Volume 12 - Day 213/153, 2020 - Friday

Let's slow down a bit, relax, and spend a few minutes talking about grapes. shall we? I'll start. First off, why in the hell would anyone buy grapes that have seeds in them? I don't get it. I accidentally bought grapes with seeds in them a couple weeks ago, and it was a tediously consumptive process. I would expect grapes with seeds in them would be more expensive than seedless grapes, since there is something extra in them (seeds), but I am not sure. When I was a kid, grapes were a holy-crap-luxury item. We probably had grapes twice in a summer, and I can remember it vividly; I would cram green grapes in my mouth (imitating a hamster or a chipmunk) and run outside and start chewing. Oh, now there is another topic of discussion, when did red grapes make their appearance in the markets? In my recent memory, I have consistently bought red seedless grapes (except for that recent mistake). I do not know when or why I changed from green grapes to red grapes, but I did. The negative experience I had with the red grapes (with seeds) gave me cause to try green grapes the last time I was at the market (HEB). The green grapes are most satisfying, and seem to have a longer shelf (refrigerator) life than the red grapes. But I can't prove that. I thinkI need to do more research. Any thoughts?

Volume 12 - Day 212/154, 2020 - Thursday

Believe it. Your mind is not playing tricks on you. It's true. I did not post a journal entry last night. I forgot. It was wine night. I believe that, in over twelve years of posting, I have only forgotten to post two or three times. there have also been a couple times that I have had technical troubles, so, in total, in 12 years, I have not posted less than ten times. I am not even freaked out about it either. It happened, nothing I can do about it. I must be maturing or something. Maybe I am letting loose of some of my compulsions, that would be a BIG positive for me. Believe me, it is tough being CDO. You know what I mean. I went in to the office today, mostly to sign a bunch of checks, and to present an offer to a client in the afternoon. I left to come back about 3:30, and Maggie decided to come out and see the farm. It always seems a lot further when someone is following you home. So, we got to the farm, fed the cat, fed the chickens, gathered eggs, played with the dogs, talked for a while, and then headed out to the Crossroads for dinner. Really good burgers, tots and onion rings. Two plain patties to go for the girls for tomorrow night and Saturday night. I got my (our) 2019 income tax return in the mail today, better than I could have asked for. I am a lucky man!

Volume 12 - Day 210/156, 2020 - Tuesday

Do you see that over there? That's rain over there. RAIN! Over there! That is RAIN over there. It is not here. That is not RAIN over here. Twenty eight days this month, temperatures averaging 100 degrees, and lots of sun. And so far we have received 0.17" of rain. I do not know the reason for this punishment, but I will repent if someone will just tell me. I made it in to the office early today, to get some stuff done, and I left to come home about 12:30. I decided to stop by the JP's office on the way home, to give them the rest of the paperwork for my ticket dismissal. I did not expect there would be a lot of people there, but there was NO ONE there. The JP's office is working BY APPOINTMENT ONLY, only on Wednesdays from 8AM until 5PM. Please call the number below. I called the number, I was told I could e-mail the documents to them, but they could not confirm receipt. I guess I will send it to them a couple times just to make sure somebody gets it. Jody got charged $110 from Lifelock. I called Lifelock (I gave them all the security questions, last four digits of his social security number, date of birth, and all that), and I was told I needed to FAX my request to them accompanied by a copy of his death certificate. I asked them if I could e-mail it to them. No, it has to be by FAX. I asked them if they were aware that this was the year 2020. They seemed to acknowledge that fact. I guess, if you think about it, no one ever complains that their FAX machine has been hacked. Is that some sort of a security measure? FAXING? I don't already have enough crap...now I have to go FAX some papers.

Volume 12 - Day 209/157, 2020 - Monday

He is feeling very smug today, for a number of reasons. Reason 1: He washed the sheets and blanket on his bed, and he will soon re-make the bed (while watching Antiques Roadshow). There was no real reason for hime to wash the sheets (he is not entertaining anyone), but one of the girls hurled this morning and brought him to rapid consciousness. I heard her (not sure which one), but I did not hear the actual hurl, so I thought it was just a bit of choking...but no. So, the blanket was first, then the sheets and pillow cases. So domestic. Reason B: It has been more than two decades since his palate has been treated (not sure if that is the right word) to Hamburger Helper. I did not find it to be particularly satisfying, but it was filling, and there is a lot to be said for that. The dogs are not nearly as demanding as I am, and they had no issue with their share of the entree. Reason 3: He actually did something technological today, and it worked. My television provider here is Dish Network, and I have always wished I could watch tv while in rooms where there is no receiver. Somebody told me about 'Dish Anywhere' and I actually down loaded it to my laptop and watched the local news while I was stirring the Hamburger Helper. It is such a feeling of accomplishment, it makes me feel like a kid again, not a day over 65! I am such a luddite. I am glad I showed you the Plumeria blooms last night, because they are gone today. Such a short time for appreciation. When I left the office at about noon today, I could see this array of emergency vehicles ahead of me, so I took a detour to IH-35. It seems that a woman barricaded herself in her car on the First Street Bridge, and refused to get out or move. All over a traffic violation. It was on the news that I watched while stirring the Hamburger Helper!

Volume 12 - Day 208/158, 2020 - Sunday

Just in case there is any question, please let me be clear: He. Is. Too. Old. For. This. Crap. Is that clear? I emptied and broke down about 15 more boxes from the container today. I made two trips to Goodwill. There is another load for Goodwill in the back of Jody's truck. I could have done it, and done all the other things I needed to get done, but I just did not feel like it. There is nothing left in the remaining container except thirty boxes of books and LP albums...all things that I am giving to the Bastrop Public Library so they can sell them to raise funds for their operation. It will be a tremendous relief to get that last storage container pulled out. The garage is somewhat organized, and I could get most (not all) of Jody's truck in, but that is really not practical. I will work on getting the rest of the stuff in the garage cleared and put away in the next week or two, but for now, I am satisfied with the progress. The printer I have been using here at the house put a series of blue lines on everything I scanned or copied, so I brought the printer from the condo to trade out, but of course I could not get it to work. An hour of tech support, and not it is working and I am happy as a clam. All the trash is up at the road, all is well, but I still have to water the pots in the front. then I will call it a day. The plumeria is beginning to bloom, I really like them, and the fragrance reminds me of buttered popcorn. Or lobster.

Volume 12 - Day 207/159, 2020 - Saturday

Progress is being made. Last night (really, last night) they finally came and hauled off the empty storage container. The guy opened both units, one totally empty, the other with stuff in it, and came to the door to ask me which one he was supposed to haul off. Incredible. He was the same guy that called at 6 o'clock, said he was in South Austin, and he would be here in an hour. I told him I thought it would take him longer, but he assured me he knew what he was doing. Anyway, one container is gone, and I could not be happier. This morning, by eleven o'clock, I had emptied and flattened fifteen boxes, sorted through six more, and made sure it was only books in about nine more. I filled two trash cans with stuff that I did not want to bring back into the house. Tomorrow, the plan is go go through the rest of the boxes (maybe about eighteen or twenty), fill another trash can, and try to get the garage straightened out a little bit. The container will not be empty, but I still have it for another ten days. I can get this done. We have had a couple bands of showers come through from Hurricane Hanna, but so far we have only received 0.09" of rain. I am hoping for a little bit more (at least) before this whole thing is over. I think it was enough that I am not going to water the pots outside tonight...I am pretty sure everything will survive. I did make it into Georgetown earlier, too. I took Jody's truck in, just trying to keep the battery charged up.
Stopped at Tractor Supply and got meal worms for the chickens, and then to Home Depot to get some miscellaneous stuff. I will go to the grocery maybe tomorrow, maybe one day next week. We shall see.

Volume 12 - Day 206/160, 2020 - Friday

I am really not sure why I am so excited about it being Friday, except for the fact that I have been waiting for it all week. I may take a rest tomorrow and concentrate on going through the remaining boxes that are in the container on Sunday. I do need to make a trip to Home Depot and Tractor Supply, and take at least a couple naps tomorrow. But I think I have plenty of time to get everything done. Unfortunately, it seems that Hurricane Hannah (a category one) is going to be too far south of us (targeting Corpus Christi) to bring us any real possibilities of rain. I still have my fingers crossed that we will get a little bit...anything will help. I think I am on the downhill part of getting things back together in the house. The couch I ordered is supposed to be delivered on or around August 10th, it was a ten to twelve week delivery. After all that time, I hope I actually like it when it arrives. I may need to get a couple chairs after that, but then the only thing really left will be to get everything straightened up and dusted. The housekeeper is supposed to come out tomorrow and pick up her supplies and return the key to the house. I offered to bring her stuff to her in Austin, but she said she has too many keys to tell which one is ours, not sure that is a valid excuse or if she is up to something. I am not even sure if she will show up tomorrow on not. Time will tell. The clo
uds this afternoon looked kind of promising, so I will keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best!