Volume 18 - Day 314/51, 2026 - Tuesday

This is the third time I have been to Paris, and it is the first time I have been here when it is not 'summery.' It is definitely 'wintery,' and I find I prefer 'summery' weather in Paris. Everything is wet, cold and cloudy, but I have not seen it actually rain. I might have heard rain a few hours ago, but I did not get up to look out the window to see for sure. I had a nine o'clock driver reserved this morning to take me to Versailles and anywhere else that looked interesting. We made a few stops on the way back to Paris, but in many places, there was a large police presence, in anticipation of protests planned later in the day. I assume the protests proceeded, but I have not seen any news since I have been here. It is about 10 past eight here right now, and I just looked out the window, and it is raining! After I got back to my hotel this afternoon, I took a nap, and then walked up to the square that I am familiar with, and just walked around a bit. I stopped at a market, bought three bananas and a diet coke, so I am set. Early tomorrow morning, I will board a train and go to Barcelona. It is a seven hour train ride, and I am looking forward to that. A quick note from my ride to Lesigny yesterday: While we were traveling, I noticed a Burger King, and I remarked about it to the driver, Zain. He said 'Yes, we gave you the Statue of Liberty, and we got Burger King!' I thought that was perfect! I also learned a few things today about editing photos; The photo accompanying this entry was not only corpped by me, but I also learned how to 'Clean Up' and 'Extend.' Yowzer! Louis XIV is very happy about that.

Volume 18 - Day 313/52, 2026 - Monday

Okay, well, the plane left Dallas just right on time yesterday, and the nine hour flight got me to Paris this morning at about 9:30AM, Paris time. There is a seven hour time difference, so figure that out. The cab driver from the airport was a maniac with a really bad sinus condition, but we got to the hotel at about 11 o'clock with all pieces intact. I had reserved a car and driver for 1PM, so I got to close my eyes for a few minutes, and the driver arrived promptly. I am a big fan of Castle Impossible on HGTV, and the plan was to go to Lesigny (pronounced lay-zeen-yee) just to see if I could run up on them, but I would get to see the Chateau if nothing else. A few days ago, I was reading up about the Chateau, and found out they were closed on Monday, but, whatever. SO, I got there, tresspassed a few yards past the gate, and there was Ian, doing a little work on one of the buildings. He was very kind and we talked for a few minutes, and I could not have been happier. I didn't push my luck to mention I would like to see inside the Chateau, but it was really fun, and it made the effort worthwhile. Tomorrow, Versailles.

Volume 18 - Day 312/53, 2026 - Sunday

Howdy, y'all. It is a rainy day in central Texas, not that there is anything wrong with that. Val, Paulina and I left the Curious House at a little after 11 this morning. I am beginning this blog entry in the airport in Austin, and I will finish it in the airport in Dallas. That is because I am too cheap, and likely too illiterate, to figure out the complexities of paying for WiFi in the plane. Plus, I am not expecting anything exciting to happen after I leave Dallas. So, that is it for now, more in a couple hours. Okay, the plane was late leaving Austin, but the pilot hauled ass and I am on my connecting flight. We were side-by-side with another plane almost the whole way here, and that was interesting. I have to pee, but there is no time for that right now, I will wait until we are in the air, but at least I have an aisle seat, so that will be convenient. Time for PM pills, then time for some sleep. There will be more tomorrow. Lexie was not really happy this morning, but I am sure that Paulina and Val will spoil both the girls rotten while I am gone. 

Volume 18 - Day 311/54, 2026 - Saturday

After our walk this morning, I headed to the Amenity Center in our neighborhood, and we turned it into a Blood Bank. When I left this morning, we had sixteen donors scheduled. As the day progressed, we had two no-shows, four walk-ins, and counting the platelets that Marian, Paulina and I donated yesterday, our count for the day is a total of twenty donors. That is the goal that the Blood Bank was hoping for, but I was trying to get twenty five. Twenty is twenty more that they had yesterday, so all is good. We were done by about 1:30, so I headed to two estate sales that were open until three, and again, I bought nothing. I got back to the Curious House, did a few chores, and sat with the girls in the big chair dozed off for a couple minutes. I have turned the sprinklers off, because all the prognosticators are prognosticating rain over night, maybe heavy rain, and tomorrow is supposed to be a wet day. Fingers crossed. Otherwise, that is all the news that is fit to blog, and I am almost ready for bed!

Volume 18 - Day 310/55, 2026 - Friday

The windows in the Curious House are officially closed until further notice. It was chilly outside when I got up this morning, and I don't think it got warmer than the low 70s all day long. It became a beautiful, bright and sunny day, so that was good. We had a good walk this morning, and that was good, too. There was nothing on my chore list that needed to be done this morning, so I went to one estate sale with Val. It was disappointing for a couple reasons; first, it was a full price day, and second, there was nothing there that even remotely interested me. Awful! Soon after that, Paulina, Marian and I headed in to Austin to donate platelets. We did not even stop at Upper Crust, I have no idea what is happening to us. That place was extra cold this afternoon, and I think I was actually donating ice cube platelets. We were all freezing, and it was lovely to get back in the Buzz that had been sitting in the sun for a couple hours! We got back home about 4:30, and after taking a little rest, I am washing clothes. Tomorrow is a blood drive day in our neighborhood, so I will be there before 8AM and hang out until a little after 1PM. The blood bank goal is 20 donors, my goal is 25 donors, and right now we are at 16 scheduled, and there is still time, AND walk-ins are welcome. I will let you know how it turned out tomorrow.

Volume 18 - Day 309/56, 2026 - Thursday

Okay, it's Thursday night and it is almost my bedtime. The weather remains tolerable, and that makes for nice walks in the mornings. There was nothing on my chores list, but I did not think that was a good enough reason to do laundry. Paulina and I went to lunch, which did not take too long, and I brought much of it home. I did arrange for the tree limbs in the front of the Curious House to be trimmed off the roof, and that worked out well. Tonight was the last class for the Civilian Police Academy, and I am glad of that. It was only a ten week commitment, but I am still glad it is finished. Tonights session was about the K9 Unit in Georgetown. Here are some interesting facts: All the K9s at Georgetown (and I assume many other places) are bred in Poland. Apparently, they have superior canine breeding programs in Poland. The cost of a new canine for a police program is currently $21K. The dogs are constantly being trained, but they are not considered police officers. They are in some states, but in Texas they are considered service animals. Last (and maybe the most interesting) fact, the canine we observed tonight, is given instructions by his handler in Czechoslovakian. While working they don't want the dog to respond to someones command in English, so Czechoslovakian it it for that particular dog. I thought that was pretty interesting. Tomorrow will be a platelet day, and before that, Val and I are going to an estate sale. Busy, busy, busy!

Volume 18 - Day 308/57, 2026 - Wednesday

I think a cold front came in overnight, and it was somewhere in the lower 50s when I got up this morning. Cool enough that I had to put on a jacket for our walk. The prognosticator just said another cold front comes in tomorrow night. The high tomorrow is 82 and on Thursday, the high will be about 73. Nothing for me to complain about there. After the walk, I watched some news, and then got ready and took off to Austin for our monthly office meeting. On the way back to the Curious House, I stopped by the Capitol, just to see what I could see. I love going inside that building. I got home about 12:30, went down for a nap, and then met a guy that will be trimming tree limbs off the roof tomorrow. I prefer preventive stuff rather than emergency repair stuff. That is just opposite of some people I know. I have crossed my fingers, hoping I have everything together for my trip next week. Hotel reservations, flight tickets, train tickets, tour tickets...it seems like a really long list of stuff, but I think I have everything under control. We shall see...