Volume 12 - Day 366/0, 2020 - Thursday

My very first entry to this journal was done on December 31st, 2008. It was the test run. This journal entry is number 4,381. Twelve years of entries. The name of the journal is 365daysofbill and I should have known better than to start something. It has just gone on-and-on-and-on. I've always referred to this journal as the 'Seinfeld Journal,' because it is about nothing. Nothing at all. It looks like I will be in for at least one more year. If I do entry number 4,382 I won't be able to stop until next NewYear's Eve. Are y'all in?

I don't know what was the most difficult thing I did today, move a lot of furniture from the farm to the new house in Georgetown, or put clean sheets on the bed. I considered just sleeping on the mattress with a cover, but I thought the Georgetown Police would probably issue me a citation. I could get away with stuff like that out in the country, but I am not so sure about here. I have all the necessities of life here as of now,  as long as you don't think cable television is a necessity, and I will spend this evening in the new house. Part of the reason I am going forward with the journal is because I believe my posts will be a little bit more up-beat. Everyone has a lot vested in 2021, I don't want to let anyone down. All is well that ends well, so I am not sure what to expect, but I (and I hope all of you) will be just fine.

I love you all...and by the way, I intend to kill off the last of the box wine tonight...I am prepared to pay $4.50 for a bottle of wine now.

Volume 12 - Day 365/1, 2020 - Wednesday

It rained off-and-on (mostly on) all day today. Here at the Edge of Nowhere, we have received (at last count) 0.43" for the day. And it is chilly. Last I looked it was 46 degrees and still sprinkling rain. Not supposed to get too cold overnight, but I will need to bring the plants back in the garage tomorrow afternoon. There is a threat of freezing temperatures for the next several nights. Then it is supposed to be back up in the 70s on Monday. Can you smell that? It smells to me like I got the Ikea dresser totally put together this afternoon. I am aware of only two screws that I used that should have been two other screws, and I call that a win! The girls are in the fancy kennel this evening, and they will be there for the next two nights. I will pick them up on Saturday. The movers are supposed to be here tomorrow morning, and I expect to spend the night at the new house tomorrow, if everything works out the way I have it planned. Except for the rain. I did not plan on rain. It is supposed to be raining all day (again) tomorrow. I guess it will be messy, but I will get it all worked out. More tomorrow...

Volume 12 - Day 364/2, 2020 - Tuesday

Today I was (yet again) the victim of false advertising. I am a pushover for Madison Avenue, but this was not the fault of some wise-guy GSD&M, media savvy copy pushing middle management person. It was none other than Mother Nature. Now, I am aware that I need to be very cautious when criticizing the aforementioned Mother, and I will be as delicate as I can possibly be, but the photo that I have chosen for this journal entry is as good as it got. I took this photo as I was walking to let the chickens loose, and the sunrise looked as if it was going to be a beautiful day. Alas, that was not meant to be. All day was a vision of grey and darker grey. It was a pleasant temperature, unseasonably warm as a matter of fact, but grey. Not a pretty grey (like the colors of my most recently painted walls), but an ugly grey. And windy. Really windy. I did make it in to the office this morning, did some work, managed to get my desk cleaned off, and headed home. I made another (unfortunate) trip to Ikea, but chose not to purchase any patience challenging furniture. Most everything on the display floors is 'temporarily unavailable' anyway, so there is that. I got home in the greyness of mid-afternoon, and took a couple naps. It has drizzled a little bit, but I expect that will be more prevalent tomorrow and Thursday. Oh, dear...

Volume 12 - Day 363/3, 2020 - Monday

It was about 75 degrees in Austin today, but it did not make it that high on the Edge of Nowhere. We were covered by clouds, so there was very little sun. There is expected to be a temperature repeat tomorrow, but we should be warmer, and there is a prediction of snow flurries on Thursday morning. I really doubt it, but ever if there is, it is not going to stick. They are also predicting that we could get over an inch-and-a-half of rain in the next couple days...I kind of doubt that too. Of course I expect it to rain crazily on Thursday, because that is the day the movers are supposed to move the furniture I am taking from the farm to the new house. I expect nothing less than the worst. We got just a trace of rain today at the farm, maybe just a heavy fog, but it did rain on me while I was driving in to the office. I got another bid for blinds at the new house, signed and accepted, and they should arrive in a couple months. So much for instant gratification. I also completed a few more steps on the Ikea furniture build. It is complicated...and the pictures do not really match the reality. Hopefully I will get it completed in the next couple days. Things are moving forward!

Volume 12 - Day 364/4, 2020 - Sunday

At this point, I would settle for the intelligence of a trained monkey. I also realize that that is asking too much, even though I am three days in to the Prevagen stuff. They say it takes at least ninety days to show any results, I think they are just thinking you will keep buying it for at least 90 days, and then you will be too far into it to quit. If after ninety days you think you are dumber than you were when you started, well... But I digress. The dresser I bought at Ikea yesterday came in three boxes. You have to sign your life away before they will let you buy certain items, but I did it anyway. Three boxes The photo accompanying this journal entry is part of the contents of the first box. Did I mention that the dresser pieces came in three boxes. I couldn't remember if I mentioned that or not. You are all most likely familiar with the assembly booklets that accompany Ikea products. No words, just pictures. There are 51 various assembly steps to putting this piece of furniture together, and I made it through 21 of the steps before I decided to finish it another day. Some of the steps took me twenty or thirty minutes to interpret, but so far, I think I am right on course. I have not yet had to un-assemble any pieces, so I think that is a win. I am threatening to offer cash compensation to someone that thinks they can finish this, but I think another five or six hours and I will have it knocked. Putting together metro shelves is much simpler.

Volume 12 - Day 361/5, 2020 - Saturday

I got off to kind of a slow start this morning. I just really cannot justify getting out of bed when it is still dark outside. Is it just me? I let the chickens loose, fed the dogs, had some coffee, did my usual morning stuff; read the e-edition of the newspaper. One nice thing about the move to the new house, I will actually be able to get a real subscription to the newspaper. I think that is fantastic! Also, I need someone to tutor me in the art of having stuff delivered to me; food, groceries, drugs. You know, just the essentials. I did take a load of stuff to the new house this morning, but first I made a stop at Home Depot. I wonder if I can go a day WITHOUT going to Home Depot. It was a futile trip, but I was able to round up a loose chihuahua running down the electrical aisle. His momma (not the canine kind) was in hot pursuit. I did not get the escapees name, but he and his momma did favor each other. Then it was off to Ikea, then a stop at Wendy's for food. I ordered the 10 piece chicken tender meal, but there were only nine chicken tenders in the package. As I was composing my letter of complaint to the corporate big-wigs at Wendy's, I found the missing tender in my french fries. If that is any indication, maybe 2021 will be markedly better than 2020. I doubt that it could get any worse. 202 pretty much set the benchmark as the annus horribilis. I don't care what the Queen said back in 1992. I doubt that many of you were even born yet!

Volume 12 - Day 360/6, 2020 - Friday

Merry Christmas everybody! It was a really beautiful day in central Texas, temperature in the 60s, sunny, calm winds. I got up this morning and decided to make an egg loaf, and I forgot to put the cheese in it. I did not even think about it until a couple hours later. I took all the 'loose' wine over to the new house this morning, and a couple other small things. Yesterday, I bought ten sets of metro shelves, and I put five of them together this afternoon. I escaped with only three blood blisters. I also have the whole assembly thing down to an art (maybe a skill), and I can get them together in about 30 minutes. I did a little bit of driving around the new neighborhood after I left the house, it was just a really pretty day. I don't know if it is just the season or what, but whenever I am at the new house, I am pretty surprised about how quiet the neighborhood it. That is perfectly okay with me. I have some errands I want to get done tomorrow morning, and I have a furniture delivery tomorrow afternoon. If everything goes as planned, I will spend my first night in the new house on New Year's Eve. I guess that will be the test to see exactly HOW quiet the neighborhood is.