Volume 18 - Day 197/168, 2026 - Thursday

Since the rain started on Tuesday, we have recorded just a little over 3 inches of rain at the Curious House. I expect many of you have heard of the flooding to the west of us, and they are getting more rain as we speak. We are expecting a little bit more rain overnight, but, while we are happy with the rain, there has been a lot of property damage to our west, and I believe two people have lost teir lives. We will all start drying out tomorrow, and hopefully it won't be too long before we have more rain, but a little rain at a time is the best here. I was up very early (4AM) this morning and took my neighbor James to the airport for his 7:30 flight. The drive was not bad at all, and when I got home, I piled up in the big chair with the dogs and took a nap. Later in the morning, I put on some pants and went to HEB. I was in the '15 Items of Fewer' line, and the woman in front of me spent $324 on groceries, and I believe she was over the limit. I said nothing, but I'm telling you. That was about all I did today, and I can't think of anything I didn't do, so that is just fine. I may drive in to Austin tomorrow, it is still too early to make decisions like that, and I will know more tomorrow.

Volume 18 - Day 196/169, 2026 - Wednesday

I has not rained all day today, but it has rained off and on for a good part of the day. There was no walk this morning, and I will not walk tomorrow morning, either. I am taking my neighbor James to the airport tomorrow, his flight leaves at 7:30, which means we will be hitting the road at about 4:30. I will be awake anyway, probably, so it is not a big deal, happy to be able to help. I had a zoom meeting at 11 this morning, and then I had an appointment in Austin at 2, and that put me back home at about 4:15. All is good, the girls slept through my absence, and they had no strong opinions of my adventures. It was somewhat discomforting to be driving in the rain to Austin, but I made it there and back with no challenges, if you don't take the crazy drivers on each side of me, acting like it was sunny and dry on MoPac. More rain is expected overnight and tomorrow, but we should start drying out over the weekend. I hope we don't get too dry!

Volume 18 - Day 195/170, 2026 - Tuesday

We (the Curious House) finally had some rain, but not nearly as much as many other areas of central Texas. Since I emptied the rain gauge this morning, we have received another 1.06", making the total for this month, so far, just short of an inch-and-a-quarter. Not complaining, and I have fingers and toes crossed that we get more in the next couple days. If you know of anything else I need to cross, let me know. Today was also a day of small accomplishments, most of which have no impact on anything at all. I had an appointment in Austin at 11 o'clock this morning, and after that, I stopped along the way back to the Curious House for a variety of small tasks. Because of the temperature change, I stopped at Discount Tire and got the tire pressure corrected (in the rain), then I went to Galaxy Bakery, Little Caesar's Pizza and HEB to put gas in the little white car. The news continues to report about the dangers of some kind of stomach bug going around, but I am in little risk since I very seldom eat fresh vegetables of any kind. Fingers crossed for that, too. Once again, we are being teased that Daylight Saving Time might become permanent, and I am all for it. I recommend we all contact our elected officials and lobby for that change, I expect they will be happy to speak with you about that, and not all the other travesties going on. 

Volume 18 - Day 194/171, 2026 - Monday

I took the Buzz in to the collision center this morning, and Oliver picked me up and gave me a ride home. Just before we turned in to the subdivision, we could hear the ambulance coming up behind us. We were in the turn lane, so there was nowhere for us to go, and the ambulance waited until it was right next to my door to blow its' horn for the oncoming traffic to yield. That horn is really loud, and it was really a surprise, and you will be happy to know that I am sporting a fresh pair of boxers as I compose this entry. I did not go anywhere else today, except to check the mail, and I have waited patiently all day for it to start raining. At some point, it started drizzling a little bit, probably around 5:30, and I did not even know it until I took the girls outside. I may regret that I am hoping we get a really good rain, because we are under a flash flood warning until Friday at 7PM. We shall see. The piglet got her face washed this afternoon, which is one of the things she cares for least of all. Honestly, it is not one of my favorite things, either, but she looks much cuter and I expect much more comfortable now than she did. I expect it will be a challenge getting them outside later this evening before we retire for the evening, again, we shall see.

Volume 18 - Day 193/172, 2026 - Sunday

Well, ARGH! Still no rain, and it had better rain soon because I did not water anything today. They (the prognosticators) are saying we (the Curious House) can expect about 2 inches of rain in the next few days, and they (the prognosticators) need to either shut up or put up. Or something like that. Otherwise, it has been a relatively okay day, I went and hung out at an open house with Maggie this afternoon, and it was fun to visit with her again. The neighborhood news is that Val broke one of his toes this morning, and I know what that is like, I have broken several toes in my lifetime. This too shall pass, but it is amazing how much pain can radiate from such a small appendage. A toe qualifies as an appendage, right? On the way home from the open house, I stopped at a roadside stand and bought some peaches. I have been craving peaches, and now I have some. On another note, and I think I mention this on this date every year, 58 years ago today, my dad died. Fifty-eight. I was 16. Interesting how quickly things can change in a life. I have  a few things going on this week, and it should be a good week, as weeks go.

Volume 18 - Day 192/173, 2026 - Saturday

NO RAIN! NO RAIN! Ugh. There were chances of rain today, and we actually did get a trace of rain at the Curious House. I missed it, the only way I knew it was because the back deck was a little bit wet, and it was not from me watering the plants. Because I did not water the plants in the back today, because it was supposed to RAIN! Even though there are still rain chances in the forecast, I will water some stuff in the back later this evening. There were six of us doing estate sales this morning, and we made it to five estate sales. There was a Buzz full of buzzing, and I had a blast, it is a good group doing this every Saturday. Someone else will need to drive next weekend, I am expecting the Buzz to still be in the body shop, and Marian and Judy will be out of town. I am sure we will figure something out. Cumulatively, at the five sales today, I spent $8 and change for the cast iron Elmer Fudd bank shown along with this journal entry. No markings, but I love this find, and it was 66% off. 66%? Whatever. Tomorrow, I am helping Maggie with an open house, and that will be fun.

Volume 18 - Day 191/174, 2026 - Friday

All Friday's are pretty good days, aren't they? Today was no exception, it was a pretty good day. After my walk, I took the previous estimate from the VW dealer in Georgetown, along with the estimate from the crappy insurance company (whose name shall not be spoken, but it rhymes with State Farm), to the VW dealer to have them compare estimates. The bottom line is, I will take the Buzz in on Monday for the repairs to begin. Hopefully, they will not have to order any parts, but I expect to be without the Buzz for ten days to two weeks. That's the part I don't like, and I especially don't like that this process is no longer 'all about me,' but that's the way it is. To be clear, the VW dealer is being great, and they are making the process easy for me. SO...I got home from that, and messed around the Curious House for a while, and then did nothing else for the rest of the day. I am getting pretty good at that! Watching the humming birds takes up a little bit of my time, and it is especially interesting when they fight for territory. There seems to be fewer of the Lesser Finches (less finches?), but I think it is WAY too early for them to be migrating. We shall see.