Volume 12 - Day 182/184, 2020 - Tuesday

Most of the day today, I thought it was Wednesday. But, alas, I was wrong. I went in to the office this morning, did some power real estate, and was back home by about 2 o'clock this afternoon. I did not sleep worth a damn last night, so I did take a nap this afternoon, and after my program on PBS, I will head outside and water plants. I will be back in the office tomorrow, since it is the first of the month. On the way home, I will stop at Home Depot and Tractor Supply. Gotta have some feed and stuff for the wildlife out here on the Edge of Nowhere. Tonight was my first go 'round with 'dinner in a can.' I have to tell you, it was not great, but I have paid more for worse. I think I will pass on buying more dinners in a can, and stick with the microwave ready to eat stuff. So far, I have had better success with those. I was expecting these chicken and dumplings to have a high concentration of salt, but really, all it had was a high concentration of nothing!

Volume 12 - Day 181/185, 2020 - Monday

When I went to the grocery in Jarrell yesterday, this old Studebaker truck was parked opposite me when I came out. I did a quick Googles search, but could not find any images that matched this one. There were some customized trucks, but I really could not tell what year this might be. Bueller?  Today, the contractor actually showed up and got all the moldings, quarter rounds and trim painted. That part is done. The folks that are in charge of moving the stuff back in to the house said they could be here tomorrow and Wednesday, but I cannot be here for two days right now, so we are now scheduled for a week from today. It will be a relief and (probably) a let down when all this is finished. Kind of like the day after Christmas. BUT, I will be glad when it is over, I will just have to find something new to stress out over. I need to go in to the office tomorrow and Wednesday. It is the end of one month and the beginning of another month, so that is always a busy time for us. I thought I was going to have to take the piglet to the vet this afternoon; I was sitting outside with the two girls, and the piglet apparently ate something and kept trying to choke something up for about 30 minutes. She finally settled down, she was breathing okay, just choking. She seems to be okay now, and has not had any recurrence.

Volume 12 - Day 180/186, 2020 - Sunday

I do not know what happened, or who did it (it was probably my mother), but I have always been a worrier. I worry about everything. I used to tell Jody he did not need to worry about stuff, because I could worry enough for both of us. For the last couple days, I have been worrying (concerned) about Barney. Not only is there a crippled raccoon running around, but when Barney is not in evidence for any period of time, I worry. AND, there had not been any food eaten from Barney's dish for two days. That is not very likely. So, I was concerned (worried). BUT, alas, Barney was in evidence this afternoon when I went to see if the food was gone. He seems to be doing okay, maybe a little bit lethargic, since he did not run to get under the truck from his spot under the Polaris. I may be able to tell better tomorrow. I got about 70% of the beds watered today, and I will try to get it finished tomorrow. There is a little bit of hope that we could get some rain overnight, so that would be great. I did the few chores that I had on my list done, but I did not go overboard with things. I did do a lot of miscellaneous stuff this morning, and that will keep me for a while. I have my fingers crossed that the people that are supposed to show up tomorrow to finish installing molding and finish painting will show up. That will be one more step towards getting everything finished, and getting the furniture moved back in.

Volume 12 - Day 178/188, 2020 - Saturday

There were lots of accomplishments today, and not the usual kind of weekend things. My friends Casey, Jaime and their adorable (two year old?) son, Carter, met me at the condo at 9:30 this morning. The eventual goal is to get the condo leased out. I plan to lease it furnished, but I am not going to include artwork and personal stuff. It all depends on what a prospective tenant considers 'furnished,' when it comes to linens and things like that. There were two large pieces of artwork there, that would not fit in any of our vehicles, so Casey and Jaime came up with their small trailer. Smaller than my trailer, but a perfect size for the art. We got everything loaded, got to the house, got the artwork hung (it was MUCH more difficult than it may sound), and I am tremendously grateful for their help. Grateful doesn't look to me like it is spelled correctly, but spell check passed it, so I guess it is okay. We have been really disappointed by the LACK of rainfall, so right now I am on a 20 minute watering schedule. I can get MOST of the front part watered tonight before I retire, and I will work on the rest of it tomorrow morning and tomorrow evening. I am hoping that twenty minutes per plot will work for a weeks worth of watering for the plants. I am not sure, but I will consult some experts. Tomorrow will be more of normal routine Sunday stuff. I think. I am never sure...

Volume 12 - Day 178/188, 2020 - Friday

With all the talk about the Saharan dust, I was anticipating a much more dramatic sunset tonight, but maybe it will be more colorful tomorrow night. There is not a single thing wrong with this sunset (as sunsets go), and ANY sunset is better than I could do. I was just thinking there would be a little more color. I had a good (relatively speaking) day. I am 100% positive that I am luckier than most, but that does not always keep me from being frustrated and resentful of some things. I went in to the office, and met with a client, did some power real estate, and then started working on let all the other stuff make me feel resentful. Sometimes, I think that there are just too damn many people getting their noses into my business, and it gets to me. Maybe I shouldn't let it get to me, but I do. Then I just put my tail between my legs and do what is demanded of me, and get it over with. Like I said, I am certain there are millions of people (billions?) in the world that have bigger issues than I do. I am one hell of a lucky man. I am going in to Austin in the morning to move some stuff from the condo to the house. The plan is to get the condo on the lease market in the next couple weeks (maybe by August?), and I am going to lease it furnished, but I need to get all the personal stuff out of there. Another goal. I have plenty of goals, but there is still room (I think) for more tasks. I live by this theory: If you need something done, ask the busiest person you know.

Volume 12 - Day 177/189, 2020 - Thursday

Michael and Lynda are coming over for (and bringing) dinner tonight, so I actually swept up some dead bugs and straightened up a thing or two around the house today. I am wearing pants as I write this (just a start), and I have on shoes. Two zoom meetings, a call with a client, a visit with Hubert and Pauline, and a quick nap. Last night, I went to the Walburg Farmer's Market and scored a peach cobbler which we will break into after dinner tonight. When I was a little kid (and I have mentioned this before in twelve years worth of these journal entries), I could stand (I was short) for hours and look out the front window of the house, at absolutely nothing. There doesn't have to be anything in particular going on, I can just entertain myself with nothing, just looking. I think that is a good characteristic in the times in which we are living right now. I have to go in to Austin tomorrow, and meet with a client, and then I should be back home by around 2. I wonder if I will be able to avoid the mysterious draw that is the grocery store. We shall see... Michael and Lynda just left, we had a great dinner and a lovely visit. Something I thought of while they were here; I have used the same plate every day since December 26th. One plate. Rinsed it, put it in the dishwasher, used it again the next day. Apparently, I really only need one plate. The neighbors cattle are seeking shade where they can get it, even these little calves.

Volume 12 - Day 176/190, 2020 - Wednesday

Like many (maybe most) of you, I spend a lot of time at home these days. It's new, but I am not sure it is normal. It might not be normal, but honestly, I don't really mind it. I get in to the office (usually) a couple times a week, and that is just fine with me. This week I will be in the office three times. That's like a record. It is interesting how adaptable most of us are. Fight or flight is now fight or stay home. I'm lucky. I have a house that I like, and it will be at least a couple years before I have to consider living under a bridge somewhere. On my way home from Austin this afternoon, I thought about stopping at HEB, but I could not think of anything I needed from the grocery. It was more like I was being drawn to the grocery more out of a compulsion than because of a need. So, I didn't stop. I have everything I need at home right now for at least several more days, and then the only thing I will really need are a couple perishable items, like milk and ice cream. Ice cream does not have a very long life span here. If you have been following this journal or my Facebook page, you know I talk occasionally about the 'best buy' dates on items. Apparently, they don't make things like they used to; since Jody died, I bought four cans of biscuits. The little cans, five in a can. So far, I have not baked them, and I look at them every now and then. Today, one of the cans had burst in the refrigerator. I did not look at the 'best buy' date, but I would expect a can of biscuits could last longer than a couple months. I need to pay more attention I guess. Whatever. This is what I look out at from the home office every day. It could be worse, I could be a lot less lucky.

Volume 12 - Day 175/191, 2020 - Tuesday

The traffic fine for going ten miles over the posted speed limit on the IH-35 service road in Georgetown, Texas, is $186. The defensive driving class (and the accompanying necessary certifications) was $50, and the visit to the JP court (to plead guilty to qualify for defensive driving and the accompanying court costs) cost $144. It would have been cheaper to just pay the ticket, but at least this way, it won't be on my record. The whole thing is just a racket, but that is all a discussion for another time. We got a little bit of rain overnight, about a third of an inch, but the prognosticators have mislead us again. Yesterday, we were looking at 3 to 5 inches of rain between then and Sunday, not we are looking at an inch, if we get that much. With all the gizmos and gadgets, you would think they would be more accurate, but then again, I guess not. The rain we did get will keep me from having to water again for at least another couple days, so that is an excellent thing. The guy that installed the windows last week just called, and he will be here bright and early in the morning to finish everything up. I am still totally happy with the windows, and I think it is one of my better decisions of late. I have an appointment with the CPA tomorrow morning (in Austin) at 10 o'clock. Just when I think I have everything together, I think of another thing that I need to search for. I just hope he does not throw a wrench at me, and ask for stuff that I have no idea about. Only time will tell. I took this picture of some of the crepe myrtle blossoms this morning, just after a shower. Not sure if you can see the rain drops on any of the blooms, but they were beautiful this morning. There were some extraordinary cloud displays this afternoon as well, but I could never get in just the right spot to document them.

Volume 12 - Day 174/192, 2020 - Monday

I am THIS CLOSE to canceling the delivery of the newspaper and just keeping the on-line subscription. The newspaper is not delivered until late (sometimes after nine o'clock), and that is just another thing that makes me crazy. I have plenty of other things to obsess over, so I am thinking about letting that one go. What are your thoughts? Does anyone miss the actual feel of the newspaper? Did you go digital and then regret it? Let me know. Today was an okay day. Not much drama. I got up and had a pretty leisurely morning, and then took off to the office about 9:30. I made it home with seconds to spare for a 2 o'clock zoom call. I finished my defensive driving course over the weekend, and tomorrow I have to go to the JP's office to plead guilty and let them know that I will submit the defensive driving course to have the ticket dismissed. You can do a lot of things online, but apparently this is not one of them. Before I do that, I have an 8:30 meeting that will take an hour or so, and then I will head off to Georgetown.

Volume 12 - Day 173/193, 2020 - Sunday

When in doubt, shred it. I am still trying to go through stuff and get rid of stuff I don't need. Today I shredded documents from 2002 through about 2011. Maybe a little bit later. At one point, I thought I broke the shredder, but it was nothing some pliers and old man tenacity could not fix. And then I did some more shredding. I got everything on my list crossed off, with the exception of going on-line to buy some faux wood blinds. I want (to start with) three sets of blinds, office, dining room and bathroom. I went on line, and there was some verbiage I did not understand, so I am planning to go to a local blind company tomorrow in Austin and see what I can get done. I'm thinking $400 for three windows. I had a few other spurts of energy today, but I fell down on the tasks of cleaning out more drawers and stuff. Most of the house that still has furniture can pass for inhabited, so that is a marked improvement. I think I have lined up a guy to come at the end of this week to finish what the last guy failed to do. I am very proud of myself, because I think I have finished compiling my part of the taxes for 2019. I have an appointment on Wednesday with the CPA so he can tell me, nope, you need to give me more stuff. Perfect. BUT...I have definitely made progress. I planted these petunias and purslane in an old wheel barrel (I prefer wheel barrel over wheel barrow, it just makes more sense to me) that was here when we moved into the house almost thirteen years ago. I thought it was a great idea at the time, then I changed my mind, but they have finally settled in (I think), and I like them pretty well.

Volume 12 - Day 172/194, 2020 - Saturday

Last night I thought I was going to starve, because I could not find a can opener. I hope this does not become a recurring nightmare, but tonight I was faced with the same dilemma, but it was the pizza slicer I could not find, not a can opener. I knew where the pizza slicer was, but I could not find it, and then when I found it, I lost it again. I have been on a purging mission, so I may tackle those drawers next. Not sure. I was relieved of some stress today, because we received 0.63" of (surprise) rain overnight. I was all set to start watering and stressing, but mother nature did it for me, and that was a real gift. I did not even know it rained until I got up the morning to let the girls out, and then I thought we probably only got a few hundredths. SURPRISE! At my advanced age, it is a bit difficult to grasp new things. I finally got used to leaving only one space after a period, and I think I handled that one pretty well. I am having difficulty with the bit about 'brush your teeth in a circular motion.' Sorry, I am having issues with that. What is wrong with just the 'up and down' that I was brought up with. Brushing your teeth is supposed to be a kind of 'thoughtless' exercise, but now I have to think about it. Crap.

Volume 12 - Day 171/195, 2020 - Friday

Happy Juneteenth to all y'all.
Everything in this house is covered in a fine, gritty little dusting of something. It's like just as if the saharan dusts (which we really are not expecting until next week) came on in about a week early, and knew that there were huge holes in the exterior walls of this house, where the windows used to be. Gritty layers of dust and flies. Lots of flies. On the other hand, I am totally enamored with the new windows. They go up and down with ease. They are clean. They are new. They are much more energy efficient than the others. They have a slight tint to them. It is like driving down the road with no sunglasses, and then putting on a pair of polarized sunglasses. Everything on the outside looks better from the inside. I am really amazed, and happy with that decision. The window installation is not completely finished, but everything is sealed up. There are a few pieces of exterior trim that they had to order, and a few little things here and there. I expect they will get that taken care of next week. Fingers crossed. I had a couple Zoom meetings today, and had a task or two to complete for this issue or another. I did another couple segments of my defensive driving course, and I expect I will get that finished over the next couple days. I also need to finish compiling my tax stuff, and get that delivered to the CPA. I plan to go in to Austin in the morning, and get a few chores done. I will make a couple stops on the way home, and then settle in for the rest of the weekend.

Volume 12 - Day 170/196, 2020 - Thursday

Okay, it's wine night, so fasten your seat belts. Yesterday was a difficult day, today was better, but it was no walk in the park. I truly do understand that I am having first world problems, and most of the problems will be over soon. Maybe two weeks. Violet's remains remain in the pasture, the cowboy that said he would come and relocate her was a no-show. I was in psychological counseling too many years to make excuses; no means no, not ummmm, I think I need to wash my hair that night. Just say what you need to say. Do not leave people hanging. That cost me thousands of dollars, and you just got that advice for free. Use it to your best advantage. The window guys got here at about 7:30 this morning, and they did not leave until almost seven o'clock this evening. I was READY for them to be gone, I am so tired of the dogs yapping every time they open a door. I expect tomorrow will be better; they only have about six more windows to replace, and the rest of the work will be outside, I started my defensive driving class today, too. You may remember I got a speeding ticket (set up) last week, so I am taking the driving course on line. I am close to half-way done. I am looking forward to the weekend, I made an appointment with my CPA for next Wednesday, so that means I have to finish compiling all my stuff for 2019 taxes. It is really not that much trouble, and I have all the stuff done, I just need to get it into a legible form. I honestly think the window replacement is the BEST thing that I could have done. I am absolutely 100% happy with the new windows. I never liked the windows that were used when they built the house 19 years ago (cheap, crappy builder grade), but the windows are so much better that are being installed now. Low-E, a bit of a tint, lovely. Makes things quieter and more energy efficient. And, I can open them and they stay open without propping them up with a plastic coat hanger! Life is good, and I am a lucky man. Today's photo: This is what it looks like when there is a hole in the wall where a window used to be.

Volume 12 - Day 169/197, 2020 - Wednesday

I am just going to go straight to the end of my day. I am not really going to talk about how the day began, what happened in the middle of the day, or what was going on towards the end of the day. Nope, I am just going right to the end of the day. Nothing about the painters getting here after noon, and that I finally fired them. They said they were finished, I wrote them a check. I was on a Zoom meeting call. I turned off my audio and video to take a look...they were not done. They did not install ANY quarter round, they did not even do ANYTHING in one of the bedrooms. I kind of lost it. So, I am going to find a handy man to come and finish it up...and I don't feel bad, I feel good that it is over with those folks, and I feel like I am back in charge. If you know a handy man, let me know. And I am not going to talk much about the three (count 'em, three) zoom meetings I participated in today. There were lots of ups and downs, but everything works out the way it is supposed to. I am not going to talk much about the new windows starting to be installed today, and so far they installed about five (out of 31) new windows. They are absolutely fabulous, I could not be happier with them. Nope I am not going to talk about that yet. I'm going straight to the end of the day. Violet, our first born cow when we first got our cattle, is dead in the back pasture. She was pregnant, apparently had some challenges with the birth, and she is dead. That is how my day ended. Nothing I can do about it right now, I will get it taken care of tomorrow.

Volume 12 - Day 168/198, 2020 - Tuesday

It seems like a long time since yesterday, but it hasn't been that long, just several hours. There has been some progress, intermixed with Zoom meetings. It was a hot day today, and that will be the topic of conversation for months to come. I really need to go to the grocery store, not for much, just milk mainly. I wonder if I could go to the grocery store to pick up some mile, and get out of there for less than $50? I kind of doubt it. I got a few more plants potted this afternoon, and I still need to plant the plumbagos that I bought over a week ago. It is almost time that I need to start watering the beds of plants, and I think about a 20 minute watering a week should do it. Maybe twice a week. The weather prognosticators are giving us a slight chance of rain over the weekend, so I figure that if I water the beds Friday or Saturday, it should guarantee that we will have rain the next day. I have used a photo of these Pride of Barbados already this season, but you should prepare to see more, I am just overcome with how pretty they are, and they are pretty common in parking lots, it is just a shame we don't pay more attention to them.

Volume 12 - Day 167/199, 2020 - Monday

I am never at a loss for something to rant about, so I am going to quit my most recent rant about photos not uploading to the blog. One of these days, miraculously, it will start working again, but until then, I guess we will just have to wait and see. I hope you all had a chance to go outside and look up at some point today, and I also hope that, where ever you are, the clouds there were just as amazingly beautiful as they were here in Central Texas. I decided today that, when there are such beautiful clouds in the sky, the sky looks even bigger and more expansive. The clouds were just exquisite, and the sky was a beautiful blue, BLue, BLUE! I could not really have been any better. There was a meeting or two today, one good zoom, several telephone calls to clients and potential clients, and one quick trip in to Georgetown. I am not exactly sure what I had for dinner tonight, but the expiration date was April, 2018. Over the weekend, I found a 'secret' pantry that Joel (apparently) used for overflow, and then he (apparently) forgot about it. There were canned mushrooms back there that expired in 2006. One burst can of tomato something, and lots of other cans of tomato stuff. Much of it has been disposed of, and I have moved stuff that was kept to the front pantry, so I can try to use it before any more damage is caused. If I (or one of the girls) come down with something sinister, ask the coroner to check out what I had for dinner tonight, that is likely the cause. Nope, it doesn't look like I can add an image...oh, crap, I wasn't supposed to mention that. And now, it seems that it is working! It's a miracle! Someone needs to alert the media!

Volume 12 - Day 166/200, 2020 - Sunday

I set some very modest goals for myself today, and I am happy to report that I exceeded those goals with very little effort. I had a spurt of energy early this morning, but then a tenant decided to take his frustration out on me, and that put me in a bad mood. Later in the day, when he was informed by the HVAC repair guy (Sunday service call) that HE was the problem, he kinda changed his tune, and apologized to me. BUT, it was too late. I had another burst of energy and cleaned out several drawers and cabinets in the laundry room, so that is pretty much done. I only have two garbage cans out on the road, and I have a 4 can capacity, so I am apparently slacking off. But it is hot, and that is all that needs to be said about that. I got the chicken coop cleaned, collected eggs, and a little more this and that, and that is it for today. There has been a crippled raccoon running around, and I had not seen him in a couple weeks, so I figured he died or something caught up with him. I saw him this evening when I was feeding Barney, so he is still around. I don't think he will be around long, though. If the program will not allow me to upload a photo tonight, I think I have a way to trick it...we shall see.

Volume 12 - Day 165/201, 2020 - Saturday

I did very little if anything useful today. I actually cannot think of much I did period today. I went in to Georgetown and dropped some eggs off for Janis, and as long as I was there, I went to Tractor Supply and picked up some flock blocks for the chickens, and some dog food. I did take several naps today, and that was lovely. The folks from Tesla came out to the house yesterday (they actually did), and upgraded my software and installed some new hardware. I now have Full Self Driving capabilities. I haven't tried it out yet, but I will in the next day or two. While going in to Georgetown, the cameras were recalibrating themselves, and that got done with no problems. When I got home, there was another software update, and that was to recalibrate the GPS in the car. It will calibrate itself again the next time I go anywhere, and that is pretty interesting. I wonder if they installed a radar detection device while they were at it? It would have been helpful last week when I got pulled over for speeding, but I still think that was all a scam. The Sheriff's department in Williamson County has plenty of problems right now, so there is not a lot of respect for that department right now. The last two nights, I have been unable to upload photos to go along with these journal entries, so if it allows me to tonight, the photos will be from the last two nights. We shall see...nope, not gonna let me...

Volume 12 - Day 164/202, 2020 - Friday

I am experimenting right now. I am making this journal entry on my lap top, just to see if I will be able to include a photo with this post. OMG, this was another really busy day. The worst part of the day was, the painters did not show up again. Now they are scheduled to be here on Monday, which pushes all the other dominoes back by who knows how much. It is like a house of cards, and one piece falls, they all fall. There were some really good accomplishments today, too. I had a couple really good zoom meetings, some work around the house was done, or at least going forward, and I got the results back from my doctor. All the lab work came back as 'great,' and all the results were 'normal.' Well, that in itself is suspicious. I have seldom had anything about me be referred to as 'normal,' so I asked them to double check that it was my results they were relaying. They double checked and said I just needed to come back in six months unless there was something that came up. SO, I am scheduled again for the middle of December. Having recently accepted the fact that I am not a cook, and I am better off just opening cans, I am happy to say that I can make an egg loaf that even I am happy with. The girls are eager to share as well. Tonight is wine night, tomorrow is Coke float night. Now, let's see if this works...

Crap...I tried two different computers, it will not let me upload an image...

Volume 12 - Day 163/203, 2020 -Thursday

It was a busy day. I got up and watered outside plants, it was a lovely morning, low humidity, temperature was in the 60s when I first went outside. I checked to make sure my first meeting was not until 11, which made for a pretty darned leisurely morning. I had to go to the post office to send a certified letter, but there was still plenty of time for that. First meeting was at 11, then there was another one at one that lasted until three. I had to go in to the office to approve owner statements, and do some power real estate. I got a ticket in the way in (don't say anything Tami), and the whole thing was a set-up. Speed trap. Four Sheriff's cars hiding in various sets of bushes. Whatever. I will take defensive driving, and it won't go on this old guy's record. BUT, it did throw off my schedule. I got in to Austin, got all my work done, and as I was going past City Hall there was an underwhelming display of protesters. I avoided going in earlier because they said the protesters were trying to screw up the commuters, but apparently that was planned for the morning, from 7 to 11 this morning. There was no real problem for me with traffic, but I expect there will be more disruptions this weekend. Tomorrow will be another busy day...

Well, phooey...the program won't let me upload the picture I had planned to use. Sorry...

Volume 12 - Day 162/204, 2020 - Wednesday

I had to keep telling myself to breathe today. It was back to back stuff. First meeting, 9-11:30. Then off to Austin for a 12 o'clock appointment and then a 1 o'clock appointment with my doctor. Jody and I had check-ups every six months, whether we needed to or not. I was an asshat at the doctors appointment today, but it was necessary. There were a lot of issues that I needed to air about our doctors switch from a small, GP practice to the world of corporate medicine. One of the intake questions was 'Have you had difficulty with your medical care in the past twelve months?' I think the question was, 'Are you homeless and cannot afford medical care.' I answered that yes I had difficulty in the past twelve months, to which the looked very surprised. When asked to elaborate, I let them know that the big corporate medical complex in which I was sitting was the problem. Not finances, not my doctor himself, but the lack of empathy and communication. It did not go over well. I asked the guy if he wanted me to just lie to him and give the corporation a fake Yelp review, but he was done with me. Anyway, I unloaded on my doctor, I got it all off my chest, got it all out in the open, and we are still friends. Imagine this, he said my blood pressure was a little high. Ya think? Whatever. The girls were glad when I got home, and then I settled in for my 3 o'clock call that lasted til about 5. It will be another busy day tomorrow...

Volume 12 - Day 161/205, 2020 - Tuesday

It really feels like it should be Friday already. Or something. We hit 100 degrees for the first time this year, and of course we had planned our first office meeting since the Covid and Social Distancing thing started. In order to do proper social distancing, we decided to do it outside under some trees. It was nice, but it was really warm. You did not realize how warm it was until you got back to somewhere where it was cooler. Take my word for it, it was really hot. We all shared some good information, making some decisions about how to show houses when everything is under revision, just how to go about our lives while keeping everyone (our folks and everyone else) safe while doing it. And lunch was good, too! I stopped at HEB on the way home, and I was back home by about three o'clock. I bought NOTHING from HEB, and walked out of there with six or seven bags. You will all be relieved to know that I have reinforced the Blue Bell, so I can calm down. I stayed true to my oath to by nothing that has expiration dates less than two or three years away, and it was all canned stuff for me, except for celery, milk and hummus. That stuff hardly ever lasts here. I love celery and hummus. Oh, and don't forget grapes, I bought grapes. And string cheese. The girls get string cheese bonuses if they go outside and make pee pee. I get string cheese because I buy it. Whatever.

Volume 12 - Day 160/206, 2020 - Monday

Today was a busy day, and after I finished everything else, I cut the grass out in the girls yard. I got up this morning and finished shredding old tax documents (you only need to keep them for seven years), and got the last (of four) garbage containers up to the road. I attended a zoom class that started at 8:30, and it was a good/fun/informative class. There were 33 people in the class, headed by Candy, and we all had a pretty good time and learned a lot. The flooring folks got here and FINISHED. That is one thing done. The yard guys were here, then the pool guys were here, and in between times, I was making sure the girls were in and out, and all the thisses and thats were under control. I am pretty sure that every thing is under control, with the possible exception of me; I could totally be out of control. In case you haven't heard already, it was almost as hot as hell here in central Texas today. 99 degrees officially, with a similar humidity percentage. Tomorrow is supposed to be 104, and we are having a social distancing pic-nic at the office. By lunchtime, it should only be about 95, piece of cake!

Volume 12 - Day 159/207, 2020 - Sunday

I had four or five bursts of energy today. I got four cabinets cleaned out and the office closet. I wanted to hang pictures in the office and get the grass cut in the dog yard, but that did not happen. I did get the chicken coop cleaned, and laundry is in the dryer right now. I vacuumed. I think I have vacuumed more in the last three weeks than I ever have. I like vacuuming, always have, but enough is enough! I had the bright idea of going to Ikea this morning. I got in line at 11:25, and I was in the store by about 11:45. I bought a rug for the bedroom closet, and some miscellaneous stuff. I went to CVS for a couple things, the to Home Depot and the office supply store. I will be going in to Austin on Tuesday, and on the way home I will stop at Tractor Supply and HEB. I have get the refrigerator pretty well cleaned out, and I am thinking I will keep the refrigerated foods down to a minimum. I think, for me, canned dinners is really the way to go. Or those microwave ones that can just live on the shelf until you zap them. I really think that is my future. Or carry-out. I stopped at Fire Bowl last week after I got my hair cut, and got a carry out of sesame chicken. Those things can last me for at least two dinners, so that is good. Tomorrow I will be taking an all-day on-line real estate class, and I may or may not be wearing pants. I do not think there is any extra credit for wearing pants, so why bother?

Volume 12 - Day 158/208, 2020 - Saturday

Apparently, today was the best day to fix one of the turbines that failed about a month ago. A bearing went out. The three guys left Weatherford at 4 o'clock this morning, and got here about 7:30. I did have on pants. The turbines have been here for about eleven years. The bearings in one of them went out about five years ago, and now this one. That's two for two. The challenge is, I do not need more yard art, so they need to produce to keep their place on the property. They were here for about three hours, and then I got ready and went in to Austin. I went by the open house that Maggie and Benson were doing, and it was pretty good, nine sets of visitors. After that, I went by the office and then did some errands and got home about 3:30. Leaving the office on the way home, I was struck with the different faces on Austin citizenry close to City Hall; there were protesters and homeless. I saw nothing in between. I saw no police, not another representation of the Austin population. Protesters and homeless. It was kind of thought provoking. After I got home, I took a nap, fed the girls and myself, watched some news and a state wide political debate (my mind was already made up), and then went outside and watered plants. When I hit 'publish,' I am going to go out into the backyard with the girls.

Volume 12 - Day 157/209, 2020 - Friday

Everybody in the house got their hairs cut today. Everybody is me and the girls. It started pretty early, the girls needed to be at the beautiful parlor at 8, then there was a zoom meeting, then I went back to get the girls, then two more zooms, then I went in to Round Rock to get my hairs cut. I had no idea how therapeutic a hair cut could be. My main squeeze (Johnna) and I also get into some trash talk while I am sitting in the chair, and today was no exception, EXCEPT that we had about three months of trash talk to catch up on. I chose a photo for this journal entry that would reflect the conversation we had (public domain), but I decided that, if I used a photo to represent our talk, I would have to apologize to at least 85% of the world's population. Probably just not worth the effort, but it would be a distraction from all the other crap that we are contending with on a daily basis. Suffice it to say, I went BACK to the public domain photos and searched for 'oddities,' and this is the first thing that caught my attention, AND was generally acceptable in a family oriented web journal. If you want to see the other photo, you can private message me, and I will consider informing you. Probably not though. I have an appointment at the house tomorrow between 7:30 and 8 in the morning. Then maybe a quick trip in to Austin to take care of a couple chores, than back home. No big plans for Sunday, but next week is pretty well booked up...

Volume 12 - Day 156/210, 2020 - Thursday

When Holly was the ABoR TREPAC Chair, she brought the committee little pots of clover in honor of St. Patrick's day. That little plant has had its' ups and downs, but it is truly resilient, and it bounces back from everything I can hand it. I thought it was a goner earlier this year, due to nothing else but my inattention. BUT, a little water, getting some sun and temperatures above freezing, and it is saying there is still a lot of life in me. It has really delicate little white blooms most of the season, and delicate and resilient really does describe this little green plant. And Holly, too! From the office window, I can see an orange lump in the grass, up towards the road. I walked out onto the porch, and checked it out with a pair of binoculars (a couple pairs here and there, placed strategically), and determined that it was Barney. I walked closer towards the road, called his name, and he lifted his head to see what all the fuss was about. I guess he is just taking a rest before prowling time gets going. The girls are going to the beautiful parlor tomorrow morning, the first time in MONTHS. I pretty much know what the photo will be that accompanies tomorrows journal entry.

Volume 12 - Day 155/211, 2020 -Wednesday

Today was a most exceptional day, because I was home all day, alone. By myself. It was lovely. No construction people, nobody but me and the girls. I worked off and on with getting things put back in their proper places, and putting some things in places they are not supposed to be. My big plan for the den is not working, so I am back to square one with that. One of the better things I did today, was to re-arrange the home office. The second time in two days. I think I am about to get it right, and am working on fine tuning some things, but overall, I am pretty happy with the way it is working out. AND, I am getting to spread out as well, so that is always important. Room...I need room to spread out! The extra trash containers are working out very nicely. I have filled one up already, and have started filling up a second one. I think I can easily get all four of them filled up in time to take them up to the road on Sunday night. I almost forgot about a zoom meeting this afternoon, with REALTOR® colleagues from across Texas with Congressman Michael McCaul. I have met him several times, both in Austin and in DC. He is a nice guy, always open to working with us, and open to new ideas during this particular time in our history. It is, if nothing else, a very interesting time in our history!

Volume 12 - Day 154/212, 2020 - Tuesday

Day two of the floor install. Mostly done, except for a few (maybe 6, max) trim pieces. Why can't they got (or at least order) the trim pieces when the order the flooring? SO...they have to come back at some point and install the trim pieces. Oh, and there was ANOTHER leak, this time in the laundry room, but the plumber got here and took care of it, so now I am TOTALLY freaked out that the whole place is on self-destruct. Not really, I am just tired of all the stuff. I got up really early this morning (4AM) so I could finish getting everything packed, and I am just about to go in to shut down mode. Tonight is wine night, so that will be just the catalyst I need to crawl in to the bed. It was a nice day, pretty clouds, no real breeze, and in the 80s with really high humidity. None of the forecast rains have appeared, so now we are putting all our money on the disturbance in the Gulf. It needs to turn west a little bit, just enough to bring us some rain and not do any damage.

Volume 12 - Day 153/213, 2020 - Monday

With no intent of whining or trying to get people to feel sorry for me, I think this picture perfectly captures what I have been experiencing for about the last six or seven weeks...it all started on April 9th, and I think it will continue for another couple weeks, but once it is all over with, it had damn sure better all be worth it. The floors were put in to most of the back side of the house today. They have not done the laundry room, they have done the kitchen, office and hallway in the front side of the house...they have made the tiniest of progress in the living room, and tomorrow, bright and early, they will be here to do the laundry, living room, dining room, the master bedroom and the closet there. Then it will be done except for the unpacking. I still have to pack up some stuff in the living room and the bedroom, but honestly, I just can't get motivated to do it tonight. It will just have to wait until tomorrow, and that will be okay. Parts of life went forward today. I had one zoom meeting, and I went into Georgetown to get a water filter for the refrigerator. We have never used the ice maker in the refrigerator, but I thought I would give it a try and see if it works.I'll report back on that tomorrow. Can you believe it is June already? Me either!