Volume 18 - Day 36/329, 2026 - Thursday

Richard and Paul and I had a nice walk this morning, and after the walk, I am not really sure what I did. I left the house about noon to go get Mike at the airport, and I had a couple errands to take care of along the way. I am just about finished with the book I am reading, Theo of Golden. I am really enjoying the book, but I fear there will be a twist at the end that I am not really prepared for. I have only an hour-and-a-half left, so I am pretty sure something will be happening before much longer. So far, I really recommend the book, it makes me feel good when it is not making me cry. After Mike and I got home, we both went down for naps, but I am not sure I got much of a nap, maybe five minutes or so...I had two girls in the chair with me and the Piglet was concerned that her dinner was going to be late. Paulina came over after work, and she and Mike and I went in to Georgetown to 600 Degrees for salad and pizza. Val is here having his dinner with pizza we brought back, and now Paulina is fixing the Pizookie that Gina brought me the other day. Everybody, except me, is wrapped up with the Olympics, and I will settle down in a few minutes with a little ice cream. I was awake at 4 o'clock this morning and could not go baack to sleep, so I will be calling it a night pretty soon.

Volume 18 - Day 35/330, 2026 - Wednesday

I expect y'all are tired of me talking about the weather, but it's my journal, deal with it. A little bit colder this morning, somewhere in the 30s I think, and then this afternoon, we hit close to 70 degrees. No predictions of freezes in the next ten days, and that means the plants can stay outside. I had two meetings in Austin this morning, and on the way in, I thought I was totally in control, and stopped for two errands. When I got to my first meeting, I realized it had started 45 minutes before I got there, and then I was twenty minutes late for the second meeting. I stopped for another errand on the way home, and got to my 1:40 meeting in Georgetown with four minutes to spare. On the way home from that meeting, I stopped at HEB for gas in the little white car, and picked up a few things from the grocery. On the way home from there, there was a pretty big traffic jam, so I decided to follow other drivers that seemed to know a short cut, and indeed they did. I have been eating left-overs for a couple days, not that there is anything wrong with that. I still have two of the jumbo chopped pork sandwiches I bought in preparation of the big freeze. I will finish those off in the next couple days. I finished the chicken fried steak I brought home for a recent dinner with Linda and Jimmie, and I have a couple more things that I need to consume in the near future. Is there a category of hoarders that deals with food-stuffs? There is a definite possibility that I could be the premier episode hoarder on that reality tv show: Hoarding-Swallowed Alive. I like it. These two calves showed up in my memories this morning, one of the fond remembrances of the Estate on the Edge of Nowhere. 

Volume 18 - Day 34/331, 2026 - Tuesday

It was warmer for our walk this morning, I wore shorts and a light jacket. It was very windy, however, and I questioned my choice of the light jacket. After the walk, I got ready and met Richard, Paul and Rick for the ROMEO breakfast. There is the possibility that I may try the avocado toast the next time, a lady close to us got that and it looked delicious! After breakfast, I had a couple errands to run, one was to buy a new hose reel at Home Depot. Not sure how it happened, but the hose reel I had destroyed itself during the freeze. I would not in a million years thought that the hose reel would have water in a place that would freeze and fracture. Even though I know it happened, I can't figure out how it happened. There was no pressure on the parts, but whatever. I now have a new hose reel, and I doubt I will be able to fit the old hose reel in the garbage can for pickup. Whatever. After all that, I headed in to Austin to donate some platelets. Just a single today, but I am pretty sure they were happy to get it. Tomorrow I have a couple meetings in Austin. and that will take care of most of the day. The chances of overnight freezes seem to be low for the next several days, and I am thankful for that, I am happy the plants are out, and I expect they are happy, too!

Volume 18 - Day 33/332, 2026 - Monday

As usual, we started the day with a nice walk. Warmer than yesterday at about 36 degrees when I woke up. It is expected to be even warmer tomorrow, forecast to be about 57 degrees overnight. Perfect! I have been thinking about this post today since about 11 o'clock this morning. After the walk, feeding the girls, and watching a bit of television, I put plants out in the front and in the back. Since everything was cleared out, I even did a little bit of vacuuming. Okay, here is the weird part, I felt really great after doing those menial things. It was like a rebirth, well, probably not, but I really can't describe how I was feeling, and I have felt great for the rest of the day. I did nothing really special, but I did a lot of small things today, and those small mundane tasks really were done with a smile in my head! I also started reading a new book, Theo of Golden by Allen Levi. A friend of mine shared that they did not care for this book very much, but I am totally into it. I am on chapter nine, and I still have nine hours to go, but I like it very much. Theo is doing something that I can imagine myself doing. Tomorrow will be our ROMEO breakfast, and then I will head in to Austin to give some platelets and plasma. That will make me feel great about things, too! 

Volume 18 - Day 32/333 - Sunday

Well hell. It is February already, and I hardly got started on January. The temperature was in the teens this morning, so we didn't walk. I was relatively domestic today, and I have almost 7,000 steps in, which is my goal. My goal used to be 10K steps, but rumor has it that, anything over 7K steps is just a waste of steps. I frequently still exceed 10K steps, but it is just because I walk a lot. Getting a lot of steps in is also pretty easy if I go to HEB, since the dairy section is the farthest part of the store...pretty close to Waco, really! After I didn't walk this morning, I took a nap with the girls, then got up, fed the girls, and made a really good egg loaf that we all shared. Eggs, cheese and HEB cornbread mixed up in it. Very good, and there were no complaints from the girls. I watched Sunday Morning, and then went to the estate sale that was in the neighborhood, but what I went back for was sold yesterday, that's okay. I did buy a little piece of art that was half price, so it was not a total failure. I did two loads of clothes and dried four loads of clothes, so everything is clean now. If everything goes right, I will put the plants out tomorrow and they will get some good sunshine. I have two or three chores to get done tomorrow, and I have a zoom meeting at 2 o'clock. The photo accompanying this entry was taken three years ago on this date, apparently we were in the middle of an ice storm. 

Volume 18 - Day 31/334, 2026 - Saturday

We did a half walk this morning, and nobody complained about that. After walking, Marian, Diane and Judy showed up and we went to five estate sales. I bought a few things, full price, and there are two sales that I will go back to tomorrow. Conveniently, one is just about four blocks from the Curious House. At our last sale this morning, all these cops were just hanging out, outside the estate sale house. They said there was nothing going on, but I don't know why they were all gathered on that Cul-de-Sac. They were nice, I was nice (I swear), and we did this pic with a couple of my purchases in hand. I never had one of those monkeys when I was a kid, but I have one now! After the estate sales, the girls and I spent most of the afternoon in the big chair, taking naps. It was a really pretty day, but it never got too warm, and it is supposed to be really cold in the morning, down into the low 20s. The same forecast into Monday morning, then a warming trend for the next ten days. I am very happy that I will be able to put the plants out on Monday, and I expect they are very happy about that, too. Val, Paulina and Oliver came over tonight, and we had Italian food for dinner in Georgetown. I had my usual, Eggplant Parmesan. I think once the plants are outside, I might be motivated to do some vacuuming and (maybe) do some laundry. Maybe.

Volume 18 - Day 30/335, 2026 - Friday

We got our walk in this morning, and to be honest, I am a little undecided about walking in the morning. The forecasts I have looked at are contradicting themselves, but if it is at least in the 30s, I think we will walk. I am still hoping to put the plants all back outside on Monday, time will tell. I had a lunchtime meeting in Austin today, and I had two or three errands to take care of on the way to the meeting, and two to take take care of on the way home. I kind of took my time going in to Austin, and I did a couple drive-bys of places I used to haunt. Traffic was not terrible, so that was good, and on the way home, I got stopped by a train. I was close to the front of the line, and I was only held up for about five minutes, and I did not mind it at all. I cannot remember the last time I was stopped at a train crossing, but I thought it was an interesting thing to ponder. I like taking trains, and I like looking at trains. Apparently, I am easily amused. This evening, Gina brought me a Pizookie. I have never heard of a Pizookie, and for sure I have never eaten one. Do you know what a 'portmanteau' is? Look it up, but right now I am discussing Pizookies. A pizookie is a dessert that is like a pizza/cookie, get it? I am pretty sure it will be good, and there is enough of it for several occasions. Gooey, underbaked cookie that you top with ice cream. If I put that all together, does that count as cooking?

Volume 18 - Day 29/336, 2026 - Thursday

We did a full walk this morning, and it was good to be back to (kind of) normal. I think it was 36 degrees when I got out of bed, so it was even a little bit warmer. The overnights are still forecast to be below freezing, but if things go as forecast, I can put the plants back outside on Monday. The overnights will not be below freezing for at least four days beginning on Monday, and I know the plants will appreciate that. I will be happy to have them back outside for a while, too.  I had a couple appointments this morning and a zoom call this afternoon. Otherwise, I did not get out of the Curious House except to check the mail, and go out with the girls. I have a luncheon meeting in Austin tomorrow, and a couple errands that I can run on the way there. Honestly, it was a beautiful day in central Texas, the high temperature got to the low 70s, and there was plenty of sunshine. Evidence of a lovely beginning of the day is documented above. I almost forgot...I had decided not to replace the garbage disposal, just because it is such a challenge getting vendors to do what the say they will do. While we were walking, Richard suggested that I try the neighborhood handyman, so I did. He went to Home Depot, got a new disposal and installed it within a couple hours of my text to him. I guess it was just meant to be, and so it was!

Volume 18 - Day 28/337, 2026 - Wednesday

We did a half-walk this morning, just to be confident that we did not encounter any icy patches. Half a walk was good for me, I had a meeting in Austin that started at 9:15, so that gave me plenty of time. Driving to Austin included a bit of road rage (miniature rage) on my part. I hate it when I am signaling to make a lane-change, and the driver that I am trying to merge in front of suddenly finds their accelerator and 'screams' past me. So annoying and unkind. We exchanged a series of salutes for a few miles, and then it was over. I made it to the meeting with plenty of time, and returned to the Curious House at about 1:30. I watered all the plants that have been inside the garage and the house, and I think they are going to stay inside for at least another week. I just checked the forecast, and it looks like I can put plants back outside on Sunday. I am sure they will be happy, and I know I will be happy to have them back out with the sunshine. I went to dinner tonight with Jimmie and Linda, and they are going to be gone for a few days, and I am to be the custodian of any packages they may receive, including a King Cake they are expecting. I am not sure if there will be any left when they get back, but they have to take the good with the bad. I just hope I don't swallow the baby!

Volume 18 - Day 27/338, 2026 - Tuesday

I am too old to let myself be inconvenienced by first world problems. Okay, having said that, this week (all two days of it) have been a series of inconsequential inconveniences. Ugh. For the second day in a row, the plumbers did not show up to fix/replace the garbage disposal, so the new plan is to go to Homo Depot and buy a disposal, and install it myself (no laughing) over the weekend. It will not be the first garbage disposal I have replaced in my storied life, but I really do not have any pent up urges to wallow all over the kitchen floor to replace the garbage disposal. It could be worse. I went to the bank this morning at 11:20. The time is only important because the bank did not open (today) until noon. Another inconvenience. That makes two. Okay, so there were only two inconveniences today, but it felt like more. Later in the afternoon, Marian, Paulina and I took off to Austin to donate platelets. My goal is to fill the Buzz up with peeps to go donate platelets. I just need three more people. It's always more fun when you have needles stuck in your veins with friends. I kind of have a feeling there is a walk in my near future, and I have an appointment in Austin at 9:15 in the morning. Kind of early, but...

Volume 18 - Day 26/339, 2026 - Monday

Well, it has been three days since we have walked in the morning, and I am not sure we will walk tomorrow, either. There is one day this week when it will not be below freezing overnight, so the plants are all staying inside the house. I am not sure what I was doing this morning, but I turned on the garbage disposal and it would not work. I could hear it hum, so I tried resetting it, and that did not work. Then, I noticed there was a LOT of water under the sink, so there was an obvious leak. Great. I have not had any issues earlier with the disposal, but it has apparently been leaking a LONG time. Under the sink, I have soap and various 'kitchen sink' supplies in plastic boxes, so the boxes were full of water, and there was not any real damage to the cabinetry. I called the plumber and they were supposed to be out late this morning, but they called and wimped out, so now they are supposed to be here tomorrow morning, which means I will not make the ROMEO breakfast. I have the service that tells me what my mail delivery will contain on a daily basis, and on Saturday, the service said a postcard I send myself from Antarctica would be delivered. I have been to the cluster box at least ten times, trying to get the mail from Saturday, but the lock was frozen. I tried everything; fire, alcohol, hammer... Nothing worked. Finally, the lock thawed this afternoon, and I got the postcard. Later in the afternoon, I had an avalanche of ice and snow from the roof collapse on the back deck. No damage, but it was loud. Tomorrow is a platelet day, and I always like that, and Marian is going with me. Paulina will meet us there, she will need to go from her office. More sturdy stands the bowing reed than doth the mighty oak!

Volume 18 - Day 25/340, 2026 - Sunday

Well, it hasn't really been a snow day at the Curious House, more of an icy road and icy everything kind of day. It rained pretty hard overnight, it might have sounded worse that it was because it was frozen rain. In the last couple days, we have had 3.4" of (some sort of) precipitation. We like that. The birds have been taking advantage of my feeders and Jimmie and Linda's feeders. The birds water dish was frozen over, so I thawed it out and put a heating pad under it to keep it liquid during the day. I am disappointed that I did not see a single bird taking advantage of the water. Earlier, I had seen birds landing when it was covered with ice, but none when I fixed it for them to have water. It was 16 degrees when I got up this morning, and I am pretty sure it never made it out of the 20s today. The plants will all stay inside the house or the garage at least until NEXT Sunday, maybe longer. It is expected to be in the 50s some of the next several days, but lows are expected to be below freezing. I did not even try to see if the lock on the mail box was unfrozen, I will work on that tomorrow. Gina brought me some dinner tonight; noodles with shrimp and scallops. OMG, so very good. She surprised me because I was not expecting anyone to be ringing the doorbell. The neighbors across the street have been playing in the frozen streets and driveway much of the day, and it was fun watching them 'sled' down their driveway in, what looks to be, a laundry basket. Necessity is the mother of invention!

Volume 18 - Day 24/341, 2026 - Saturday

It doesn't seem like this weather event is going to be as serious as the one in 2021, but lots of precautions have been taken. I have done very little of anything of any value today, I basically just stayed home and curled up with the girls in the big chair and took a series of naps. Billy and Gina did come over and hlep me bring the big planter of impatiens in the house, there is really no room for them in the house, so we just drug them in to the front hall. They should be happy to simply survive for the next several days. The day did begin with more consumables in the house, but much of that has been consumed. Pipes are dripping, ALL the plants are being sheltered, so I guess I am just about as ready as I am going to get. I did try (twice) to go get the mail, but the lock on the cluster box is iced over. The second time I went out there, there were a couple icy patches on the sidewalk that I hit, but I didn't fall. There were lots of birds out at the feeders this afternoon, and it was fun watching them go back and forth. I have watched about as much tv as I can in the past twelve hours, but I am about to go settle back down in the big chair. Stay warm!

Volume 18 - Day 23/342, 2026 - Friday

Well, today has been kind of an interesting day. We did not walk this morning because it was dribbling outside. It has dribbled all day long, and we have dribbled our way to about 0.05" of dribble. But, it has been a nice, slow dribble, and that is good for the grass and landscaping. After we didn't walk, I got ready and headed to Leander to winterize one of our listings that is vacant. That was not a terrible challenge, it is just a caution we need to make. I am pretty sure everything at the Curious House will be fine, I brought plants inside the house from the back and into the garage from the front. I do have to do something still with the big planter of impatiens at the front porch. I have been covering them with a sheet and have a heat lamp under the big planter box. I may do something a little bit more substantial tomorrow. I have my doubts as to whether or not we will be walking for the next few days, overnight temperatures for the next several days will be below freezing, but it gets above freezing almost every day. I think. I still think everything is going to be just fine. I went to HEB on Wednesday, and got what I thought I needed, and I stopped on my way home again this afternoon, just to take in all the chaos and take a couple photos of the empty shelves. There was still plenty of stuff, and the staff was busy re-stocking shelves, but I am not sure if there was any more milk or bread. I got cupcakes, a couple ready made sandwiches, and a couple other things I really did not drastically need, but my refrigerator has more stuff in it now than it has had in the last four years. As long as I was out, I went to the Pit BBQ place and got their five extra large barbecue sandwiches. It was on special, and I want to make sure I don't lose any weight during the upcoming ice-mageddon. I am pretty sure I will survive. I went to dinner tonight with Jimmie and Linda, we had pizza and salad, and then Val and Paulina came over to retrieve the frozen lasagnas I got them earlier this week at Costco. Overall, everything here at the Curious House is good, and I remain a really lucky man. Somebody go buy that one bottle of milk, please!

Volume 18 - Day 22/343, 2026 - Thursday

Hopefully, I am done with all the preventive maintenance the Curious House needs for several more years. Last week, I had the critters eliminated and replaced all the insulation in the attic; sealed up all the access points, and hopefully that will last a while. Today, I had all the failing caulking around the house; garage doors, windows, etc., and that all looks great. I also had the fence inside the back yard painted, and the fencing facing the street painted, according to the HOA color palette (which is not at all attractive). I also had the underpinning all around the house painted. SO...maybe I am done for a while. Linda and Jimmie invited me to go to Costco with them this morning, and I got a few things there. I am still unsure whey they think apple pie is a seasonal item. That makes no sense to me. Tomorrow I will bring all the plants inside to keep them from freezing over the next five days or so, we are expecting extended low temperatures, something we are not at all used to. And... there is a chance of freezing precipitation. You won't find me driving anywhere if that happens. I do have to go and winterize a house I have listed, that will take a few hours, but it should not be any big deal. I had chicken and dumplings for dinner tonight, chicken and dumplings that Gina brought me a while back. Very good! I saw this little flower in the back bed this afternoon, at first I thought it was a Mexican petunia, but I guess it is one of the last morning glories of the season. It is low to the ground, so maybe that kept it from freezing. 

Volume 18 - Day 21/344, 2026 - Wednesday

Oh my goodness. I have had a few challenges today, somebody's moon must be in MyAnus. That is different than Uranus! I have had arguments in HEB, over the telephone, but at the same time, I have had a lot of laughs today, too. Overall, I am pretty sure more laughs than arguments.Most recently, I have had to reboot my printer and the cable box in the office at the Curious House. I am pretty sure everything will settle down once I go get in the big chair with the girls. It was a busy day; I took a contract to the Title Company and got it receipted. I went to HEB twice today, because I am pretty sure there will be no milk and bread left on the shelves because we are expecting a winter storm beginning late Friday night, and lasting until Tuesday or Wednesday. Very cold temperatures for central Texas, and the possibility of freezing rain and icy conditions. Drivers in central Texas cannot even drive if perfect weather, so it is especially entertaining when the weather goes bad! I had to go to HEB the second time, because I forgot to get ice cream, the first time. I went to dinner tonight with Jimmie and Linda, and I am pretty much ready to call it a night. More tomorrow. The photo accompanying this journal entry is a Christmas Greeting card from my friends Hanna and Lisa in Munich. I can't figure out the postmark, but I assume it was sent sometime before Christmas! Very happy to get that card. I will be visiting them in Munich in late April, and I am looking forward to that very much! I am one of the peeps in the bottom left photo, next to Hanna.

Volume 18 - Day 20/345, 2026 - Tuesday

It was kind of a long and busy day, as evidenced by the fact that it is 9:39PM, and I am just beginning the journal entry for the day! It was warmer this morning than yesterday, but I kind of panicked when I got up and saw the temperature was 36 degrees. I put the plants back outside yesterday afternoon, and I did not think it would be quite this chilly this morning. I lucked out though, I don't think any of the plants suffered. I will bring them back inside on Friday because we are going to have three or four days with low temperatures in the 20s, and some days the highs not getting out of the 30s. I expect the plants, the girls and I will all survive this first world inconvenience. After our walk this morning, I went to the ROMEO breakfast, and it was very leisurely. The wait staff now knows our names, which is kind of interesting, but we like it. After breakfast, I had a doctor's appointment, and got another shot of cortisone in my left knee. I thought I was on a six month rotation, but I am actually on a three month rotation, and this was my third shot, so we will see just how long these shots are effective. After the shot, I came home and thought about taking a nap, but I just couldn't work it in. I did a little work in the office, and then I went over to Val and Paulina's for a while, and then it was time for book club. We actually talked about the book (The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz) more tonight than we usually do, which was fun! Of course, I forgot to take a photo of the group, so just use your imagination. The photo accompanying this entry is of a vehicle, the driver of which makes me think I should be carrying a baseball bat in the car. If you want to know all the details, I will tell you separately, but I will report that the whole thing was the other drivers fault, not mine! UGH!

Volume 18 - Day 19/346, 2026 - Monday - MLK Day

Well, so much for the morning glories for this season! Most of these now could be considered 'mourning' glories. Did you catch that? Did you see what I did there? Whatever. It was a good morning for walking, not as cold as yesterday, and we got up in to the mid 50s this afternoon. Temperatures will rise all this week until Friday evening, when we are expecting another freeze overnight, and it might freeze for two or three days. You can never tell about the weather around the Curious House. Other than the walk, I hardly left the house, just a few steps here and there in the neighborhood. I have a few things to do tomorrow, first our walk, then the ROMEO breakfast, I have an appointment for my third steroid shot, and I thought the painters were going to be here tomorrow morning, but it seems they thought they were scheduled for Wednesday. Whatever. Now they are scheduled to be at the Curious House tomorrow afternoon, and maybe finish on Thursday...assuming it rains according to the forecast for Wednesday. Sometimes I find retirement details to be hard to keep up with. Is that a sign of aging? Crap!

Volume 18 - Day 18/347, 2026 - Sunday

When I went to bed last night, it was 36 degrees, and when I woke up this morning, it was 26 degrees outside. When we started our walk, it was 24 degrees, but we did not cave to the cold. The redeeming thing was that there was no (or very little) wind, which made the walk tolerable. I made an egg loaf for me and the girls, and it has been quite some time since I did that. It was good, and the girls never turn their nose up and anything they are offered. I got all kinds of other domestic things done today too, which included peeling (or skinning) the kiwis. I think I let the kiwis get a little bit too ripe, but I now have a supply of ready to eat kiwis. I also got a contract written up and sent to the Seller, and maybe we will have a done deal by the middle of the week. Val and Paulina came over and brought pizza, which was really good, and I have two pieces left. Gina texted and asked if I was home, and she brought over a dish of chicken and dumplings. SO, I am set for a couple days. The plants are all inside for one more night, I will put them out again tomorrow, and next Saturday I will bring them back if, if not sooner, but the next forecast freeze is next Sunday morning. Tomorrow is a Holiday (haha) and I have an appointment for another shot of steroids in my knee on Tuesday. I think this week coming does not have a lot of stuff on my calendar, and that is perfectly okay with me.

Volume 18 - Day 17/348, 2026 - Saturday

Okay, well, as you might have imagined, I did bring the plants from the back patio in to the dining room last night. At least I don't have to do it tonight. The outside hose bibs are covered and insulated, and I have hot water dripping in one bath, cold water dripping in another bath, and I will drip something (this is where your imagination works overtime) in my bathroom later. It was kind of chilly this morning, but overnight, it is expected to go down to about 25 degrees, and I expect this will be the end of the morning glories for this season. We did have a nice walk this morning, I only did a half-walk, because I was on blood drive duty (self-imposed) beginning at 8 o'clock. Me, Paul, James and a friend of James, also a Paul. If you like numbers, the next few lines will make you feel great. We had 29 people show up for the blood drive, three were not able to meet the qualifying criteria, and one fainted, but the fainter waited until AFTER the blood was collected. Interestingly, I think about 30% of the donors were NOT from our subdivision; at least a couple were from Sun City, some from Round Rock. I tried to figure out how they heard about our blood drive, and they had various responses. Whatever, we had a successful blood drive and I am happy about that. My personal goal for this drive was 30 donors, but the blood drive peeps were very happy with 26. That's like 6-and-a-half people per hour, which is not shabby at all. We want to do quarterly blood drives, so watch this space for the next date!

Volume 18 - Day 16/349, 2026 - Friday

Well, I just finished putting the plants from the front of the Curious House into the garage. I was not planning to do that until tomorrow, but the weather prognosticator I saw at 6 o'clock forecast the temperature overnight (in Austin) to be 33 degrees. And the Curious House is north, so there is a chance that it will be cooler here. I really think the Curious House is in a warm spot in Georgetown, but I am just trying to be a little careful. I may bring the plants in from the back, or just put them down off their stands, since I can put them in a covered place. Most of them. Then, tomorrow, I will bring them inside. OR...I might bring them in tonight, you can never tell about what I might do. We had a nice walk this morning, and then Judy and I took off for estate sales later in the morning. I spent $7.58 on a couple tings I didn't know I even needed. The two of us did estate sales today (three) because I am working the blood drive tomorrow, from 9AM until 1PM. If you happen to be n the neighborhood, stop by and lend us an arm. You can have it back in about twenty minutes. Before we headed off to the estate sales, the critter people were here to remove all the insulation from the house (remember the pest problem I HAD in the attic), spray the whole thing with some kind of toxic chemical (I assume) and then replace all the insulation. The attic looks like new, and the real test will be a month or two from now when I go up there to see if I can find any 'pest' evidence. All the places they could access the attic from have allegedly been sealed. They had better be! I have been enjoying the Lesser Finches that have been attracted to the feeder Jimmie and Linda gave me. I'm not a bird expert, but Jimmie told me they are Lesser Finches. Pretty. Well, crap...I am going to go mess with plants in the back....

Volume 18 - Day 15/350, 2026 - Thursday

We had a good walk this morning, and it was still chilly. When I got up, the temperature on the patio was 36 degrees, and I was happy with that because I did not bring any of the plants in to the house or the garage. My real indicator is the bird bath in the back because it is shallow and plastic, so that is generally the first thing to freeze, and it was okay. I will have to bring the plants in on Saturday, we are expecting low temperatures in the 20 in to Sunday morning. Then it warms up again next week. I think. I was in and out of Austin twice today; once this morning to go to the We Are Blood office to pick up some directional signs for the blood drive in the neighborhood on Saturday. I should have taken the Buzz but I took the little white car, and I had to put the top down to get the signs in the car. BUT, at least I did not have to drive home with the top down. It was a pretty morning, but not that warm. This afternoon, I went back to Austin and participated in a three check presentations at the Austin Board. I got back home shortly after 5PM, and it is a really pretty, clear evening, which also means the temperatures will head south quickly. The photo accompanying this entry is of me and some really close colleagues and friends; Aaron, me, Holly, Jennifer, another Bill and Teresa. I miss seeing them every day, but it is fun when I do. Photo credit to Aaron.

Volume 18 - Day 14/351, 2026 - Wednesday

Today was a good day, not quite as cool as the last day or so, and it all started with a good walk. I had a couple zoom meetings today, and one of the things that I accomplished was that I got some tickets to the Savannah Bananas World Tour game that will be in Round Rock in March. If you never heard of the Savannah Bananas, check with Mrs. Google. It should be fun, and if it isn't, I expect I can make it fun. I did a little bit of real estate stuff too, so that was fun. Tonight was also the neighbors dinner night, and there were 13 of us in attendance. Richard was in charge, and it was great and lots of laughs and good times with our neighbors. Of course, I forgot to get a photo, so instead, I am including a photo of cattle at the Estate on the Edge of Nowhere. I guess this was taken about 15 years ago, not sure. 

Volume 18 - Day 13/352, 2026 - Tuesday

Well, Paul walked out of his house this morning and was greeted by three drops of rain, so we didn't walk. None of us really objected, and we did all meet (including Rick) for the ROMEO breakfast. I did get some office work done for a couple transactions I an working on, and then late afternoon, I went to dinner with Jimmie and Linda. The sun did break through the clouds this afternoon, and that is a happy thing. I did put the plants from the back patio back outside, but I left the ones in the garage inside. I think we may have some threats of freezing temperatures in the next several days, but it does not take too long to move the plants around...I have it down to an art. I have three appointments tomorrow, two of them are zoom meetings, so that will take up some time. The feeder that Jimmie gave me seems to be a big hit with the Lesser Finches, and they are really pretty little birds. I like seeing them, and I think they appreciate the feeder.

Volume 18 - Day 12/353, 2026 - Monday

I did have a little time for myself today, but not a lot. It was chilly (cold) again this morning, but it was all okay, we all have warm clothes that don't see much action here in central Texas. At least we know we have it in case we need it. I do, however, prefer the heat of central Texas to the cold of central Texas. After the walk, I got ready for a lunch meeting, and then I had an appointment in Walburg. I went back roads to Walburg, and there is plenty of development going on out there, it seems to be a busy place! On the way home, I stopped at HEB for just a few things, and then after that, the critter people came to check the traps, and apparently there was one critter in a trap in the attic. They will come back again on Wednesday to check traps, and if all is good, they will remove all the insulation in the attic, clean the attic, apply some kind of something (the girls and I will need to leave for an hour), and then replace all the insulation. I hope that will take care of that challenge. Gina, the mean woman that she is, brought me a cookies and cream milk shake late this afternoon, and that is what I had for dinner! Other than the ROMEO breakfast, there is nothing else on the calendar for tomorrow, but I expect I will fill the time.

Volume 18 - Day 11/354, 2026 - Sunday

This is something I bought at one of the estate sales yesterday. $5. It reminds me of a similar piece that Jody had, and it is in my bathroom now. This one will join it soon! It was probably the coldest morning of the season, and I am positive it was the coldest day of the year when we started our walk this morning. 34 degrees this morning and we expect it to be a little bit warmer tomorrow morning. I met Val and Paulina and Oliver for brunch this morning, and a little while after that I went and helped (not really) Maggie with an Open House. Actually, all I did was sit and talk to Maggie, and then I left and showed another house in Georgetown. Val and Paulina came over for a little while this afternoon, and we just did a little of this and that, nothing of any consequence. Tomorrow I am having lunch with a friend, and then I have an appointment in Walburg. SO...let none of us forget, I am a very lucky man!

Volume 18 - Day 10/355, 2026 - Saturday

It is cooling off in central Texas. I think it was in the 40s when we walked this morning, and I think it got up to the middle 50s. That is a little bit different the the last couple weeks, and I also think that it will warm up better in the next week or so. This is our version of winter. The next ten days will have temperatures in the lower 30s, and highs in the upper sixties. One day in the next ten shows a 14% chance of rain, which is Texas-Speak for 'it's not going to rain!' I have taken the precaution of bring plants in and sheltering them, and I have a sheet covering the big planter of impatiens, and a heat lamp under it. It will be okay. We made it to four estate sales this morning, and I spent about $30, and I think everyone bought something. Later in the afternoon, I showed properties in Bastrop, and had a blast, and there was also pizza involved. What could be better than showing houses and having some pizza? I have brunch on the schedule tomorrow with Paulina, Val, and Oliver, and then not sure what I will do the rest of the day. Maybe a movie or maybe just a series of naps. It will be a good day! I did make it home in time to document the really pretty sunset. I like it!

Volume 18 - Day 9/356, 2026 - Friday

This was a pretty busy day, and of course, it started with a walk; me, Paul and Richard. I told them I was only going to do a half-walk, but I did the whole thing, no issues. After the walk, I was able to get a little bit of work done, before I headed out to pick up Paulina and we headed in to Austin to donate platelets. As it turned out, Paulina's iron level was 0.01 point below acceptable levels, so she was rejected. I was rejected once, and that is absolutely a killer! I know they have their standards, but if you give blood or platelets or plasma, you know it is something you want to do, and it is tough to be told you don't qualify. Now I take an iron supplement, eat more red meat, spinach, kiwi and stuff like that, just to help my levels. Paulina was probably low because of her recent travels, and she flew over ten hours yesterday, so that could have effected it. After I got home, I showed a couple properties for lease, and I will be showing more tomorrow. This evening, the Water Oak Cruisers (WOC) met at Gina and Billy's house, just to talk about our cruise in February, and to basically laugh a lot and joke around. It is going to be a great cruise, and it is really nice to have great neighbors here, close to the Curious House.

Volume 18 - Day 8/357, 2026 - Thursday

Today seemed to be a really long day, even though we did not walk this morning. The critter person got here at about 8 o'clock, and the process of sealing entry points and getting rid of the vermin in the attic has begun. Mice and rats prefer to be referred to as 'vermin,' so I can respect that. I had an appointment in Austin at 9:30, and I got home from that at about noon. I was off at about 1 to retrieve Oliver and Paulina from the airport, they were on separate flights, and I got home just a little bit after 7. At my advanced age, that qualifies as a busy day! I just checked my calendar, and the only thing I have on the schedule tomorrow is to donate some platelets. I always enjoy doing that! Now, the good news is, everybody is home and getting back in to the swing of things! YAY!

Volume 18 - Day 7/358, 2025 - Wednesday

I did most of the walk this morning, but not all of it. I had a couple zoom meetings this morning, the ten o'clock meeting did not take as long as I was expecting, and the 11 o'clock zoom meeting was about as I expected. Good stuff done in both meetings. It was another beautiful day in central Texas, and I hardly went outside the Curious House all day long. I did go and check the mail, and took the girls outside a few times, but that was about it. Tomorrow, I have an early appointment at the Curious House, then I have a meeting at the Board, and then I will be going to retrieve Oliver and Paulina from the airport. They are arriving on different flights, but within a couple hours of each other. Depending on how long the meeting at the Board lasts, I may go back to the Curious House between errands. It was another record setting warm day here, and overnight it is expected to be a record setting high low temperature. Does that make sense to you? I can mansplain it for you, give me a call! The last peach tree I planted in the backyard is full of blossoms, and I hope freezing weather that we are certain to have before this season is over, does not kill it off. 

Volume 18 - Day 6/359, 2026 - Tuesday

It was a beautiful day in central Texas, and it was kind of busy for me. We walked, and then Rick, Richard, Paul and I met at Monument Cafe for our first ROMEO breakfast of the year. I had a couple 10 o'clock appointments at the Curious House, so I cut my visit with the other ROMEO's a little bit short. I reported a few days ago that there were vermin in the attic, and the remediation for that may start on Monday, I approved the work. I am doing a little extra, which is removing all the insulation in the attic, cleaning and treating with a chemical (I don't remember the name), and then replacing all the insulation with new insulation. It is not surprising, and you all probably realize it if you think about it, but the vermin like to 'burrow' into the insulation, so I think replacing all that, AFTER all the entry points are closed, is the right thing to do. For me, anyway. The other person I met is a painter that will give me a bid for painting the back fence, all the underpinning, and going around the house to make sure all the caulking is in good shape. I know there is caulking here and there that is failing, so I will get that fixed. I like to do stuff right one time, instead of doing things wrong two or three times. Maybe that is just me. One thing I learned today about peeling kiwi fruit, you have to let the kiwi know who is boss. Take no hostages. Peel 'em like you mean it! 

Volume 18 - Day 5/360, 2025 - Monday

Not a bad day if I do say so myself. We had a nice walk this morning, it was a bit warmer, and it is supposed to be warmer yet tomorrow, and then another 'cold' front over the weekend. I spent a good bit of the day making appointments for tomorrow; one with the critter people to give me a bid for ridding the attic of 'critters,' and one with a painter to come out and give me a bid for painting the fence and the underpinning. Tomorrow, after the walk, we will have the first ROMEO dinner of this year, and that is always fun. I am doing my best to eat some kiwi every day to help build up platelets. I bought some kiwi, and was not happy with the way I was getting the fruit out of it. Gina brought me some kiwi that she peeled, and they were lovely. Apparently, the trick to peeling them is to use a potato peeler. Okay, I think that is a good idea, but...after looking everywhere I could think to look, I could not find a potato peeler. I know there has to have been two or three potato peelers, but I could not find one. HEB to the rescue, and now I have the peeler, I will let you know if it works in the next day or two.

Volume 18 - Day 4/361, 2026 - Sunday

As I expected, the temperature for our walk this morning was much cooler than the temperature yesterday morning. I think it was 49 degrees, and for sure it was sweat pants and jacket weather. I just looked at the forecast, and it is expected to be cooler tomorrow, and by Wednesday, the high temperature will be close to 80 degrees again. After breakfast, I took a quick nap, and my plan was to go to Costco to get Val a welcome home apple pie. No apple pies at Costco. How can that be? I asked when they expected to get more in, and they said July. July 4th to be exact. That does not make any sense to me at all. Are apple pies some kind of seasonal thing? HEB has apple pies all the time, they are just more obscene at Costco than they are at HEB. Whatever. I did stop at HEB and got an apple pie from them Gina was with me, so when we got home, I separated the muffins I like (they come 8 in a package, and I give half of them to Gina and Billy), and took them over to them. I came home with ribs, barbecue sauce, black eyed peas and chocolate cake with strawberry frosting. I am set for a while. I was about four minutes late retrieving Val from the airport, but after his (over) eleven hour flight, I don't think he really noticed. Apparently, I am becoming known for having a 'fetish' for Frida. There are lots of other fetishes I would not be particularly ashamed of, but I guess Frida is an okay place to start. I do admire works by and/or about Frida, and I have a few. That is likely a 'few' more than most people have, so there! Anyway, when I got Val home, he gave me a box of Lindt chocolates that he brought back from Europe, and it is decorated with a drawing of Frida. I love it!

Volume 18 - Day 3/362, 2025 - Saturday

I did little of anything today, but at the same time, I did get a few things accomplished. I had a nice walk this morning with Paul and Richard. It was (as I recall) about 59 degrees, maybe cooler, but it was warm enough for just shorts and a t-shirt. I don't think that will hold until tomorrow though, I expect it will be sweatshirt weather in the morning. Next was breakfast and news and naps, and then I got up and made a trip to the office supply store, the bank and HEB. I did not give the girls their monthly pill on the first, because I was not here, so I did it today. I was out of the little red cheeses that I wrap their pills in, so that was the reason for the stop at HEB. I watered plants, front and back, and my chore list is cleared for the foreseeable future. Tomorrow I intend to go up in the attic and see if I can find a dead something up there. I brought some incense and a couple incense burners back from Playa, and I burned one stick this afternoon. It is really strong stuff and the whole house now reeks of myrrh. Reeks is probably not the correct describer, but believe me, it was a strong stick of incense. I am going to pick up Val at the airport tomorrow afternoon at the airport. He is flying in from Berlin, a direct eleven-and-a-half-hour flight. I hope he gets some sleep. I will pick Oliver up on Thursday, same flight. 

Volume 18 - Day 2/363, 2025 - Friday

I made it home from Playa this morning, and I went down for several naps. I was up early, about 3AM, to make sure I got on my transport at 5AM. I didn't need to be up at 3AM, but I could not sleep, so I just got up. I was through security and customs and got to my gate at about 6AM for the 8:30 flight, so I certainly had plenty of time. It was kind of shocking to walk in the front door of the Curious House, because the condo is really very minimalist, and the Curious House is exactly the opposite of that. But it is all good. I got all the plants back outside, not mention of freezing weather for the foreseeable future, did a few other chores, made a trip to the Post Office, and HEB, and I am ready to settle in with the girls and some grapes. THe photo accompanying this journal entry is twelve grapes. As I mentioned yesterday, the Mexican tradition to see in the New Year is to eat grapes. Kyung picked me up at the airport, and the tradition is to actually eat 12 grapes under the table, all at once. Crawl under the table, put twelve grapes in your mouth at exactly midnight on the first day of the year, and you will have good luck. I missed that opportunity, but I am going to do it anyway, I figure it can't hurt. If I go missing, look under the table and see if I choked on grapes.

Volume 18 - Day 1/364, 2026 - Thursday

Did you see what I did there? Did you catch it? Volume 18. Starting the 18th year of this journal, which started out as 365DaysOfBill, and I am still doing it. Mike and I remained conscious last night until midnight, and we walked out on the balcony to just listen to all the revelry. It was great. Today, Simona told us the firework show at Mamita Beach was great, but we missed it. Oh well, there's always next year. We went to the grocery and got some pork for the black eyed peas, and some other stuff for dinner. My friends Steve and Sylvia got back to Playa a couple days ago, they live here part time and part time in Austin, so we invited them for dinner, and it was great. Black eyed peas, collard greens and some pork stuff. Also grapes. In Mexico, they welcome the new year with grapes, so we gave extra time to the grapes. As they were leaving, we walked out into the courtyard to take the ussie that is accompanying this entry, and we saw a couple Capybaras. Maybe we saw only one...not sure, but it (they?) were small. I also saw the raccoon at the waterfall the other evening, too. SO...everything is basically on auto-pilot for me to get back to Texas tomorrow. The transport will be here to pick me up at 5AM, and it will be good to be home, but I am still fond of Playa, and looking forward to being back two or three more times in 2026. I have thanksgiving and New Year's blocked, and maybe a couple more times. I am a lucky man!