimes it's hard to find a hotel. Covering launches still seems worthwhile though. What else am I going to do with my time?

I hope it doesn't rain much tomorrow. I'm getting so tired of dealing with roof leaks. You're probably equally tired of hearing about them.

Elliott is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4795

Another slow day. The roof is still leaking, but the amount of water I'm collecting in the buckets has slowed down considerably. I guess that's progress. If I'm lucky, the leaks will stop just in time for another round of rain. The roofers are coming out again tomorrow. Hopefully I can get a firm estimate soon and get started on putting an end to this mess.

It was a beautiful day today. There wasn't a cloud in the sky this morning and the temperature was much warmer than yesterday. Dawn enjoyed getting her morning walk. The fields behind our house were still a little soggy, but that didn't bother her. She finally had lots of things to smell again.

After breakfast I wrote a letter to my sister and took it to the post office. I do this about once a month now.  I used to write lots of letters to friends, but this type of correspondence is becoming a lost art. Almost nobody writes letters anymore. I still don't leave outgoing mail in our box for the postman to pick up. Force of habit I guess. We never have the same postman for very long and I don't have a lot of faith in any of them. I need to take my mail to the post office and put it in the slot myself.

Today was a good day for a long walk. The weather was nice and the temperature was just about perfect. My feet are still giving me problems, but I'm getting used to the discomfort. I keep thinking that I need to go back to the gym where I can work on my upper body strength as well, but it's so much easier to go walking in the park. I just walk out the back door and I'm there. I'm sure I could be doing more, but six miles a day seems to be more than enough activity for me.

After I returned home I upgraded the star tracker software for what seemed like the 100th time and tested the unit again. That's all I do is continually test this thing. The Polaris tracker still works, but it has never seemed very reliable. Reliability probably isn't even an issue at this point. I don't spend a lot of time looking at the stars these days. It's not even worth attempting astrophotography in the city. The light pollution is terrible. I knew that comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) was going to be near Mars tonight but I didn't even bother to look for it. The green comet is fairly dim and I just didn't have the patience to search for a pale fuzzy thing in the sky.

I'm still having computer problems. Nothing is broken, it's just that everything is too old. If I was still working this would be a huge problem. Not an issue anymore. Instead of thinking about a new computer, I spend more time thinking about getting offline altogether. It's becoming harder and harder to see the point of it all. Maybe a little notebook and a ball point pen is all I need.

I've taken the trash out to the curb and emptied all the water buckets. These weeks go quickly, but Spring still seems distant. I'm hoping that the roofing people have good news for me tomorrow, although I'm not terribly optimistic. I wish I'd never bought a house with a flat roof.

Jazz is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4792

Where did the day go? I certainly didn't accomplish much today. It was a little chilly outside but there was no rain. It was foggy when we took Dawn on her early morning walk and it was very windy when I took my long walk later in the morning. I was hoping for a warm, clear day, but I'll take what I can get. I'm still dreading the rain that is supposed to start early tomorrow morning.

I didn't realize how addicted I've become to my Fitbit until the app crashed this morning and I couldn't count my steps. I don't know why I even need this thing, especially since I walk the same route every day and know exactly how long it is. The variations in the speed and distance I travel are so small that I can usually guess my pace and the number of steps I've taken at any point in time. All this really proves is that I can take any activity and make it boring.

Against my better judgement I applied for press accreditation to attend the Crew-6 launch. I didn't get accepted as a social media correspondent for this launch, but maybe I'll have better luck as a magazine reporter. The Crew-6 Mission will be exactly like all the other crewed missions I've attended at Kennedy Space Center, but I'd still like to go. Strangely, I feel like I belong when I'm down at a launch. I seldom feel that way in Dallas. It's a shame that Titusville is so far away and travel is so expensive. I'd go to every launch if I could. Kennedy Space Center and McDonald Observatory seem like home to me now. I've published numerous articles about my experiences in both places, but it still seems like a very expensive hobby. Oh, well. There are worse things to waste money on. At least I'm not buying watches or electric trains these days.

I don't know whether I still have seasonal allergies or a persistent cold. I've had a runny nose for weeks now. I don't feel sick, but the constant nasal drip is irritating. I use those heavy duty Scott blue towels as Kleenex now. It's surprising how quickly I can run through a roll. If I forget to put a few Scott towel squares in my pocket when I'm walking, I'm miserable. I wonder how long this is going to last? I'm used to Spring allergies and even Fall allergies, but a runny nose all year long is a little much.

I've noticed that the operating systems I run on my computers are called "antiques" now. Apple stopped updating my version of Safari years ago. This is causing problems since quite a few websites I use have quit working correctly. I can still use the latest version of Firefox for transactions, but Safari is becoming next to useless. I stubbornly refuse to buy a new computer and pay for subscriptions to Photoshop, Microsoft Word and just about anything else that is actually useful. Why can't I keep using Sierra or High Sierra forever? I haven't changed since these operating systems were considered state of the art. If Sierra and earlier Apple operating systems were perfectly good when my business was flourishing, why should I be forced to start over when I'm basically just killing time? This attitude is probably why I no longer have any web development business. I celebrate the old and the obsolete. I like my old computers, my old Nikon film cameras, and I wish I still had my Citroën SM.

I hope that tomorrow's forecast is wrong. Dawn still needs her early walk and I don't relish the idea of driving to the gym in the rain. All the buckets are clean and ready for use, but the thought of dealing with more roof leaks so soon after our last big rain is depressing.

Landry is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4759

I must have done something today. There are days when it's really hard to tell. It was definitely a slow day. I still haven't heard anything about the upcoming Falcon Heavy launch. That's probably not a good sign. My friend who is selling my train collection made a minor sale today. That was a surprise. Most of the good pieces in the collection are already gone, so sales have slowed down considerably. I probably should have started selling the collection a few years earlier. Nobody is interested in model trains anymore.

We had to wear our warning lights again on our morning walk with Dawn. I'll be glad when the days start getting longer. I can't say that I'm a fan of walking in the dark. Dawn enjoyed herself though. We had a good walk. I'll have to admit that these early walks are good for me. It's hard for me to get out of bed, but I'm always wide awake by the time we return home.

I thought about going to REI today because they are having a big sale. I looked on their website and there was absolutely nothing that interested me. I used to always be able to find something at this store. I still had an itch to buy something, so I ended up ordering some more astrophotography gear. Today's purchase was a little green laser that attaches to one of my star trackers. You just point the laser toward Polaris and you are aligned. Never mind that I can't even see Polaris from my house. I probably couldn't use something like this in the city anyway. It will be useful if I ever go back to McDonald Observatory though. The attachment wasn't very expensive and I don't feel like buying things anymore. Mission accomplished.

I'm still wondering where the eagles go when they aren't near their nest. Occasionally I'll see them and then they'll disappear for two weeks. They were gone today. The new female Muscovy duck has disappeared as well. Now we are back to three ducks again. There isn't a lot going on in the animal world. I haven't seen a bobcat or coyote in months.

The construction in the park is finally finished. All the construction equipment is gone and the last piles of debris have been cleaned up. The six stone gates were the last things to be finished, but they are done now.  Yesterday, custom metal posts were installed between each of the gates to prevent cars from driving on the trails. These gates are pretty elaborate, so the park department must have had some extra money lying around. 

Dawn did well in training class tonight. She's not winning ribbons anymore, but Janet is pleased with her progress. I'm not so pleased with my own progress. I'd like to find something that interests me that doesn't involve traveling halfway across the country. I shouldn't complain though. Chasing rockets is really quite interesting even though you can't do it in Dallas.

Hunter is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4742

I didn't do much today. I should feel guilty for being so lethargic, but it doesn't seem to bother me. We took our morning walk a little later this morning. After all these years we still have a weekend schedule even though we are both retired. I'd probably sleep in late every day, but Janet and Dawn have other ideas. It's probably good that they get me up. I'm lazy enough already.

After breakfast I went mall walking again. I thought the mall would be packed this morning, but it was strangely empty. I'm sure the place was busy after the stores opened, but there were definitely fewer walkers today. I still can't figure out why I walk slower indoors. It seems counterintuitive. The terrain is flat, The temperature is comfortable. I don't have to worry about tripping over anything. You'd think I'd be really fast in this type of environment.

I'm probably slower because I glance at all the store windows. I don't linger, but I'm definitely aware of what's on display. I wonder who buys this stuff. These clothes don't look anything like what I see at the grocery store or walking in the park. I guess people still go to parties. There are a lot of party clothes on display. There are a lot of Winter coats on display as well. Some of these coats will probably get sold next week when we are expecting a record cold spell. The mall does feel festive at this time of year. I'm not a very festive person, but I do enjoy the Christmas season. I may be imagining things, but people seem a little nicer in December.

Every time I go mall walking I notice that a new store has opened and another one has closed. I didn't realize that things were so fluid in the world of retail. You wouldn't think anyone would have the nerve to open a new store in an environment where people buy everything on Amazon, but I guess hope springs eternal. Since Northpark is a very high-end mall, I'm probably getting a distorted view of reality. It suits me though. I'd never go walking at a Walmart Supercenter.

As soon as I returned home Dawn was ready to go on her Sunday outing. She always seems super excited to go on these little Sunday road trips, but instantly reverts to panic mode as soon as Janet starts the car. She walks fairly normally when we arrive at our destination, but is always a little wilder than she is at the park near our house. Since we do this every Sunday, you'd think this would all be routine by now. I'm not a dog though. I really have no idea what is going through her mind.

Ice cream definitely calms Dawn down. I think she enjoys the ice cream even more than we do. We order the same thing every week, but sometimes the cones are larger and other times they are smaller. It just depends on who is serving that day. There is always a help wanted sign at the ice cream store. It's probably not a hard job but I don't think I'd want to work there. I don't think I'd want to work at a restaurant either. OK, if I'm being honest, I don't really want to work at all. 

I'm a little apprehensive about next week's weather. Single digit temperatures are rare in Dallas. I'm always worried that the pipes will freeze or the car won't start. Hopefully the furnace is in good shape. It just got repaired a few weeks ago. I'm sure we'll be just fine but Florida is looking better and better.

Alvin is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4704

Another slow day. I ate, I walked, I did all the usual things. The carpenter who was supposed to come over and give me an estimate couldn't make it and said he'd stop by tomorrow. I signed up for another patient portal so I could view the lab results from Tuesday's exam. Medical websites seem a lot more concerned about security than banks. Thats always seemed strange to me. Doctors never share information either. I've bookmarked half a dozen patient portals and they all have basically the same information. 

When I took my long walk today, I saw the bald eagles again. When I returned home I searched the Internet for news about whether the Artemis rocket survived the hurricane. I didn't learn much. For a significant part of the day I thought it was Friday. It was that kind of day.

Something scared Dawn this morning and she wouldn't come back to the bedroom. The power didn't go out and I didn't hear anything, but Dawn was definitely alarmed. I delayed my walk until she calmed down a bit. I wonder what was bothering her? She's very alert and is a good little watchdog. I kept looking for the source of the problem but couldn't find anything. Dawn certainly wasn't talking. Eventually I noticed that she was asleep on the bed again and I took my walk.

Janet and I spent some time today looking for a new photo backdrop for this year's Santa Paws pictures. We couldn't find anything as nice as the backdrops we've used before. Maybe we'll just use a previous backdrop for this years pictures. Since we've been doing these Christmas pictures since 2012, I've got quite a collection of backdrops by now.

The November issue of SpaceFlight with my first Artemis article came in the mail today. The article and pictures looked good. I'd already seen the issue in PDF form, but I still like a real magazine you can see and touch. I keep telling my accountant that these articles constitute a real business for me, but his answer is always "show me the money." For practical purposes, there isn't any. You're not going to get rich writing about astronomy and space. I still feel like a journalist though. I get to hang out with other journalists at Kennedy Space Center and I've amassed quite a collection of press credentials by now. As hobbies go, this certainly beats collecting model trains.

I hope that the carpentry work I need isn't too expensive. The repairs need to be made, but I've still got another trip to Florida to pay for. It's a shame that old web designers aren't in demand. One or two websites a month would make a big difference in my income. The kids working at ad agencies don't want to hire someone older than their grandfather though. I've come to the conclusion that it's better to just accept this graciously. I manage to stay busy and I'm not broke. It's probably better that I don't have young clients driving me crazy.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4703

Not a lot was accomplished today. After the time change, we're taking our sunrise walks in daylight again. The ground was soggy, but it looks like the rain is over for a while. I think Dawn is still running on Daylight Savings Time. She's ready to get up earlier in the morning and wants her dinner earlier as well. I'm fine with the time change. I didn't really like walking in the dark.

I took my long walk right after breakfast this morning because I wanted to take advantage of the cooler weather. I didn't see the eagles today, but the muscovy ducks and our resident geese were waiting for me. I probably should have gone back to the gym. These walks are starting to get boring again.

After I returned to the house, I wrote a letter to my sister and took it to the post office on my way to pick up a prescription at the pharmacy. I needed to reschedule a doctor's appointment because of the changing Artemis launch schedule and I checked with the urologist about my test results. I stayed busy, but it didn't really feel like I was accomplishing anything. The elephant in the room is still Hurricane Nicole. Am I going to have to change my travel plans again?

I've been watching the weather and it's still uncertain whether Hurricane Nicole is going to do any damage at Kennedy Space Center. It still doesn't seem like a good idea to leave the rocket out on the pad during a hurricane, but what do I know? I hope everything gets resolved soon. I really hate continually changing my hotel and airline reservations.

Tomorrow a carpenter is coming over to the house to take a look at the rotted wood on the fascia of our flat roof. Hopefully he will tell me that this is an easy fix and I can tell him to go ahead with the repairs. This is one of the things I really need to get done soon. You can't have your house falling down around you. Maybe when I get this repair completed, I can finally start thinking about cameras and lenses again. I've had a lot of unexpected expenses this Fall. It's much more enjoyable to spend your money on things you don't really need.

Janet said that Dawn did well in training class tonight. She didn't win any ribbons this week, but she's in the advanced class now. This dog has more regular activities than I do. That's OK though. I'm not trying to win any ribbons.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4660

Not a lot happened today. It was still dark when we started our sunrise walk with Dawn. There were other people in the park, but you could only see the lights they wore. Some people carried flashlights. Others wore headlamps and some even put little lights on their shoes. A lot of dogs had lighted collers. We used to have a little red light that would clip on Dawn's collar, but it got lost on a walk over a year ago. You don't really need these lights very long. The predawn sky brightens quickly. I could see Orion in the South with Mars overhead and Jupiter setting in the West as we left the house. By the time we arrived home it was daylight.

I discovered where the little green worms were coming from this morning. There is a tree I often pass under on our morning walks with hundreds of the things dangling from thin weblike threads. I must have walked through this mess the other day and didn't even realize it. Evidently the city is infested with these little green caterpillars this Fall. They seem to favor Hackberry trees.

The temperature was nice and cool today, so I took my long walk instead of going to the gym. Our Fall typically doesn't last very long, but I hope this weather continues. It's rare that the temperature is just right in Texas. Today was perfect. I could walk without getting hot and sweaty, but I didn't need a coat either.

It doesn't look like there is going to be an Artemis launch until mid to late November, but I still feel compelled to check on the rocket every day. Overnight they rolled the rocket back to the Vertical Assembly Building where it is safely stowed away. With the hurricane's path moving to the East, there is a chance that the storm will pass directly over the space center now. By the time Ian reaches the space coast it will be a lot weaker, but it will still be quite a storm. It's a good thing I'm not traveling to Florida this week. I've heard that they might even close the airport in Orlando soon.

My seasonal allergies keep getting worse. I'm not sure what causes these allergies, but it doesn't make any difference whether I'm indoors or out. Either way I'm always blowing my nose. The nasal congestion is irritating but I'm used to it by now. I've had seasonal allergies for years. I really appreciate the few weeks each year when the allergies completely go away.

I was thinking about learning some new features on one of my cameras today, but when the time came, I had already lost interest. Modern digital cameras will do a lot of things that people like me seldom use. I basically shoot the same way I used to with my old Nikon film cameras. The only controls I use are shutter speed and f-stop. I wish manufacturers would invent a way to insure perfect focus at night. That's always a tricky one for me.

I wish Dawn would warm up to me. Janet was gone this afternoon and every time I came in the bedroom, Dawn would leave. We both like to nap. It's a shame that it's so hard to do this together. I don't think Dawn will ever completely trust men.

Sophie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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