Day 4294

Sunday's are always enjoyable. We get up a little later. We spend more time with Dawn. And we end the day with a nice dinner that usually provides leftovers for the rest of the week. Lately, our Fall weather has been making Sundays even better.

I did a lot of walking today. The temperature was only in the sixties when we took our sunrise walk with Dawn. You can tell the days are getting shorter. We get up later now, but it is still dark outside when we leave the house. I wonder why they wait so long to go back to Standard Time? The time change doesn't happen until November 7 this year. A lot of people seem to think it would be better to stay on Standard Time all year. I think I agree.

It was still cool outside when I took my long walk after breakfast. I've noticed that I walk faster when the weather is cooler. I'm sure I have more energy on some days than others, but the temperature has proven to be a pretty reliable predictor of my pace. I can tell how fast I am walking now just by listening to the rhythm of my steps. Usually the Fitbit confirms my guess. If you do something long enough it all starts to fall into a pattern. Sometimes when the park is empty I see how far I can walk with my eyes closed. Often I know exactly where to turn.

I think we need rain. The grass in the park is starting to turn yellow and the water level in the lake is really low. The geese have moved because the little bay where they used to congregate is completely dry now. I'm always surprised at how shallow this lake is. I think you could walk halfway across before the water got above your head. I'm sure our yard could use some rain as well, but I'm not ready to start worrying about the roof again. This long dry spell has been kind of relaxing for me.

Dawn had a nice Sunday outing today. We've been waiting until later in the morning to leave the house to make sure the ice cream place is open and now we don't have to worry about it being too hot outside for Dawn. The weather was nice all day today. Dawn enjoyed her walk and we all enjoyed the ice cream. It's a simple little tradition, but seeing a dog eat ice cream always makes us smile.

Ever since I returned from the hospital I've been getting e-mail surveys from various places asking me to rate the care I received. Even the anesthesiologist sent me a survey. Today I got a survey asking me to rate another survey. What is the point of all this? Do people even tell the truth on surveys? I rarely fill them out, but if I do I always say nice things. I just don't want anyone following up with me trying to resolve a problem that wasn't a big deal in the first place. 

I have to take my car in this week for a scheduled maintenance. I skipped last year's scheduled maintenance so I expect that this will be expensive. I had planned to do the maintenance earlier, but it took almost a month to reserve a loaner car. The dealership used to have tons of loaner cars, but now they are in short supply. One more example of a supply chain problem caused by Covid.

I need to remember my camera tomorrow. Janet tells me that there is a new Dalmatian up at the kennel. Even bigger news is that Cooper got adopted a few days ago. We already go a picture of Cooper sitting on his new owner's sofa. Dalmatians adapt really quickly to home life. 

Suki is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4293

Just a normal Saturday. I filled the car with gas and then went to Sam's Club and Central Market. I debated whether to go grocery shopping first and then walk, or the other way around. If you go grocery shopping early, the stores are less crowded. If you go walking early, it's nice and cool. It's too bad you can't do everything early. I opted to get the shopping out of the way, but it was pretty hot by the time I got around to taking my long walk. I had to use the spray fountain in the park to cool off again. I didn't think it would warm up so quickly, especially since we needed light jackets on our sunrise walk with Dawn.

I've had a stomach ache for several days now. At first I thought that something might have gone wrong with my surgery, but I feel better now. I probably just had a mild case of indigestion. It takes a while to get used to a new diet. I've been having huge fruit smoothies for so many years that solid food must be somewhat of a shock to my system. I think I am eating healthier now, but I always thought I was eating healthy before. Who knows? It's hard to get a straight answer on diet and nutrition. I know I'm doing better than all my friends who still get their meals through the drive-thru window at Wendy's, McDonald's, or Whataburger.

Dawn seems friendlier toward me recently. It's a long, slow process but she doesn't run away when I come into a room anymore. Janet thought that if I was the one who fed and walked her, she would eventually start to warm up to me. It seems to be working. She's real friendly early in the mornings now. Later in the day, she remembers that I'm a man and she's got to be cautious. We are making progress though, so that's a good thing.

I'm not making much progress toward finding something I enjoy doing in Dallas. I still wouldn't mind living out at the observatory and I kind of envy my Florida friends who have built an entire lifestyle around following rocket launches. I guess I just don't like big cities anymore. City life revolves around doing things with other people. Not so good when you are trying to avoid people. I can remember a time when I loved going to gallery openings, lectures, and plays. Not anymore.  Did I change, or did the cities themselves change? I know I used to feel safe in almost any large city. That's a big change right there.

It's time to go up on the roof again. I keeps hearing pecans falling on the roof and if I don't remove them, they will stain the water a dark brown the next time it rains. I need to clean things up and do a thorough inspection before the leaves start to fall. A leak under a huge pile of Oak leaves is even harder to find. I wish I could find someone to do this odious job for me. It would take forever to explain what needs to be done and the roof surface is kind of fragile. I've learned a lot tending to this miserable roof over the years. If someone else was up there, I'd just feel that they were making things worse. I'm not getting any younger though. One of these days, I'm not going to be able to climb up there.

I hope the weather stays nice for Dawn's Sunday outing tomorrow. Walking outdoors is so much more enjoyable when the weather is nice.

Rosie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4292

It was kind of a slow day. The big event today was giving Dawn a bath. Dawn hates a bath but she survived. She was excited to get in the car, but she probably thought we were going for ice cream. We had to find a new self bath place since the one we usually use went out of business. Everything ended well and Dawn looks and feels clean again. A dog bath never lasts long though. One roll in the dirt and it's all over.

I wrote a letter to my sister and took it to the post office. She still refuses to get on the Internet, so I basically just repeat things I've already mentioned on the blog. I used to write lots of letters, but this is the last remnant of a bygone era. Everyone else I know uses e-mail. 

We are seeing coyotes again behind our house. There are lots of them in the park, but I don't see them very often. Coyotes still make me a little nervous when walking dogs, but usually they mind their own business. I've had a few close encounters with them over the years and so far they haven't paid much attention to our dogs. Dawn totally ignored the young coyote we saw. I still don't want to run into a pack though.

When  I was walking in the park this morning I heard a strange bird call I've never heard before. The sound was so loud that I thought the bird might be in distress. I couldn't investigate though because the sound was coming from a thick wooded area on the other side of the water. Was this a crane, a pelican, or a new kind of duck? I'll probably never know. It is strange to hear a brand new sound in the park though. I've walked this area for so long that I thought I've heard everything.

I guess I need to make a new appointment to see the dentist. I need to remember that I still have a cavity, even though the tooth looks and feels fine. The appointment got sidetracked by my hospital stay, but apparently the dentist's computer system thinks I've already been. I got an e-mail asking me to take a survey and rate my recent visit. 

This year has really gone fast. It's already time for the State Fair again. I think Janet wants to go, but I'm still uncertain about being around so many people. I guess it couldn't be any worse than being on a full airline flight to Orlando. I'll definitely be glad when we can put Covid behind us. The pandemic has really made a mess of everything.

It's time to make a grocery list again. Should I go to the gym on the way to the grocery store, or take another long walk and go shopping later? These are the kind of decisions I make these days. This morning I had to decide whether to wear a jacket on our sunrise walk with Dawn. The temperature was in the 50's and the furnace came on for the first time this season. Fall is here and the light jacket I wore was actually a good idea.

Scout is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4291

What a day. We've had two plumbers over at the house for most of the day. Plan A didn't work, so then we tried Plan B and Plan C. Toward the end of the day I finally heard the sound of running water again. The sink is finally fixed. As a bonus, a slow drain in one of the bathrooms is fixed as well.

I thought the easiest solution would be to just substitute a second Moen Core Assembly for the one that had broken. I just happened to have one of these, left over from a previous repair in a rental property. It was pretty old, but I thought it would work. In theory you just removed the spout from the faucet and the Core Assembly should just slide out. Sounds easy, but nothing is easy when you are trying to fix something that is fifty years old. The Moen Core Assembly was completely frozen in place. No amount of tugging and wrenching could remove it. Eventually the fixture had to be sawed off with a metal saw.

I still had the custom stainless steel wedge with two holes on six inch centers that I had a machine shop make for me many years ago. Now all I needed was a surface mount faucet that fit these holes and I'd be back in business. Not so fast. The Italian faucet I used many years ago to fix a similar problem had been discontinued years ago. Everything available seemed to be on four inch or eight inch centers.

I took the stainless steel wedge, the other Moen Core Assembly I had, and a laundry list of problems to the city's best plumbing supply store in search of a solution. While I was gone, the plumbers fixed some problems in the bathroom. After a lot of searching, the plumbing supply guys found a commercial restaurant faucet that seemed like it could be adapted for my needs. It was expensive, but not nearly as expensive as paying for a day with two plumbers was going to be.

It took quite a while for the plumbers to connect the new faucet I bought. The space under the sink where they were working was very cramped, and it took a while to convert the supply lines from a faucet with a single rotating handle on top to a more traditional faucet with separate knobs for hot and cold water. It wasn't easy to position the stainless steel wedge that allowed the surface mount faucet to remain vertical between the faucet and the angled stainless steel backsplash either. When the plumbers were finally finished, they both said the never wanted to do a job like this again. I wasn't surprised. That's exactly what the first plumber said when I did something very similar at my old rental property.

Dawn was amazingly good while the plumbers were banging on things and making a lot of noise in the kitchen. She pretty much ignored the whole event. Dawn might be scared of a lot of things, but she's not scared of plumbers. Several times Janet led her outside on a leash and she didn't even bark at the plumbers. Dot would have gone crazy is she had two strangers in the house all day.

I hope I never have to call a plumber again, but I know I probably will. There's still plenty that could go wrong in this old house. Every time something major happens like this, Janet and I renew our resolve to get things fixed around here. It's not going to be easy. I ran into an architect friend the other day and asked him for contractor suggestions. He said it was even hard for him to find good contractors. "Nobody wants to work on small jobs anymore," he told me. I already knew that.

At least life is back to normal for the moment. I'll resume my long walks and start thinking about travel plans again. Bad things happen, but life goes on.

Bentley is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4290 - Autumnal Equinox

I knew it had to happen sometime. The faucet in the kitchen sink broke. What a mess. I never realized how many times I need to rinse things off in the sink. Ordinarily fixing a faucet wouldn't be a big problem, but our fixture is a 50 year old Moen cartridge faucet that doesn't exist anymore. It was ahead of its time when it was introduced, but not anymore. Fifteen years ago I bought the very last of the early model Moen faucet cartridges and had it installed to replace an even earlier cartridge. Now this one is broken as well. Why not just replace the entire faucet you might ask? Well, it's more or less impossible. The faucet is an integral part of a GE Kitchen Unit that was popular in the 1950's and 60's. The stainless steel backsplash isn't vertical. It is slanted at a ten degree angle. The surface mount faucet that came with this GE Kitchen Unit was built to accommodate the ten degree angle. Apparently nothing made since was made this way.

Most wall mount faucets are made to be mounted on 8" centers. The mounting holes on the Kitchen Unit are five inches apart. I used to own a rent house with a similar kitchen and when I had to replace that faucet I found one place in Italy that made a wall mount faucet with 5 inch mounting holes. I bought one but I should have bought two. This particular faucet was discontinued many years ago. Now everything is meant to be mounted on either 4 inch or 8 inch centers. I had a machine shop make a special angled flange that I placed in front of the mounting holes so that the Italian faucet could be mounted vertically instead of at a ten degree upward angle. I even had the forethought to have two of these stainless steel parts machined. The special adaptor won't do me much good though, since I can no longer find a faucet designed to mount on five inch centers.

Most people like to remodel rather than restore. Just look at all those home improvement shows on TV. A big part of these shows is taking sledge hammers and knocking down walls and tearing things apart. There is absolutely no incentive for anyone to manufacture mid-50's reproduction hardware. Even the simplest things like mid-century modern cabinet hinges can be impossible to find. I've got a sliding glass door I can't find anyone to fix. There are ceramic tiles in the bathroom that can't be matched anymore. I can't even find the translucent fiberglass panels to fix the roof on the greenhouse. Every time something breaks around this place I just know it's going to be a nightmare to fix.

The broken faucet was the bad part of the day. The good part was the weather. The temperature was in the 60's when we woke up this morning. Janet and I both wore light jackets when we took our sunrise walk with Dawn. It was perfect weather for the first day of Fall. It was still nice and cool when I took my long walk later in the morning. I think the weather is going to be nice all week. At least there's something to look forward to tomorrow. I'm certainly not looking forward to dealing with the plumber. Most plumbers are so young now that they don't have a clue how to fix a fifty year old cartridge faucet.

There has been a utility crew with a backhoe digging a huge hole in the alley behind our house all day. I thought they might be fixing a broken water or gas line, but when I looked in the hole, there were no pipes of any sort. It was just a big hole. I have no idea what these guys are doing. I hope this doesn't cause a problem when we are walking Dawn tomorrow. We always return home through the alley and I definitely don't want Dawn to fall in the hole. 

It's always something, isn't it. Just when I start to think that the crazy times are over and life can return to normal, something new happens. I hope the plumber has some magic up his sleeve. I miss my kitchen sink.

Sadie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4289

It felt like Fall today. The cold front everyone was expecting arrived this morning and it made a huge difference. Walking was enjoyable again. We had a nice sunrise walk with Dawn and then when I was ready to take my long walk after breakfast, the temperature had dropped even more. I don't know how long this is going to last, but I'm going to enjoy it while I can.

When I mowed the grass this weekend I was worried about my surgery. I should have been worried about my bad shoulder. I must have aggravated something because my shoulder has been hurting ever since. All things considered, I'm really in pretty good shape, but the aches and pains of aging can be irritating. I'm starting to feel like an old broken down machine.

I got a jury summons in today's mail. This was a surprise since I've been exempt from jury duty for  quite a while. The first thing I did when I reached the mandatory age limit was apply for a permanent exemption. I never liked getting selected for jury duty. I'd spend most of the day down at the court house and inevitably end up getting sent home. Occasionally, I'd make it as far as the voir dire process. I never got seated. I learned quickly that if you asked questions during voir dire, either the prosecution or the defense lawyers would decide that you weren't what they were looking for. I'm sure there's a number I can call to get my exemption reinstated. I'll put it on tomorrow's to-do list. I don't know how I slipped through the cracks this time, but these guys have already told me many times that they don't want me as a juror.

Very little happened today. I paid a bunch of bills that had accumulated while I was in Florida, but that was about it. I thought that bills would be easier to keep track of now that I pay everything online. It turns out that getting a paper statement in the mail is still the best way to remember these things. Some folks send me a reminder e-mail and others don't. Who remembers old e-mail anyway? Oh, well. Unless I forgot something, I'm all caught up for the moment.

I haven't heard anything from the observatory lately, but now I can't decide whether I even want to go out to West Texas in October. It's such a long, tiring drive. I've been thinking of taking my own car the next time I make the trip, but after my trip to Florida I think I'll stick with rental cars. There's just too much that can go wrong with a car on a road trip. I wish Southwest Airlines flew to Alpine or Marfa. That's not going to happen though.

It's supposed to be even colder tomorrow. That would be nice. This is kind of the sweet spot as far as temperatures go. It's nice to be outside when the temperature is in the low seventies. It's not jacket weather yet, but you don't get too hot being out in the sun. Fall is beautiful in Texas. Unfortunately, it only seems to last two weeks.

Rowe is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4288

Cooper and Charlie were glad to see us today. Dogs are easy to please. We throw toys for them to fetch. We play with them and tell them what good dogs they are. We feed them treats. We take them outside to pee. Then we're gone for another week. Both of these dogs would make a good companion for the right person. We always hope they will find their forever home soon.

We keep hearing that a cold front is on the way and that temperatures will be dramatically cooler soon. Cooler weather can't come soon enough for me. It's nice outside when we take our sunrise walk with Dawn, but it gets hot quickly as soon as the sun comes up.

I'm taking my long walk right after breakfast now. Breakfast doesn't take as long these days since I'm not making my smoothie anymore. It doesn't take long to eat a bowl of shredded wheat. I wonder if I'll feel like drinking large fruit smoothies again? It was a total surprise that I suddenly lost my taste for these things. Things change I guess. I made myself an omelet for years. I fixed pancakes and sausages for quite a while as well. Years ago I used to eat a grapefruit for breakfast. I don't even like grapefruit anymore.

I wouldn't be surprised if I grow tired of my long walks someday. They take a lot of time and are often boring. Whenever I get tired of walking I accidentally read an article that extolls the many benefits of walking. It's good cardio exercise and helps prevent bone loss. Walking is much easier on your joints than running. There are so many good things about walking that it's usually pretty easy to convince myself to get outside and hit the trails. It's good to be outdoors. Staying inside can be boring as well.

My editor agreed to make a few changes to my Inspiration 4 article. The changes were minor and mostly involved going back to the way I'd written the article in the first place. I think the magazine goes to press soon, so there probably won't be any more changes. I'm happy enough. Two weeks ago I thought I wouldn't be writing for this magazine anymore. Now it appears that my contributions are still valued. It's good to have a purpose. Not a lot of people read my articles, but writing about space is still a lot better than sitting at home doing nothing.

I've finally gotten everything put away after my trip. I thought that the office would look a little nicer now that the suitcases and cameras are out of the way. It still looks just the same though. I think this office will be permanently cluttered, no matter what I do. I wonder how long it will be before I start packing again. I still have no idea whether I'll be going out to the observatory in October.

I don't even know what I'll be doing tomorrow. Maybe I'll wash the car. Maybe I'll fix something different for breakfast. Whatever happens, I'm sure we'll start the day with a sunrise walk.

Rosie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4287

I finally mowed the grass today. It was kind of nice having a doctor forbid you from doing something you hated to do anyway. Time to move on though. I'm better now and the yard looked terrible. It was time to mow. I didn't take my normal long walk today, but according to my Fitbit, mowing the grass is better exercise anyway. Fitbit doesn't seem to understand lawnmowers. My tracker always records this activity as riding a bicycle.

Although it got hot later in the day, it was reasonably cool when all our activity took place. We had a nice sunrise walk with Dawn, even though the sun was already up. We get started later on Sunday. After I mowed the grass, we took Dawn on her Sunday outing. For the first time in weeks I was able to keep up with Dawn and Janet. As usual, we all enjoyed an ice cream cone on the way home. I'm really going to have to work on getting back in shape during the weeks and months ahead. I have a feeling that a lot of the weight I lost during my hospital stay was muscle mass.

I received a press proof of my SpaceFlight Magazine article this morning. Wow. That was fast. It finally occurred to me that the November issue was probably almost ready to go to press and they just squeezed my article in at the last minute. The editor did tell me what pages the article would appear on before I even wrote it. I was pleased that they used three of the pictures I sent. One of the pictures was a full page spread and looked pretty dramatic. They changed a few things in the text that I thought were confusing, but British grammar rules are different. At least I've got another article about rockets under my belt. I was afraid that having a new editor might mean that I was done at the magazine. It appears they still like me though, so all is good.

Janet made a pot roast in the slow cooker today and the house smelled good all day. Pot roast is almost a perfect meal to me. The meat is as tender as a good brisket and it's packed full of healthy vegetables. As an added bonus, pot roast doesn't seem to give me heartburn. We ate well tonight and I'll have tasty leftovers for the rest of the week.

I thought that I'd used plenty of bug spray when I watched the launch last week, but it's obvious now that some mosquitos made it through the barrier. Florida mosquitos are much worse than Texas mosquitos. The bites itch more and leave bigger welts. I still cover the bites with clear nail polish, although I think this method only works with chigger bites. Actually Florida mosquitos feel a lot like Texas chiggers.

It's been a busy weekend, but I'm ready for another week to start. We'll probably visit Charlie and Cooper at the Dalmatian kennel tomorrow. A young female Dalmatian came and went while I was in Florida and I never got to see her. The females always seem to get adopted quicker. I don't really have any plans for next week, but that shouldn't be surprising. They say the weather will be dramatically cooler starting Tuesday. Hey, that's something to look forward to.

Rhett is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4286

Life is back to normal. I feel good and have resumed all my regular activities. Life without a gallbladder is fine. The big black and blue patch on my stomach has finally faded away and it's OK to lift things again. My heart rate, blood pressure, and Fitpit stats have all returned to their normal ranges. It's kind of amazing to watch the body heal itself.

I did my grocery shopping this morning, but didn't go to the gym. Maybe I should have. By the time I got around to taking my long walk it had gotten pretty hot. Our early morning walk with Dawn was great though. Just as Janet and I both expected, Dawn resumed her normal walking schedule as soon as I returned from Florida.

I got a message from my editor this morning saying that he likes my Inspiration 4 article and that it will run in the November issue. He made a few more changes than I would have liked, but that's life. I'm happy that I can continue writing for SpaceFlight Magazine. Now that the crew has safely returned to earth, I suspect that the magazine will change the article's conclusion a bit. I thought everything would end well, but I couldn't say it, because it hadn't happened yet. Maybe I should have waited one more day to finish the article. This Space X mission continues to amaze me. I watched the live stream of the splash down this evening and everything went perfectly.

While I was shopping this morning I noticed that the stores were full of pumpkins and Halloween candy. I even saw artificial Christmas trees in one store. Covid might not be over yet, but it's pretty clear that business and most customers are ready to turn the page and move on. Maybe this is why people are still getting sick.

The water level in the lake is getting really low. This happens almost every year, but it is surprising since we had such a wet Spring and early Summer. Dry weather is fine by me. I don't have to worry about roof leaks or mow the grass as often. Somehow I think Dallas is in the sweet spot between the dangerous dry weather wildfires out west and the impossible humidity of Florida and the Gulf Coast. I've lived a lot of places, but Texas seems just about right. I think I'll stay.

I've noticed that most of my space photographer friends are quick to post all their pictures on Facebook and Instagram. I wonder why I have no desire to do this myself? I took a lot of nice pictures of the Inspiration 4 launch, but after sending a selection to the magazine, I don't even feel like looking at them again. I've felt this way on all the launches I've attended. It's pretty much the same for astrophotography out at the observatory as well. The last thing I want is for something to go viral. Maybe this is why I continue blogging. Nobody reads blogs anymore. I feel like I'm writing for about ten people. That's OK though. The blog was popular many years ago and I think I'm happier now that I'm more or less invisible.

Now that it's finally starting to get a little cooler, our Sunday outing with Dawn will be more enjoyable. I'm feeling like I can keep up with Dawn and Janet this week. Last Sunday I was packing for my trip to Florida and this Sunday the trip is just a memory. Time flies by at an alarming rate. What's the hurry. The closer I get to the finish line, the more I wish that time would slow down a bit.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4285

Today was busy. I finished writing my article about the Inspiration 4 mission for SpaceFlight Magazine and started editing the hundreds of pictures I took to illustrate the article. When Janet proofread my story, she said I should say some nice things about Hayley. Seems fair enough. Hayley will definitely be the one people remember. I found a dozen or so pictures that would look good in a magazine and sent everything off to London. I haven't heard anything from my editor yet, but there's a big time zone difference.

I rescheduled my appointment with the digestive specialists who removed the gallstones from my bile duct. They want to do another endoscopy to examine a problem they found with my esophagus. Evidently I have Barrett’s Esophagus which is caused by long term acid reflux. I suspect they will want me to change my diet. I think I eat very healthy meals, but everything I like tends to cause heartburn. I'm willing to make some changes, but I definitely don't want to become a vegetarian.

I weighed myself for the first time since I was hospitalized and I've lost nearly ten pounds. I must have been sicker than I thought. This weight loss was a huge surprise, since I certainly don't look or feel any lighter. Actually, this puts me right at the target weight I've been trying to reach for a long time. Now I've just got to put some muscle on these bones. Muscle atrophy is a real problem as you grow older.  It's easy to lose muscle mass, but hard to build it back.

I took my first six mile walk in quite a while this morning. I did fine, but my pace was pretty slow. The temperatures are getting cooler, so I think I'll be able to get back to my old self fairly soon. Sometimes I get sick of walking every morning and writing every evening. I still think you've got to keep your body and mind active. I don't understand people who find exercise exhilarating. I'd still rather take a nice long nap.

I finally got my bags unpacked, did a load of dirty laundry, and put my suitcase away. I think it's OK to lift things again, but I still don't feel like mowing the lawn. Travel never used to be this tiring. I really like my trips to the observatory and the space center, but I'm usually worn out when I return. Oh, well. Getting old isn't a picnic, but I'm still a lot healthier than my Mom and Dad were at this age.

Hard to believe that the week is over and it's time to make a grocery list again. This week just flew by. I have no real plans for the weekend. Usually it's just grocery shopping on Saturday and Dawn's Sunday outing the next day. Maybe I'll do something interesting, but I wouldn't count on it.

Princess is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4284

I said goodby to Florida today. I wouldn't want to live there, but I love visiting the Space Coast. I'm starting to feel like a local in Titusville. This sleepy little town has a lot of charm. Almost everyone has some sort of connection to Kennedy Space Center. Many people who worked on the Apollo program retired there. I've met people who worked on the giant F1 engines on the Saturn 5. I met someone this week that was a seamstress who worked on Thermal Protection Systems for the Space Shuttle. My server at breakfast this morning told me that her mother used to work for NASA, replacing broken and damaged heat shield tiles on the shuttle. "She was the smallest person on the team, so her responsibility was to replace the tiles in difficult and hard to reach places," the server told me.

I seldom watch television when I travel. I don't even turn on the radio in the rental car. If a hurricane was headed our way, someone would tell me. Nobody talks about politics though. If I meet an older person, we reminisce about the past. I've learned a lot about the Apollo program from Titusville residents. If I'm talking to someone younger, we speculate about what's going to happen next. A lot of conversations involve Elon Musk. I don't really do that much talking. Just more than I do in Dallas. 

One thing I've noticed while traveling is that most people can't handle silence. They are constantly on their phones, texting friends, listening to music, and staying connected through social media. Even out at the Press Site yesterday, a lot of people spent more time looking at their phones than at all the amazing things surrounding us. People feel deprived and get fidgety when they can't use their phones on the plane. I'm convinced that addiction to personal electronic devices is a disease that's right up there with alcoholism and drug abuse.

You don't realize how grossly overweight Americans are until you spend an hour walking back and forth in an airport trying to get your 10,000 Fitbit steps. Do these people even realize that their weight is a much bigger danger to their overall health than the threat of Covid? Weight and diet are intrinsically linked. Nobody eats healthy food either. There's a huge food court at the Orlando airport and the longest lines are always at the unhealthiest places. Even pilots and doctors eat at McDonalds. There are birds flying around inside the Orlando airport. I can't tell if they are a design feature or a nuisance. Some of the birds have a pretty song, but birds poop a lot and their favorite place is the food court.

Some observations about Florida: it's a lot like Texas but with alligators. In both places if someone passes you going twice the speed limit, it is almost always a huge pickup truck with a lift kit and gigantic tires. Florida has road signs that advise you to slow down for snakes. It is so humid that your skin never feels dry. It seems to rain every single day in Titusville, but usually only for a few minutes at a time. Roads are always under construction in Florida. When the work is finished, things are usually even more confusing than they were before. On the plus side, Titusville has some great local craft beers and the nearby National Seashore is a treasure.

By the time I got on the plane this afternoon I was ready to return home. Have you noticed that every airport has their own TSA rules these days. Some still make you take off your shoes. Others don't. Going to Florida I could leave my laptop in my bag. Returning to Texas, I had to take it out and place it in a separate tray to be scanned. There seem to be different rules about liquids everywhere. I can leave my watch on my wrist in some airports, but most still make you remove anything even resembling metal. It's confusing to say the least. 

Dawn was friendlier to me when I returned home this time. We'll see if she will take a walk tomorrow morning.

Phantom is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4283

Today got off to a good start. I woke up early enough to have some French Toast for breakfast and take a shower before making the sunrise drive from Titusville to Kennedy Space Center to set up remote cameras for the launch. I don't set up remote cameras myself because I don't have any I can afford to lose. I've heard too many stories about cameras that were ruined by being out in the rain overnight or by wind blown rocket fuel during the launch. This is always your best chance to get close up pictures of the rocket though. If you are lucky, you can get really close to the pad. 

We were lucky this morning because Space X allowed us inside the fence at Pad 39A. This rarely happens on NASA launches. Space X definitely does things a little differently than NASA. Usually there is only a small handful of photographers setting remote cameras on a NASA launch. This morning there must have been almost a hundred people waiting to get on five large busses. 

I was surprised that we were riding in busses to the launch pad. I've been to one NASA launch during Covid and we all formed a convoy and followed a NASA vehicle to the viewing location in our own cars. We even had to social distance our cars when we got to the location. A photographer waiting to get on the bus with me said he thought it was too early for busses. He said he got on a Space X bus during a recent Starlink launch and the bus driver had Covid. Apparently the entire bus had to be quarantined for 14 days. We all wore masks while we were out at the pad this morning but a lot of people in Florida don't. 

Our bus was delayed this morning because somebody forgot to call the bomb sniffing dog. We unloaded all our bags and waited. You can tell the handlers really love their dogs. Most military dogs are Belgian Malinois. They look a lot like German Shepards, but are stronger and more athletic. Today's dog was smaller than usual and looked very young. He was extremely well trained though. I'm always impressed by these dogs. 

I asked if we could come later to view the launch this evening than the 3 PM arrival time mentioned in one of the Space X messages I received. The earliest the rocket was scheduled to launch this evening was 8 PM. That's a long time to be out in the sun. "You can come whenever you want," the Space X representative told me. "If you don't come early though, you'll probably get caught in a traffic jam and end up waiting over an hour to get through the guard gate." I decided to leave early.

I should have waited because the crowds were apparently all Space X VIP's and they went somewhere else to view the launch. I sailed through the guard gate. We could see the VIP's off in the distance in their own special tent. I think Elon was there. When I got to the launch site I saw the astronauts driving to the launch pad in their white Teslas. Unfortunately, I hadn't gotten set up yet and my camera was still in the trunk of the rental car. The guys who were doing the Netflix documentary about the launch were there with a satellite truck and and an elaborate enclosure for their gear and on-camera talent. They were going to live stream the final episode of the series. My setup was pretty simple by comparison, but I did find a good place to take pictures and was very happy with the results. Everything seemed to go perfectly on this launch. There were no delays at all. The launch took place right on schedule and it was quite beautiful.

I enjoyed this trip. I reconnected with some space photographer friends that I hadn't seen in a while and at least for the moment, it kind of seemed like I was back in the game. Now I"ve got to go write my article,
 

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4282

There were no plans for today, which kind of surprised me. Although Space X told us yesterday that our credentials were for use on Wednesday only, I thought I'd try to use mine today. What did I have to lose. The worst that could happen was that I might have to turn around and go back to the hotel. 

I sailed through the gate without any problems and wound up at the Press Site a few minutes later. There wasn't a lot going on since this wasn't a NASA launch. I asked some guys setting up a platform with lights if this was for the afternoon press briefing. Nope. The film crew was setting up to live stream tomorrow's launch. I was hoping to attend the press briefing, but the only information I got from Space X was a dial in number I could call if I wanted to ask a question over the phone. I wandered around taking a lot of pictures and eventually ran into another reporter who seemed to be doing the same thing. She was a staff writer for The Atlantic and told me that Space X had only invited 27 journalists to the briefing, which was apparently going to be held inside the Space X hanger next to Pad 39A. If the reporter from The Atlantic didn't make the cut, I imagine that my little magazine was way down near the bottom of the list.

The NASA Press Office was closed, but there was a sign on the door saying that the press could still eat at the nearby NASA cafeteria. I've eaten there before and the barbecue is quite good. Since I was getting hot from wandering around outside, I went over to the cafeteria to cool off and ended up eating a big pulled pork sandwich with a huge tumbler full of sweet tea. I shouldn't have done this because I never eat lunch anymore. I was full for the rest of the day.

When I was driving back to Titusville along Kennedy Parkway I ended up passing a gigantic transporter carrying a Falcon 9 rocket. The convoy with the rocket was going about five miles an hour, so I slowly and carefully passed the transporter in what was left of the right hand lane. The transporter was huge. It was originally built to move the space shuttle around and NASA sold it to Space X when the shuttle program ended. I really wanted to pull over and take a picture but the highway had soft shoulders and there were at least six police cars in the convoy and I didn't want to do anything wrong. It was a cool experience though. I was only about five feet away from the rocket when I was passing the convoy.

When I exited the secure area and passed the Visitor Center Complex I though I might spend the remainder of the afternoon visiting the Atlantis exhibit again. I didn't want to pay the $50 admission fee plus an additional $10 for parking, but I had an idea. Last night I found an old annual pass to the visitor center inside my passport that NASA had given me in early 2019. It had expired, but I asked the guys at the gate if they would still honor this pass since the visitor center was closed because of Covid for the entire year during 2020. It must have seemed like a strange request because the guy at the gate had to call his supervisor, who in turn had to call his supervisor. Eventually they let me in for free and I didn't have to pay for parking either.

When I got back to the hotel I watched a live feed of the press briefing on the Space X web site. It's just as well that I didn't try to ask questions. All the questions from reporters were very serious. I wanted to ask Hayley what she would have done if her Mom said no. Hayley has said several times that she asked her Mom if it would be OK before accepting the Inspiration 4 offer. I wanted to ask Jared Issacman about all the commercial tie-ins associated with this mission. Everyone is wearing a different brand name watch. Martin Guitars is sending a ukulele into orbit which Chris Sembroski will supposedly play. 66 pounds of hops are on board which Samuel Adams will use to brew a special beer when the astronauts return. A bunch of other stuff is on board that will be auctioned off to raise money for St. Jude Children's hospital. We've been hearing about Commercial Crew missions for quite a while now. This crew will probably end up making commercials.

All in all, it was a very good day. It didn't go as I expected, but in retrospect it was probably even better than I expected. 

Nicholas is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4281

I made it to Florida. The plane was full, but somehow I got lucky and chose the one seat where nobody sat in the middle row. Service was pretty basic. I got one tiny packet of pretzels and a choice of Coke, Diet Coke, 7-Up, or water. No Ginger Ale anymore. No beer or wine either. The flight attendants made it clear that there would be no misbehaving on this flight and that masks were to be worn at all times. All the seats in the plane had been replaced with brand new seats that were easy to clean and disinfect but hard to get comfortable in. There was no padding whatsoever. I guess this is the future of flying.

Everything went smoothly today. The plane left on time. I managed to get a rental car with in-dash GPS. Most importantly, I got my media credentials from Space X. I saw a few people I'd met before at the Press Accreditation Building, but they didn't remember me. I still don't know what we are going to do tomorrow. I think we might get an e-mail later tonight with some sort of itenarary. The launch is still scheduled for Wednesday night. A guy from Space X said that if I went to Playlinda Beach around 3 PM this afternoon I could see the four T-38 trainers take off with the Inspiration 4 astronauts onboard for a flight over the space center. I drove up to Playlinda, but I didn't see anything. Maybe there was a change in plans.

I was surprised that my hotel was so empty when the plane to Orlando was so full. I thought the rush to Disneyland would be over now that most kids are back in school. I forgot that little pre-school kids like Disneyland too. I've never seen so many tiny kids on a plane. I hope my hotel isn't in trouble. There aren't as many towels in the bathroom anymore and all the bulbs in the lamps have been replaced with low wattage bulbs. There is a sign on my desk urging me to help the hotel save energy. I don't know how much money these low wattage bulbs save, but I do wish it was a little brighter in here.

Dawn seemed surprised that I left the house so early this morning. She knew it was too early for a walk because it was still dark outside. I hope she misses me just a little bit. I think she likes me for walks. Janet says it is hard to get her to walk when I'm gone. We'll see. The last time I went out to the observatory we had to start the whole "getting to know you" process all over again when I returned.

It's been a long day. I hope I sleep well tonight. I seldom sleep well in hotels, but there's a first time for everything.

Molly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4280

Today was mostly walking and packing. I'm good at walking and terrible at packing. We get up a little later on Sunday, but our sunrise walk was still nice and cool even though the sun was already over the horizon. We had a nice leisurely breakfast on our return and then I took my long walk in the park. Somehow I forgot it was time for Dawn's Sunday outing today, but Dawn and Janet were quick to remind me when I got back home. I rested for about fifteen minutes and then we went walking again. I was really pleased at how well I did today. This was easily the longest I've walked since I was hospitalized.

I wasn't nearly as pleased with the progress I've made getting ready for my trip. Did I mention that I was terrible at packing? I always forget things. Sometimes I forget important things. Every time I remembered something I'm going to need, I dumped it in an empty suitcase. I'll organize things later. I made a list of addresses I'm going to need. I should have these addresses memorized by now, since they're the same places I always go, but this kind of stuff never seems to stick in my head. I'm so old school that I always print out all my reservations and contacts instead of keeping them on my phone. I put all this information in a manila folder and always keep it nearby. My phone stays charged a long time because I hardly ever use it.

Whenever I travel to Florida I always worry that I'll get there and discover that the launch has been canceled. It's miracle when things actually go according to schedule. More than once I have had to extend my stay when a launch got postponed. Usually the delays are only 24 hours though. NASA is pretty good about sending you constant updates, but Space X is a lot more succinct. I received one short message from them that actually had all the information I need and haven't heard anything since. This terse communication makes me a little nervous but what can you do. You either make the trip or you don't.

You can't have a drink on the plane anymore. That's a shame. Having a drink was always relaxing. I guess eliminating alcohol is supposed to make the passengers less unruly. I wish the airline's would go back to keeping the center seat empty. Flying was actually kind of nice when all the center seats were empty. I'll have to remember to take plenty of masks. The space center is fanatical about masks. You have to wear them indoors and out, day or night. I wish I could wear something that would protect me from mosquitos. Florida mosquitos are horrendous on night launches. No matter what kind of bug spray I use, I always come home covered in bites.

The fur on Dawn's paws has finally grown back. So far, she has not started licking again. We still don't know if getting all the stones out of her bladder caused the licking to stop, or if it was the allergy medicine the vet prescribed. We'll probably stop the allergy medicine soon and see if the licking behavior returns. I'm guessing that the stones made her uncomfortable. They certainly made me uncomfortable.

I hope my upcoming trip is worth the effort I'm making. I do want to be a space journalist, but I'm never that wild about traveling. I'm happy enough just taking naps in the afternoon with Dawn. I'm probably happier about the naps than Dawn is. She's still not wild about sharing the bed with me.

Marcie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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4279 - 9/11

It's hard to believe it's been 20 years since the towers fell. So much has changed and yet nothing has changed. I still sit at the same kitchen table where I watched the days events unfold that fateful morning. The kitchen TV is a modern flatscreen now, but it still sits on top of the same indestructible old Toshiba microwave. Spot had died in June of 2001 and I don't think we'd gotten Petey yet. We had just started getting involved with Dalmatian Rescue. I was still working and was very busy. I remember flying to Germany to work on an ad campaign for Siemens a few weeks after 9/11 and feeling that the world had changed forever.

We flew an American flag in front of our house for the rest of the year. Most of our neighbors did too. The country seemed united in a way that seems impossible today. There was a lot of fear in those early days.  I remember buying gas masks after the anthrax scare. They probably wouldn't have done any good, but they made us feel better for a week or so. Everybody was in favor of going to Afghanistan and kicking the Taliban's ass in those early days. It wasn't until we went to Iraq and completely ignored Saudi Arabia, which was always the elephant in the room, that people started having second thoughts about wars in the Middle East. Nobody would have ever believed that we would end up handing Afghanistan back to the very same Taliban twenty years later.

I wonder if we have learned anything during the past twenty years. The world is more of a mess than it ever was and our own country is hopelessly divided. Janet and I used to travel a lot and loved spending time in Paris and Barcelona. I can't think of a single major city where I'd feel safe anymore. I never could have predicted twenty years ago that my favorite place would now be a lonely mountaintop in West Texas. 

I used to go to New York frequently to edit television commercials. I had a lot of free time and visited the Wall Street area several times. Once I took the elevator to the observation deck on top of the South Tower. I took today's picture from the window of my room at the UN Plaza. I never ate at Windows of the World because I was young and couldn't afford it. Those times seem so long ago now. It's almost like I was living in a different universe.

Now I'm retired and would love to live in a world that made sense again. Lots of luck with that. I still think the primary problem is globalism. You can't just take hundreds of different cultures that have developed over thousands of years and just mix them all together. It doesn't work that way. I look for clues in the animal kingdom, but even ducks can be mean and nasty. Humans never were very nice and probably never will be. We have big brains but we'll never last as long as the dinosaurs. We'll probably do something stupid and be extinct in 300 years.

On days like today we always resolve to never forget. We do forget though. Often way too quickly. History is littered with momentous events we've totally forgotten about. I'm not looking for miracles here. I'd just like ten good years with no major problems. OK, let's be optimistic about my long walks. How about fifteen years?

Shadow is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4278

I got a message from Space X today saying that I had been credentialed to cover the upcoming Inspiration 4 launch. This was a surprise. Somewhat short notice too. I had applied for a press pass so long ago that I'd almost forgotten about it. I think I'm going to go. Hotel, flights to Orlando, and rental cars are all still available. The new editor at SpaceFlight said he had been planning to write the article about the launch himself, but that it would be better coming from someone who was actually there. So it looks like I've got a job to do too. So far, it's all looking good. I just hope the launch doesn't get postponed after I've already arrived in Florida. That can get expensive.

I've been hearing horror stories all Summer about the cost and availability of rental cars and hotel rooms. Rental car rates are about the same as they've always been and the hotel and airfare are actually less expensive than the last time I went to Kennedy Space Center. I guess you can't believe everything you read.

The weather has been beautiful all week. We had a nice sunrise walk with Dawn, although she made it clear that she didn't want to go exploring this morning. I could tell she was going to make a right turn and take the short route home at least 100 yards before we reached the turn. I was still able to take my long walk right after breakfast and stay reasonably cool. It's not jacket weather yet, but I really think Summer is just about over.

Although the message from Space X was a big surprise, the rest of my day was fairly uneventful. My long walk eats up two hours and I probably spend the same amount of time napping. This afternoon I spent quite a while checking prices and making reservations. The rental car website crashed and I had to call to make a reservation. I called the hotel front desk, but my reservation never got recorded on my phone app. More calls tomorrow I guess. I tried to reschedule a doctor's appointment only to discover that the office closed at 4 PM and they had no voicemail. I need to remember to do this on Monday.

Dawn still seems indignant when Janet leaves the house and she has to spend the day with me. She isn't scared of me. She just doesn't seem to like me very much. She followed me outside after I returned from my walk because I knew she needed to pee. Generally, she just ignores anything I say. Dawn is a very smart dog though. I'm amazed at what Janet has been able to teach her at training class. I attribute all this to the old adage about old dogs and new tricks. Dawn is an old dog and she was mistreated by the two men who used her for breeding for a long time. We get along though. I never really expected everyone to like me.

It's time to make a grocery list again. The end of smoothies has changed things up a bit. I'm not sure how much fruit to buy anymore. Maybe this is all for the best. I've noticed that I don't have as many problems with heartburn now that I don't drink breakfast smoothies. This makes no sense though. A bowl of chili is supposed to give you heartburn, not a fruit smoothie.

I hope the weather stays nice through the weekend. I definitely don't want to start worrying about roof leaks again.

Cleo is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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