Day 4344

If you've seen one Monday post, you've probably seen them all. Monday's are always the same. That's not a bad thing though. We get everything out of the way in the morning, so we have the afternoon to spend with the Dalmatians at the boarding kennel. It felt warmer when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk. We left the house a little earlier than normal because Janet had a morning meeting. It kind of felt like one of those mornings before the time change. I always watch for coyotes when it is dark outside. I don't want Dawn to tangle with a coyote.

When we returned to the house I tried a wide, flatter cereal bowl instead of the deep one I've been using lately. Sometimes experimentation doesn't work. My shredded wheat kept falling out of the bowl. By the time I was ready for my long walk, it had warmed up enough so that I didn't even need a jacket. I keep looking for the eagles, but they are pretty illusive. Maybe I just don't look up enough. I'm usually looking down when I walk so I don't inadvertently step in a hole. I'm sure I'll see the birds again. There's still a lot of walking to do before the end of the year.

The same three dogs are still at the kennel. One of the kennel attendants told us that someone had been looking at Pepper but that she hadn't been adopted yet. Charlie, Oliver and Pepper are all so active that it makes me glad that we ended up adopting Dawn. I don't think I have the energy for a younger Dal anymore. In fairness, I think that Charlie, Oliver and Pepper would all be a lot calmer in a home environment. There's something about comfy furniture and a big king sized bed that brings out the laziness in almost any Dalmatian. The kennel Dalmatians all seem to love the time we spend playing with them. It is time well spent. Each of these dogs seems to get smarter every time we visit.

The kennel is one of our locations for the upcoming Santa Paws photo events. I noticed that the kennel already has sign up sheets out in the lobby. This is a good location because there is plenty of room to set everything up. Some of the places we've been are so small that it is difficult to squeeze all the gear in. I keep thinking that I'm going to have to add a cane to my growing pile of photo gear. My knees are terrible now and it's not that easy to get up off the floor these days. When you are photographing dogs, you spend a lot of time on your knees.

Thanksgiving dinner and the Santa Paws fundraiser events will be here before you know it. I don't know where this year has gone. It seems like yesterday when we started 2021 thinking that the world was finally getting back to normal. I was sure wrong about that one. Maybe we can finally put Covid behind us soon. I've noticed that the drive-thru Covid testing site that we always pass on our way to the kennel is looking pretty empty these days. A few months ago cars were wrapped all the way around the block at this place.

We got a notice from the electric company that they would be in the neighborhood trimming trees around the power lines later this month. This was always a traumatic event for us because they would butcher our trees. This year we are thinking of asking the crew to just cut the trees down. The trees near the alley where the power lines run would need to come down anyway if we ever move our driveway to the rear of the house. I'm always scared that a big storm is going to blow the trees over anyway. We've lost two large trees to straight line winds already. I loved all the big trees in our back yard when we bought the house. Times change though and I think I'm finally ready to give up on the trees. Janet was ready years ago.

Maybe I can get something productive done tomorrow. I still need to make appointments with the dermatologist and the dentist. I need to write NASA and ask how I can apply for long-term credentials. Some photographers I know only have to renew their credentials once a year. It would be so much easier to plan ahead if I didn't need to worry about getting overlooked or rejected for every single launch. I need to find a carpenter too. I'm tired of looking at the rotting wood on the side of the house.

Honey is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4343

I did a lot of walking today. We started with Dawn's sunrise walk. Even this early I could tell it was going to be a warmer day. Dawn is back to taking her short one mile loop. Any day now she could surprise us though. We never know when she's going to decide to be adventurous. 

Weekends are the only time I eat a big breakfast. Actually, it's the only time Janet and I eat breakfast together. We had a hearty meal of bacon, eggs, and toast and then I went out walking again. My feet still hurt but I am unwilling to quit walking. Basically the problem is just arthritis and I don't want to start taking pain pills on a regular basis. Aching feet slow me down though. I definitely didn't make good time today.

As soon as I returned home, Dawn was ready to go on her Sunday outing. It had warmed up enough at this point that I didn't even need a jacket. Dawn is weird about our Sunday ritual. She gets so excited as we get ready to leave the house and then as soon as we get in the car, she gets terrified. She has never liked riding in the car, but luckily it is a short drive to her Sunday park. As soon as we arrive at our destination, she is back to normal. Normal for Dawn actually isn't very normal, but we'll take what we can get. 

We had a nice walk with lots of new things to smell and then we went for ice cream. The ice cream place always has a help wanted sign out front. Either they have a big turnover or they are very picky about who they hire. We always get good service. Occasionally they even give us a free pup cone. The pup cones are very small. I think Dawn likes the regular cones better. Dawn is a noisy eater. It makes us laugh to hear her crunching on a cone. 

I didn't do much for the rest of the day. I got out the wet-dry vac and removed the water that collects between the tiles and the shower pan after I took a shower. I probably need to re-grout the bathroom tiles, but I've done this several times and it never worked for long. For whatever reason, the bathroom is where there are the most stress cracks in the sheetrock. Old houses move and shift with the seasons. Some of our doors stick in the summer but are fine in the winter. Since tile grout isn't very pliable, it always tends to crack when the house shifts. This is a minor problem compared to others we've had, but it does make me want to quit taking showers occasionally.

Janet was gone for most of the afternoon, so Dawn and I had plenty of time to bond. Dawn wasn't interested. When I would lie down on the bed to take a short nap, Dawn would always groan and move away to the far corner of the bed. Although Dawn clearly prefers that I stay in the office, she likes the bed so much that she reluctantly shares it with me. When Janet's home, Dawn follows her around like glue. I think Dawn thinks I'm a kennel attendant. I'm good for walks and fixing dinner. That's about it.

I read an article today about skyrocketing home prices and the difficulties new buyers are facing these days. Evidently in some cities there are multiple bids on almost every house that comes to market and buyers either get outbid or end up paying way more than the asking price. It makes me glad that we aren't going anywhere and are living in a home that was paid for a long time ago. The world isn't a friendly place anymore. I keep thinking that my parents lived in the best of times. There was no social media or fake news. Everybody trusted Walter Cronkite. Nobody made a lot of money, but things didn't cost very much either. I wasn't even aware of crime when I was a kid. Nobody even locked their doors in our neighborhood. Even much later when I started college it still felt safe to hitchhike. I hitchhiked all over the country. Times have definitely changed. It's not Mad Max at Thunderdome yet, but we are definitely headed in that direction.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4342

Prices still seemed outrageous when I went shopping this morning. Inflation is real and I don't think it's going away any time soon. People will get used to the new prices and eventually they will seem normal. It's always been this way. Prices from everything from gasoline to butter routinely go up and down, but at the end of the day they always seem to be higher than they used to be. When I was in college, gasoline was 25 cents a gallon and a $40,000 house was considered expensive. I wish I'd bought a $40,000 house back in the day and held on to it. I could sell it for millions now. I wish I'd bought that 1956 300 SL Gullwing I saw on sale for $25,000 when I lived in Seattle. That car would definitely be worth more than most houses today. The problem was that when gas was 25 cents a gallon, I was young and had no money. 

Prices have always seemed to rise faster than wages and yet most people seem better off than they used to be. All the little frame houses in our neighborhood are gradually being replaced by McMansions. When I was grocery shopping this morning, the parking lots were all filled with shiny new cars. I guess I really don't understand economics. We complain about high prices, but as a country we appear to be doing really well. There will always be poverty, but I think it was a lot more prevalent when my parents were young.

It was only 39 degrees when we got up this morning. This meant we had to wear warm clothes when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk. Dawn, like most Dalmatians, appears to like the colder weather. I complain a lot, but I don't really mind it either. It's a lot easier to add clothes when you're cold than to subtract them when you are hot. 

When I took my long walk after I finished grocery shopping I saw one of the eagles again. It was more distant than it was when I saw it a few weeks ago, but it was still easy to tell the bird was an eagle. The size of these birds and the white head makes them pretty distinctive. I walked across an open field trying to get closer to the eagle, but all I managed to do was twist my ankle. My feet are a mess these days. I really need to stick to walking on pavement and well defined trails.

Grocery shopping and my long walk used up a big chunk of the day, so I didn't feel guilty about doing nothing for the rest of the day. I went out to pick up Chinese take-out for dinner and was amazed at all the traffic. Where were all these people going? It felt like the entire city was on the move. Heavy traffic is the main reason I don't like to drive anymore. Driving on empty roads out in West Texas is a completely different experience.

I watched the Starlink launch on the Space X live feed this morning. This would have been a really pretty launch to see in person. Kennedy Space Center was covered in a thick ground fog and only the top of the rocket poked through the cloud bank while it was on the launch pad. It kind of looked like a science fiction movie where the Falcon 9 was taking off from a different planet. I would have loved to photograph this one.

I would have loved to photograph the eagle I saw today too. I don't think I have the dedication though. Some of the local photographers hang around the area for hours, hoping to catch a glimpse of the bird. It's usually a photographer who points the eagle out to me. I would have missed the bird today if it weren't for a photographer crossing my path holding a camera with a long telephoto lens. "See the eagle over there," he gestured toward me as he raced to get his shot. Sure enough, there it was.

I guess people are still reading the blog. My niece sent me a picture of my Mom in uniform after reading my Veteran's Day post.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4341

It's hard to dress properly for my walks at this time of year. It was really cold when I got up this morning. I ended up wearing long underwear and a sweater under my jacket on our sunrise walk with Dawn. After breakfast it felt considerably warmer, so I ditched the long underwear and just wore a light fleece jacket on my long walk. By the time I was on my last mile it felt so warm that I finished the walk in shirt sleeves. It was a nice day though. The skies were clear and the recent storm seemed to have cleared out all the pollen in the air. I don't think my seasonal allergies are over yet, but it's nice to have a day of reprieve from the watering eyes and dripping nose.

I always see something interesting on my walks. Today I saw somebody walking a ferret on a leash. This must have been quite a hike for the little ferret. The pair were at least a mile from any car or house. I also see a guy walking his cat in a harness from time to time. How do you even get a cat to wear a harness and walk on a leash?

I had no plans for today. I thought I'd buy another pair of Hoka shoes with a 20% off REI coupon that was going to expire soon. It turned out that the shoes were just about the only thing that the coupon wasn't good for. Oh, well. I searched the Internet and found the Hoka store, where the shoes I wanted were almost half price. When I went to check out on Paypal, it turned out that this wasn't a real Hoka store after all. It was some weird Chinese company that sold electromechanical equipment. Something seemed really fishy about this, so I canceled the sale. It's hard to trust the Internet these days. This place was probably selling counterfeit shoes or maybe they would just take your money and claim that the shoes were lost on a container ship in the Pacific. I guess I'll wait until the shoes go on sale in a real store here in Dallas.

It's hard for me to remember what day it is on Friday. I went through half the day thinking it was Saturday.  Maybe this is because Janet does her grocery shopping on Friday now. We both used to do our shopping on Saturday. I started thinking that I need to do my shopping too, but then I finally remembered what day it was. I think Dawn remembers what day it is better than I do. All I have to do is say "It's grocery day" and Dawn jumps off the bed and runs to the front door to greet Janet when she returns.

The Starlink launch I was going to watch this morning got postponed until tomorrow morning. These frequent changes aren't a big deal when you are watching a live stream on your computer, but they can make travel a real problem. I've had several launches get postponed after I made the trip to Kennedy Space Center or Vandenberg Air Force Base. Usually I can extend my stay a day or two, but occasionally I've had to come home seeing nothing. I've also driven all the way out to McDonald Observatory only to find clouds and rain when I got there. It makes me wonder why I've chosen these two frustrating activities as my favorite things to do. 

Tomorrow is grocery day. At least it's my grocery day. This is about the only time I use the car anymore. I'll get my shopping done early and then take another walk. You'd think I could find something more interesting to do on the weekend, but that's not going to happen. These days if I manage to get out of bed and get dressed, I consider the day a success.

Jada is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4340 - Veterans Day

Everyone usually posts pictures of their parents on Veterans Day. I only have a single picture of my Dad in uniform. My Mom was in the Navy during World War II as well, but I don't have any pictures of her service days. I never served myself, although many of my high school friends ended up going to Vietnam. I'm glad I had a medical exemption. Far too many good people have been killed or injured in pointless wars that didn't even serve our national interest. Vietnam is a trading partner and tourist destination now. We didn't win that war. Iraq and Afghanistan certainly aren't any better off after years of war. Both countries are as corrupt as they ever were. I think World War II was the last war that we actually won. I'm proud of my parent's service. Tom Brokaw was right in calling people of my parent's age the Greatest Generation. They had a sense of unity and purpose that just isn't here today. My parents gave me an amazing opportunity to grow and thrive. If you are anywhere near my age, your parents did too. I just hope we don't squander that opportunity as we appear to be doing now.

Last year at this time I was preparing to go to Florida to attend the Space X Crew 1 launch. Time flies. Crew 3 just launched yesterday and it appears that there will be many more missions like this to the ISS. I am pleased that we are finally getting serious about returning to space. We need to remain explorers. I think the Chinese understand this even if some Americans don't. If we don't go to the moon and Mars, they certainly will.

It's weird that I'm so interested in exploring the cosmos since I rarely even leave my own back yard. I took my long walk today, but that was about it. I did get an invitation from the Space Force this afternoon to attend tomorrow's Starlink launch. The invitation was a little late, since the launch is scheduled for early tomorrow morning. There is no way to make travel arrangements that quickly. I was pleased that I'm still on somebody's approved list, but I hope I will get a little more advance warning about future launches. I'm still hoping to return to KSC for next February's Artemis 1 launch.

I need to find something interesting to do in Dallas. It's too complicated and often too expensive to continually plan trips to Kennedy Space Center or McDonald Observatory. Almost every day I see photographers in the park patiently waiting to get the perfect bird picture. I don't have the patience for this. My reaction to birds these days is usually "Hey, I've already got that shot." I used to love to go to movies, but there hasn't been a new movie in a long time that has interested me. I could care less about another James Bond film, or anything in the Marvel universe. I probably wouldn't even like the movies I used to love anymore. I certainly don't like do it yourself projects anymore. I'm really tired of fixing things. Maybe I should volunteer for a sleep study. I do like sleeping.

I've taken the trash to the curb and had a cursory look at the night sky. Jupiter, Saturn and Venus are all really bright. There's a lunar eclipse coming up soon, but it takes place in the middle of the night. I'm not sure I want to get up at 3 AM to see something I've seen many times before. I don't know if I'm getting lazy or just have a bad case of "been there, done that." At any rate, I'm perfectly content to have a bowl of shredded wheat tomorrow and take my long walk. That's enough for now.

Dolly is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4339

When I was walking through the area where the eagles live this morning I was surprised to see a car flipped over on its roof on one of the small service roads that cut through the park. The accident must have just happened because a fire truck and EMS vehicle were arriving as I approached the car. The driver was an older woman who didn't appear to be seriously hurt. How could this have even happened? The speed limit is 20 miles per hour on these roads and I can't imagine that the woman was driving fast. My guess is that she was looking for those two eagles and inadvertently drove over one of the low barriers at the side of the road. Whenever I see something like this it makes me realize that life is full of surprises. The last thing I expected to see this morning was a car flipped on its roof in an empty section of the park.

Other than witnessing a weird car accident, it was a pretty uneventful day. I did manage to find the Reed's Extra Ginger Brew I've been looking for. I doubt that drinking more ginger ale and less beer will make me any healthier, but this stuff is real tasty. It's not as sweet as other brands and has a strong ginger taste. I should have done a few more errands while I was out of the house but I didn't feel like it. One task a day is plenty for me.

The new photo backdrop arrived today. I guess I'm ready for another season of Christmas pictures. It's probably time to buy some new photo umbrellas, but I think the two I've got will make it through one more season. My equipment is getting pretty old, but so am I. My knees are getting so bad now that I'm going to need an assistant to pull me up off the floor after photographing the little dogs. Maybe it's time to add a cane to my photo gear.

I watched the Crew 3 launch on the Space X live stream this evening. I wished I could have been there. Everything looks so familiar when I watch these launches on television. I'm getting to know Kennedy Space Center pretty well. I've asked my Florida photographer friends whether this ever gets old and the answer is always no.  There's something about watching a launch in person that is completely unique. I'm sure I'll return to Kennedy Space Center, but it might take a while. I'm hoping to be down there for the launch of Artemis 1 next February.

I just heard a severe weather warning on the television. Where did that come from? Its been nice out for most of the day. I just checked the weather radar and sure enough a big storm system is headed our way. I'm glad I didn't go up on the roof and clear the water away this afternoon. That would have been a wasted effort. I alway worry about downed or uprooted trees during storms. We've lost trees before and it's always a huge mess.

This week has gone quickly. Every day feels like Ground Hog Day, but that's OK. Tomorrow we'll walk Dawn at dawn. I'll brew some coffee and eat my bowl of shredded wheat. I'll take a long walk through the park and hopefully won't see any more auto accidents. I need to write another letter to my sister, but I really don't have much to say.

Puppies are todays Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4338

Today was quiet and uneventful. I woke up to a pretty sunrise. We took Dawn on her early morning walk and then I came home and ate a bowl of shredded wheat. After breakfast I took my long walk and was amused at how many people are out looking for the eagles with binoculars. The nest location hasn't been revealed, but everyone seems to know where it is. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been dispatched to protect the nest from foot traffic, but I don't think there will be a problem. By all indications, the nest is located in a swampy area that is not very accessible. That doesn't mean people won't try. Today I saw a helicopter circling the area. I'll bet the two eagles loved that. I'm not sure why a pair of eagles would choose Dallas as their home. Actually, I'm not sure why anybody would choose Dallas as their home.

Today's NASA teleconference was interesting. I wasn't terribly surprised to learn that the Artemis program was going to be a lot more expensive than expected and that the moon landing had been delayed for another year. They don't expect the Artemis III mission, which will land two astronauts on the moon, to take place until 2025 now. I had a couple of questions ready to ask, but by the time CBS News, The New York Times, The Discovery Channel, The Washington Post and other well know outlets had finished asking their questions, the moderator announced that they had run out of time and the event was over. Even The Verge, a very popular website, was at the very bottom of the question list. Before the first five minutes had passed I knew they weren't going to get around to my question.

DHL was supposed to deliver our new photo backdrop for Santa Paws pictures today, but it never arrived. So much for German efficiency. I thought the package would be arriving on Monday the 15th, but I got a message this morning saying that it was already out for delivery. I was kind of hoping that this delivery would be more reliable than FedEx or UPS, but apparently not. Oh, well. We've still got a lot of time. With any luck at all, the backdrop will still be here in time for Christmas pictures.

We may still get some Fall color after all. When I was taking my walk today I noticed that some of the Oak trees were starting to turn red. A few other trees have turned yellow, but I can't remember what species they are. The trees are turning a lot later than they did last year. Maybe it is because it has been warmer than usual. We often have a hard freeze by this time of year and occasionally we've even had snow. Personally, I'm pleased by the warmer weather. I was never a big fan of snow.

I've discovered that the extra strength Ginger Ale I've been looking for is available at Target. I never even thought of looking there. Maybe finding some Reed's Extra Ginger Brew will be my mission for tomorrow. At the moment I can't think of anything better to do. A lot of grocery stores will tell you  exactly how many items are available at specific stores on their websites now. This would be pretty amazing if it worked. In my experience, this inventory information is almost never accurate. The humans entering and updating the information are still the weak link in the chain.

Dawn comes out and watches me fix her dinner now. She barks at me like I'm some kind of servant, but I still consider this progress. Maybe by the time Janet starts to travel again, we'll be best friends.

Dot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4337

It only took one day to adjust to the time change. It seems more natural to wait until it gets light to get out of bed. It get dark earlier, but now that I've adjusted the timers on the lights in the house, I hardly notice the difference. Dawn wasn't demanding dinner at 4 PM today either. I guess we're all good to go for what will hopefully be a mild Winter.

Monday is always a very quiet day at the park. I encountered very few people on my walk today. It looks like the park department is getting ready to do some road construction. They were marking sections of the main road through the park for replacement. This is how they seems to do road repairs these days. Instead of repaving the entire road, they just cut out potholes and bad chunks and replace them instead. Most of the roads in the city look like patchwork quilts of concrete and asphalt. 

The ducks, geese, and pelicans were all in their regular places this morning, but I haven't seen the eagles in several weeks. They are still residing in the park because people report sightings just about every day. Maybe I'm just not taking my walks at the right time. I'll never be one of those people who hang out for hours with a camera or binoculars hoping to catch a glimpse. The eagles are certainly impressive, but they are not even as large as some of the pelicans. 

Since it was Monday, we spent the afternoon visiting the Dalmatians at the kennel. I thought Pepper might have been adopted by now, but she was still there, along with Charlie and Oliver. Sock, a Dalmatian Rescue alumni, was being boarded there this week as well, although he has a new name now. Somehow I always remember the dogs by the names they entered the rescue program with. Most owners rename the dogs after they adopt them. We've renamed some of our dogs, but not all of them. Dash was originally named Boomer and I think Petey had another name as well. We left Dawn's name alone, because she was older and already seemed to know her name. The change from life as a breeding dog to life as a spoiled pet was enough for Dawn. She didn't need a new name to remember as well.

On the way home from the kennel, Janet needed to stop at a Walmart to get some things. I try to avoid Walmart at all costs, but am always surprised when I step inside one of these stores. They are huge and seem to be so poorly organized that you have to aimlessly wander through every aisle in the store to find what you need. This is probably by design. Janet seemed to be able to navigate the store pretty well though. The only thing I tried to find was Reed's Extra Ginger Brew. This is the only soft drink I like and it is becoming impossible to find. The beer I like, Four Corners Local Buzz, also seems to be disappearing from the shelves. Grocery stores have become so computerized now that they only restock the popular items. If you like something that everybody else likes, you'll find entire aisles of the stuff. Otherwise, you are generally out of luck.

I need to remember the NASA teleconference tomorrow. I got the dial in number and passcode to join the conference today. I've participated in a couple of NASA press conferences before, but the other ones were in person. I guess this will be kind of like a Zoom meeting. I seldom end up asking questions at these type of things. If I even think of a decent question, some other reporter usually ends up asking it first.

I really need to go up on the roof and remove the remaining water. I know it's still up there, even though nothing is leaking now. I know that when the water in the back yard birdbath has evaporated, that the water on the roof is probably gone as well. I keep watching the bird bath and it's still full of water. Hopefully, I can find something more exciting than sweeping the water off the roof tomorrow. At least I'm going to try.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4336

I've been waiting for this day. It's daylight when we walk Dawn in the morning again. I've never really understood the time change anyway. Noon should always be when the sun is at it's highest point in the sky and we should just adjust our schedules accordingly as the days get longer and shorter. I don't think that Dawn would agree with this philosophy though. She seemed very indignant that I didn't fix her dinner at 4 PM today. Personally, I don't mind it it's dark when we eat dinner. I've usually finished all my outdoor activities by early afternoon.

It would have been another 20,000 step day if I had remembered to wear my Fitbit this morning. I always do a lot of walking on Sunday. Dawn enjoyed her sunrise walk and still had plenty of energy when we took her on her Sunday outing around noon. In between, I took my regular long walk in the park and added another five miles to my total. While I was out, I encountered some sort of marathon race. There were lots of people running, but none of them were going very fast. I must have encountered the stragglers at the end of the race. The winners had probably already finished before I entered the park. I suppose that running is excellent exercise, but all I saw today were a bunch of future knee replacements.

Since it was such a nice day today, I decided to mow the grass. At this time of year I always hope that this is the last time I have to mow and that I can put the mower away for another year. It seldom works out that way. If we get a lot of rain and there isn't a freeze, the grass just keeps growing. I'm going to remain hopeful though. Maybe I won't have to mow again until next Spring.

There seems to be virtually no Fall color this year. The trees seem to be going directly from green to brown. In previous years there would be a lot of reds and yellows in the park by now. Every once in a while we have a spectacular Fall. This year is kind of blah. I wonder why? It seems like the warm days and cool, crisp nights we've been having lately would be perfect for vibrant Fall colors.

The proton pump inhibitor I've started taking seems to be working. Last night's chili didn't give me heartburn. I haven't had acid reflux for several days now. I still have misgivings about taking a PPI though. Stomach acids are actually essential for digesting food and preventing bacteria from developing. You just don't want the acid escaping into your esophagus. We'll see how long my doctor wants me to continue this medication. If the answer is forever, we may have problems.

My watch winders are all starting to die. I guess they are getting pretty old. I keep thinking that a watch winder should last forever. It's just a simple motor that rotates the watch for a while combined with a circuit that turns the motor off for about 17 hours to let the watch unwind. I've never had a watch winder that lasted ten years. Some haven't even lasted five. I guess this shouldn't even matter since I seldom wear a mechanical watch anymore. The Apple Watch has replaced all the watches I used to wear. Watch collecting just seems like a strange hobby now. How did I ever get interested in the first place? 

At least I'm still interested in dogs and rockets. I'm interested in astronomy when I'm out in West Texas. Here in Dallas the light pollution is so bad that it's hardly worth the effort to look up at the sky. Most of my interests wind up in the storage warehouse eventually. Am I fickle, or is this just the way it works? The storage warehouse has become a museum of things I am no longer interested in.

Chase is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4335

I was surprised at how much prices had gone up when I went grocery shopping this morning. Janet had warned me that things would be more expensive, but this was fairly spectacular. A two pound tub of strawberries was over $10. Granted, these were the more expensive organic strawberries, but I've bought these things for $2.50 before. Gas has been creeping up in price as well. I've noticed that lines are starting to form at places where gas is the cheapest. I wonder where this will end? It's certainly not very encouraging.

As least my car starts easily now. Hopefully with a new battery and a recently completed scheduled maintenance, I will be good to go for another year. I don't drive much anymore so it doesn't seem fair to have car problems. I need to save my money and my energy for the house problems that are going to need attention soon.

We had no problems with loose dogs this morning, but Dawn wasn't interested in a long walk. It was a nice day and we tried to get her to try a new route, but she let us know that she preferred her short one mille loop.  We saw another Dalmatian on our walk this morning. It's rare to see a Dalmatian in the neighborhood these days. The owner lived on the other side of the lake, so she was either taking a very long walk or had driven her dog over here for a change of scenery. 

I probably need a change of scenery on my own long walk. My route has become so familiar now that I've practically memorized every step along the way. There are other routes I could take, but on most days it just doesn't matter. I'm not sightseeing when I take these walks. I'm just trying to stay active and get some exercise.

We'll see how good the new PPI I started taking is at controlling heartburn. We had chili for dinner tonight. Chili, spaghetti, pizza, and several other of my favorite meals have been pretty much off limits for the past year or so. Chili was generally number one on the heartburn register, so I'm a bit skeptical about whether a little green pill can change all that. It's worth a try though. If I still have heartburn tonight, it certainly won't be the first time.

My new editor at SpaceFlight must work all the time. I get messages from him on the weekends now. This never used to happen with the old editor, who was more my age. I guess there's a changing of the guard at the magazine. I miss the old familiar faces in my life. One by one they are all starting to disappear. My advertising friends are just birthdays to remember on Facebook now. Even some of the people I've met out at the observatory are starting to retire. I'm not terribly worried about being replaced by a younger writer at the magazine though. Writing is becoming a lost art. All the younger folks want to do podcasts and videos.

Where did this week go? It's almost time for Dawn's Sunday outing again. It's should be a nice day with a lot of walking. It's too bad my feet still hurt. Even with bad feet, I still prefer walking to lifting weights though. Walking is the perfect activity for daydreaming.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4334

It was pretty clear that I really did need a new battery when I tried to start the car this morning. Luckily, I was successful and the engine eventually roared into life. I drove to the new Land Rover garage I discovered and got the battery I needed. I was both pleased and discouraged by the new place. They were extremely fast and very professional. I liked them. Unfortunately, prices were just about the same as the dealership. I could have saved a lot of money if I just bought a battery myself at the Interstate Battery store. Like I mentioned earlier, it's not that easy though. Once the car has been disconnected from a source of electricity, a number of security settings have to be reset. I suppose there are YouTube videos that would explain how to do this, but YouTube videos have not been very helpful to me in the past. I paid the inflated price and will probably use this garage again. All things considered this was a much better experience than going to the dealership.

The doctor who examined my esophagus and did my colonoscopy earlier this week called today with the results of the biopsy samples they took. Nothing abnormal was found in my esophagus, but some pre-cancerous cells were discovered in the small polyp that was removed from my colon. None of this seemed alarming to the doctor, who said I should plan to repeat the EGD/Colonoscopy procedure five years from now. She also prescribed a proton-pump inhibitor to help control my acid reflux. There are some side effects to taking a PPI for an extended length of time, but like the doctor explained, there are side effects to everything, including continual acid reflux. 

When we started our walk this morning, one of the neighbor's dogs came after Dawn. The dog didn't hurt Dawn, but she was terrified. She was also scared when the guy who owned the dog started yelling at it. It was pretty obvious that Dawn remembered the attack that ultimately led to us fostering her while she recovered from some pretty serious wounds. For the rest of the day, she acted very fearful. Hopefully, this isn't a big setback, because we were really starting to make some progress. The whole event could have been avoided if the guy had just kept his dog on a leash. One of my pet peeves is unleashed and unattended dogs in our neighborhood. You never know what is going to happen.

It was another nice day today. We got Dawn to walk by avoiding the neighbor's house and going in the opposite direction. Later, I took my long walk and wished I'd worn a lighter jacket. At this time of year you can be freezing when you start a walk and hot by the time you finish. I see people looking for the eagles almost every day now. They are in the area, but are fairly illusive. I've managed to see one of the Bald Eagles in the air once and a few days later noticed another sitting on a tree limb. I doubt that I will see them often. They don't hang out with the other birds.

I got a message from my editor at SpaceFlight wanting me to participate in a teleconference about the Artemis program. I guess I can do this. Maybe the NASA teleconference will help me write future articles.  I really wish the magazine could help me get credentialed more consistently. Covid restriction have made it difficult for me. I guess I shouldn't complain though. The magazine doesn't pay expenses and I really can't afford to make the trip to Kennedy Space Center more often than I currently do anyway.

I hope that Dawn isn't scared tomorrow morning. She loves her walks and it's hard to get to the park without going down the street with the loose dog. It's always something these days. Life in the city is usually three steps forward and two steps back. It takes a lot of patience.

Coach is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4333

I can now cross one more medical exam off my list. I saw the urologist today and got a good report. I don't have to see him again for another year. Sometimes I can't decide whether routine yearly exams from every doctor you've even seen in your life are just a way to pad doctor's incomes, or if they are really necessary. I guess they are necessary. Most of these exams are to check for early signs of cancer. So many of my friends have had cancer that I'm all for early detection. In the early stages, cancer often has no symptoms. By the time you realize something is wrong, it can be too late. I only have one more exam this year and then I'm done. I'll have to call the dermatologist and schedule that soon.

The only problem I had today wasn't with my body, it was with my car. I had a hard time starting the car this morning, which is usually the sign of a bad battery. It was very cold this morning and I haven't used the car in almost a week, but still it's probably time for a new battery. I don't want to get stranded on a cold day. I was determined to avoid the Land Rover dealer this time and went straight to the Interstate Battery store on the way home from the doctor's office. I was convinced that batteries would be less expensive there and they were. Unfortunately, I was told that the store couldn't put batteries in Land Rovers, along with several other makes of late model cars. Evidently, changing a battery on my car causes several security circuits on the car to lose their settings and only the dealership has the codes to reset things properly. I'm screwed. Remember the problems I had with the "service required" light on my dash? There are lots of other things that try to force you back to the dealership.

I still didn't want to go back to the Land Rover dealership, so I called an independent garage that works on Land Rovers. Usually you have to drop off your car at this place, but they said they could put in a new battery for me while I waited tomorrow afternoon. I'm going to go ahead an do this even though I could probably squeeze another month or two of life out of the old battery. Batteries don't give you a lot of warning when they die. I've been stranded before and it can ruin your day. Hopefully, the car will start tomorrow when I take it over to the garage.

My feet didn't hurt at all this morning when I took my long walk. Go figure. There is not a lot of rhyme or reason to this. Some days my feet are painful and other days they are not. Since I do virtually the same things day after day, this doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I'm not a podiatrist though and I do walk a lot. I'm just going to chalk this up to old age.

Venus is so bright right now that I thought I was looking at an airplane coming toward me while I was taking out the trash tonight. The light didn't move though, so I checked a star chart when I got back in the house. It was definitely Venus. Friends out at the observatory say that Venus is bright enough now to cast a shadow. I've even seen pictures that prove it. You'd never see this phenomenon in Dallas. There are too many street lights and left over Halloween decorations casting their own weird shadows. I really miss the dark skies of West Texas, but I've pretty well resigned myself to waiting until next Spring to make the trip. Milky Way season is already over and it's starting to get cold up on the mountain. I definitely don't want to make the long drive in the Winter. I've heard too many stories about stranded motorists on icy freeways. 

I guess the big event tomorrow is getting a new battery. It's not very exciting, but I'll regret it later if I don't do this now. Maybe I'll ask these guys what they'd charge for several other repairs I'm going to need within the next year. It wouldn't be hard to beat the dealership prices. I hope my car will last until car prices become reasonable again. Right now they are insane because of low inventories caused by the chip shortage. Even used cars have gotten way too expensive just because there are so few cars available. You never know what is going to happen next. Maybe next month there will be a battery shortage.

Ginger is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4332

What a cold, rainy day. I didn't even want to get out of bed this morning. Neither did Dawn. It was 10 AM before I could even get her to go outside and pee. It rained quite a bit during the night and continued raining for most of the day. There was a small leak in the office, but the main trouble spot in the living room stayed dry. I really wish I had liked at least one of the roofers I interviewed earlier in the year. Now that the rainy season is here, it would be nice to have a new roof.

I resumed eating normally today. I still have a bit of a stomach ache, but that is to be expected when you've had tubes and cameras inside of you. I have one more scheduled doctor's appointment tomorrow and I still need to make an appointment with the dermatologist, but this Fall's medical marathon is about to come to a close. Hopefully I've been checked enough so that I'm good to go for another year. I guess I still need to reschedule a trip to the dentist too. I think they're forgotten that I still have a cavity that needs to be filled.

The rain finally stopped early this afternoon and Dawn was eager to walk. This was the first day it really felt like Winter. I wore a warmer coat and put some leggings on under my jeans. We thought about putting a sweater on Dawn, but she seemed to enjoy the colder weather. The only bad thing about the new Hoka shoes I'm wearing now is that my feet get wet almost immediately when Dawn decides she wants to walk in the grass. I was hoping that she'd stay on the trails today, but she likes to smell things. 

After we'd made our one mile loop, Janet and Dawn went home and I continued walking. I had the park to myself today. There were no bicycles and very few joggers. I like days like this. It's very peaceful, but I do need to find some waterproof boots that don't make my feet hurt. I can't wear the heavy boots I've worn for years any more. After the first mile or so, my feet start to say no. Somebody needs to make a tough, waterproof leather boot with a sole like the Hoka shoes.

I kind of wished that I'd gone to see the Rolling Stones last night. I saw both previous shows at the Cotton Bowl, but this time it was way too wet and cold for me. I didn't have tickets either. Tickets for big concerts have gotten way too expensive. Tickets to the Steel Wheels tour were only $17.50 back in 1981. A little more expensive these days. I was well connected back in the day and got free tickets to the Steel Wheels Cotton Bowl Show. I think I still have a couple of unused tickets in a box somewhere. Janet and I both had good jobs when we went to the Voodoo Lounge show thirteen years later and the price of concert tickets wasn't a big deal. I probably should have gone. There might not be an opportunity to see the Rolling Stones again. These guys are even older than I am. The Stones are currently missing a drummer and a bass player. All that's left of the Beatles is a drummer and a bass player. They ought to get together for one last tour.

I think it is supposed to be even colder tomorrow. I'm glad our furnace is still working well. Furnace problems and cold, rainy weather always seems to go together at our house. Winter is not my favorite season. I still walk and maintain my regular routine, but I'd prefer that the temperature was 72 degrees all year round. Oh, well. Like the Rolling Stones say, "You can't always get what you want."

Wolfgang is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4331

Well, I've got two more medical procedures behind me now. I think everything went well. My upper GI endoscopy has the longest name imaginable. Technically the procedure is called a esophagogastroduodenoscopy. The doctor wanted to do a follow-up biopsy of my esophagus when they discovered that I had a condition known as Barrett's esophagus. Very rarely Barrett's esophagus leads to esophageal cancer, so early testing is always wise. I think they discovered why I have reflux issues so often. The upper part of my stomach protrudes into my esophagus a bit. The doctor didn't think this was serious and said most people learn to live with it. Surgical options are available, but I'd rather just learn to eat foods that don't cause reflux.

The Colonoscopy I had done at the same time also went well. They removed one very small polyp from my colon. Polyps are very common at my age, so I was pleased that I only had one. The worst thing about today's Colonoscopy was the prep liquid I had to drink last night. This always seems like an enormous amount of water to drink in a single evening. I was up most of the night. I was hoping that this would be my last Colonoscopy ever, but the doctor said since they found a polyp, I would have to have one more five years from now. I might also need to have one more upper GI endoscopy, depending on the results of today's biopsy.

Hospital visits are always interesting. The administrative part of the visit is always slow and tedious, while the medical part is usually very swift and efficient. I think I sat in the waiting room this morning for longer than it took to do the procedure. When you sit in a waiting room for any length of time you realize that most patients are older and many are extremely overweight. Old people are why health care is so expensive. If we just threw the old people to the wolves, health care would be a lot less expensive. Since I am an old person, I'm happy to get good care though. I do try to do my part to stay healthy. I stay active, exercise a lot, and eat healthy food. No fast food for this guy. It's probably been decades since I've been to a McDonalds.

Janet wanted to vote today, so we stopped at our polling place while she was driving me home from the hospital. It was a cold, rainy day and the only things on the ballot were a bunch of constitutional amendments. No one was actually running for office where we live. You have to be careful when you vote for propositions or amendments. They seem to be worded as obscurely as humanly possible. If you don't read the ballot slowly and carefully, it's easy to end up voting for the opposite of what you intended.

I missed getting a minimum of 10,000 steps for the first time in a long time today. The doctor said it would be OK to take a walk later in the day, but it was raining outside so walking was out of the question. I can't decide whether to leave the pumps running tonight. If the pumps run dry, there's a chance they can overheat, but if I leave them off there's a chance of a roof leak. We need the rain, but rain is never my friend. Rain disrupts my walks, Dawn gets dirty on her walks, and there's always that pesky roof leak.

The Rolling Stones are in town tonight. It's a sign that I'm getting older that I have no desire to sit out in the cold at the Cotton Bowl and hear them in the rain again. Been there, done that. It always seems to rain when the Stones come to the Cotton Bowl.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4330

Today started normally and ended weird. We took Dawn on her sunrise walk and then I had a bowl of green Jello for breakfast. The Jello was delicious compared to the Colonoscopy prep medication I'm drinking now. This stuff is vile and I have to drink a gallon of the disgusting liquid before I can call it a day. I couldn't eat solid food at all today, but that wasn't as bad as I thought. Coffee and Jello for breakfast really isn't that bad. Hot chicken broth for dinner wasn't terrible either. I used the same chicken broth we put on Dawn's food.

In between all the weird food was a fairly normal day. I took a long walk this morning and Janet and I visited the Dalmatian Rescue kennel this afternoon. Charlie, Oliver and Pepper are still there and are as playful as ever. Since there are three very playful dogs at the kennel now, we are spending more time there than we used to. Charlie is still the best trained of the three. We are trying to teach Oliver and Pepper some new commands but they both have short attention spans. They are all very food motivated, so we use treats to teach them new things. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't. Everyone has fun though. I was surprised that Pepper was still there this week. She is small and very friendly and cute. Typically a dog like this gets adopted almost immediately.

I wish I'd been able to take the newer Colonoscopy prep medication. The new stuff still tastes terrible but you don't have to drink nearly as much. When I asked why I was given the older prep kit, a nurse told me that it was the only thing Medicare covered. It's a shame that I wasn't given a choice. I would have paid retail to be able to drink less of this stuff. As it is, I'll be up till midnight and that doesn't even count all the times I'll have to get up to go to the bathroom later.

Actually the upper endoscopy test I will be having tomorrow is more serious than the colonoscopy, but all I can think of is the colonoscopy because of the prep liquid I have to drink tonight. I hope I didn't make a mistake agreeing to have the EGD and the colonoscopy done at the same time. I've had both of these procedures done before and the recovery period is very quick. Usually you are back to normal the next day. Janet wants to go vote tomorrow after she picks me up from the hospital. I have a feeling that I might be a little groggy for that. There are just some obscure propositions on the ballot, but we always like to vote.

One thing I hate about all the medical appointments I'm having lately is that I have to answer my phone more often. You never know if the call is important and doctor's offices seldom seem to enable their caller ID. To avoid missing medical calls, I end up answering a lot more spam and telemarketing calls by mistake. I feel under siege by telemarketers lately. We must get twenty unwanted calls every day. I don't know what these guys have to gain by calling me. I never want what they have to offer.

Janet drops me off at the hospital early tomorrow morning. I hope everything goes well. I'm really looking forward to eating a decent meal again tomorrow evening. I'm certainly not hungry now though. I haven't drank this much liquid at one time since my last Colonoscopy over ten years ago.

Jada is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4329 - Halloween

There were more tricks than treats today. I started the day with a Covid test. This is a new requirement before you enter the hospital for anything these days. I assume that my test will be negative, but they'll let me know before I go in for my combo EGD/Colonoscopy. The test only took a few minutes. It was much easier to go to the hospital than to wait in my car forever at one of those drive-thru testing facilities.

I stopped at the pharmacy on the way home and there still wasn't a Colonoscopy prep kit waiting for me. I had a feeling that the prescription got sent to the wrong pharmacy. I wasn't sure how I could let anyone know, since the doctor's office was closed today, but I eventually found a number for the on-duty nurse at the hospital. She called me back in fifteen minutes and filled my prescription on the spot. Now all I have to do is drink the vile stuff.

Dawn was in an adventuresome mood this morning, so we took a longer than usual sunrise walk. This was before my Covid test, but I still got to my appointment on time. Later in the morning we took Dawn on her Sunday outing and we walked some more. The weather was still nice today, although it warmed up quickly after the sun came up. Dawn has grown to expect her ice cream cone on Sunday. I guess I have too. Dawn's Sunday outing has become a nice tradition.

After a short nap I took my regular long walk. My pace was slower today since I'd already done a lot of walking. At the end of the day I'd taken 22,000 steps and my watch told me that I'd achieved a personal best for my number of exercise minutes. It didn't feel like I'd done anything special today, but I did keep moving.

I think adults like to dress up for Halloween more than children do these days. When I went to the hospital for the Covid test I saw people in costume. The staff at the pharmacy were wearing Halloween costumes too. I even saw a couple of cyclists on my walk wearing costumes. I guess children still like Halloween costumes too, but I don't see many children these days.

We never get trick or treaters at our house. We live on a busy street with lots of traffic. There are auto accidents all the time and no sane parent would ever let their kids trick or treat on this street. I don't think there are many kids in the neighborhood anyway. They have all grown up. The kids that used to go trick or treating when we first moved here are in college now. Halloween is a non-event around here. We didn't even get a pumpkin this year, although I do like pumpkin soup. I wish pumpkin soup was a Halloween tradition.

Tomorrow is a fasting day. I get to have Jello for breakfast and a cup of chicken broth for dinner. That's about it. No fiber, no fat, no dairy products of any kind. Basically everything I like is off limits. The Colonoscopy prep stuff I have to drink is disgusting, but the good news is that this is the last colonoscopy I will ever need. Typically you have the procedure every ten years, but they stop when you reach 75. I wish all medical procedures stopped when you reached 75, but sadly they don't. The older you get, the more you see the doctor.

Roxy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4328

Every time I go shopping, the world seems a little more dysfunctional. The stores are far from empty, but I'm having a harder time finding what I need. I used to find everything in one store. Now I have to go to three. Gas has been more expensive in the past, but it's definitely creeping up there again. The increasing prices and decreasing inventory isn't dramatic, so you don't really question it. You just wonder why your grocery bill keeps getting a little higher every week.

The doctor still hasn't filled my colonoscopy prep prescription. This might be a problem. I tried to call the doctor's office but they were closed for the weekend. When I called the pharmacy, nobody answered. The pharmacist I've known for years isn't there anymore. He either retired or quit. The kids that are running the place now seem very disorganized. Of course the front desk at the doctor's office seems a little disorganized too. I'll see if I can sort out the problem tomorrow when I go to the hospital for a pre-admission Covid test. I guess multiple Covid tests have just become a regular part of modern life. I keep expecting life to eventually return to normal, but maybe all this is normal now.

I'll be glad when the time changes in early November. It is completely dark when we get up in the morning now. We wait until the sky lightens a little before we leave on Dawn's sunrise walk, but we still need to take a flashlight. The flashlight isn't really to help us see. It is mostly so cars and cyclists can see us. We used to have a little red light that we clipped to Dawn's collar, but it got lost. Pretty much anything you clip to a dog's collar will eventually get lost. One vigorous shake and it's gone.

It's still nice and cool for my long walk, but I'm getting tired of walking. Maybe I need to go back to the gym for a while. The park seemed congested today and my feet are starting to hurt again. I think I prefer walking on cold, gloomy days when I'm the only one in the park. Right after a rain is usually a good time. The air smells fresh and there are a lot fewer bicycles when the roads and trails are wet. Since it was a nice day, everyone was out and about. I shouldn't complain about foot traffic in the park though. It isn't nearly as bad as traffic on the roads. Traffic was horrible when I was grocery shopping today. It doesn't matter when I leave the house. It always feels like rush hour.

After my last astrophotography workshop I joined several astrophotography groups on the Internet. I still read these things every day but it it is becoming clear that I don't have the same temperament as most of the other amateur astronomers. They will spend weeks planning and executing a single shot. To get good results, you often have to take hundreds of images and then combine them all together using special software. It's a slow tedious process and very often things go wrong and you have to start over. My roots were in fashion photography, which actually made me well suited to taking pictures of dogs. I'm pretty good at capturing a moment, but I find technical photography boring. I like to see the results right away. I still love to look at the night sky though and am eager to return to the observatory again. Maybe next Spring.

Until then, I'll continue my regular routine here in Dallas. It looks like it will be a good day for Dawn's Sunday outing tomorrow. I scheduled my Covid test early tomorrow so I will be back in time for a walk and some ice cream.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day