Day 3895

There was no need to go to the gym today. After walking and mowing the grass I felt like I had all the exercise I needed. Around this time of year I start thinking that I might not need to mow any more. I even thought that today. Late August is ridiculously early though for these type of thoughts. The leaves are still on the trees and the Fall rainy season hasn't even started yet. Our grass is often still green in December.

We got a late start this morning on our walk and the park was already filling up with people. We probably should have started earlier, but it was clear that we needed the extra sleep. Without an alarm to wake us, we slept two hours longer than usual. Dawn certainly wasn't interested in getting up. The only thing that gets her out of bed is the sound of her breakfast being fixed. It was a little warmer than we would have liked, but we all did pretty well. I think we'll go back to pre-dawn walks tomorrow.

I wasted a lot of time today watching a static fire test of the SN-6 Starship prototype. It took three tries and most of the day before the rocket motors actually fired. The guys who put this coverage together on their YouTube channel have a lot of patience. There were several false starts today. The rocket would be filled with fuel and then emptied again when something didn't go right. Basically nothing happens for hours at a time and then eventually the rocket fires for about five seconds. Watching these events is definitely an acquired taste. I didn't watch today's tests continuously, but I kept a window open on my browser and checked in on progress throughout the day. I think next week this rocket will fly on a short hop, just like its predecessor did a few weeks ago. If I go down to Boca Chica, I think I'll wait until the program is a little further along. Before the end of the year, Space X is supposed to be making much longer hops with a more polished looking rocket that has fins, a nose cone and two extra Raptor engines. The more I watch this Boca Chica channel on YouTube, the more interested I become in seeing a Starship launch. I'm going to try to make some contacts and see what happens.

When I walk in the park on weekend afternoons, I always see tons of people sitting in hammocks. I don't understand the fascination with hammocks. On a nice day, they're everywhere. Young people string them between two trees and then spend the rest of the afternoon taking selfies and looking at their cell phones. I don't get it. If this is what passes for enjoying nature these days, we're all doomed.

Can you believe it's going to be September soon? What a wasted year. Maybe next year will be better.  The cynical side of me says the virus will disappear from the news right after the November elections. Realistically, I think it's going to be with us for a very long time. New cases keep cropping up in countries that supposedly have already eradicated it. What's going to happen when everyone gets the flu this Fall and thinks they've got the virus instead? The hypochondriac's are going to be panicking. I'm going to continue to keep my distance. Seems to have worked so far.

Janet and I eat a traditional breakfast together on the weekends. Tomorrow it's back to my fruit smoothies though. Where am I going to find uncontaminated peaches. I've got plenty of strawberries, blueberries and bananas, but good smoothie has got to include a peach.

Mickey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3812

One of the best ways to make the world seem normal again is to visit the Dalmatian kennel. There were fewer dogs this week. Cinder has gone to her forever home. Her new owners renamed her Cinderella and from all we've heard she's enjoying her new surroundings. Murphy, Hank, and Charlie were all glad to see us. Each of these boys has their favorite toys and loves to play. They all seem remarkably well adjusted to life at the kennel, but I'm sure they look forward to finding their forever homes as well.

As usual, the day started with an early morning walk. It's always quiet and peaceful right around sunrise. We've started seeing lots of baby ducks near the lake. We also saw a young coyote running down a neighborhood street. Hopefully Mom can keep her ducklings safe until they learn to fly. The young owls I saw a few months ago have all learned to fly. I never see them any more, although I know they are nearby. I often hear them deep in the woods. This cycle of life repeats every Spring in the park. It's reassuring to see the wildflowers return right on schedule and a new generation of animals repopulate the park. If only civilization was as predictable as nature.

I continue to be amazed that nobody is talking about the virus anymore. Almost overnight we have gone from staying six feet apart to huge crowds milling about on city streets. It's almost as if the entire population has Attention Deficit Disorder. Apparently, we can only concentrate on one crisis at a time. The media certainly isn't helping. Everyone is still pushing their own narrative and suddenly all this unrest becomes about identity politics again. At any rate, it will be interesting to see if Dr. Fauci was right. If the virus is as contagious as he says it is, there are going to be a lot of sick people three weeks from now.

I think Dallas is still under a curfew. I wouldn't know. I haven't gone out at night in years. It's a shame to be nervous about going out at night when you are interested in astronomy. The park is a good place for star watching, but it also a popular place for drug deals. I'd be crazy to wander around in the park late at night. Police sirens routinely wake us up at night as they race down our busy street to deal with things that go bump in the night. All this is routine in a big city. One of the things I liked so much about Fort Davis in West Texas is that you felt completely safe walking down city streets at 11 PM. I can't say this about Dallas. Maybe I'm just a rural person at heart.

It's hard to believe it's June already. In early May, I thought that things wold be better by June. Now, I'm wondering what's next. At the rate we're going, there will be an alien invasion by August. I do wish that things would settle down. I'd like to go to the Mars 2020 launch at Kennedy Space Center in July and maybe head back to McDonald Observatory this Fall.

For now, travel is limited to visiting the Dalmatians on Monday afternoons. That's OK though. Murphy, Hank, and Charlie are all great dogs and we enjoyed spending time with them today.

Charlie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day