Nice

 It was a beautiful day Sunday.  

Tell me, when the weather is absolutely perfect, why is it merely called "fair" weather?  I mean, not even "fair to good"?  "Good to excellent" wasn't strong enough to describe what we had over the weekend. I'd go with "well nigh perfect."  

So on Sunday, I was mowing the lawn, carefully going around a little yellow flower between the landscaping island and the shed, and Pat was picking up sticks that had been pruned from our trees during the recent storm.  

On one lap around the yard, I saw her sitting on the Jarrah chair under the cherry tree, and I stopped the mower and joined her.  I put my arm around her, and she rested her head on my shoulder.  For perhaps fifteen minutes we sat there and enjoyed the present moment.  It was a moment that put me in mind of the declaimed verse in Once in a Lifetime:  "And you may find yourself in a beautiful house... with a beautiful wife (not to mention "Behind the wheel of a large automobile" from time to time)."  

Or in fewer words, "If this isn't nice..."

Roadside flower

 Actually, more like sidewalk-side, in the yard next door to us.

Saturday Evening Post

 

Change -- there's no stopping it.  For years, maybe even decades, I bought plain, simple Dial Basics bar soap.  The packages looked like the photo above, and even though they weren't sold everywhere, I knew I could always get it at Dollar Tree.  Three for a buck, dependable as a sunrise.  

Until a few weeks ago, when I stopped at DT and checked the soap aisle.  The new package held only two bars of Dial Basics.  You can do the math:  two for a dollar, six bars for three dollars where it used to be six bars for two dollars.  Yessir, it hit me like a ton of bricks.  

I dug under the surface and found several 3-packs underneath.  Recognizing a Last Chance when I saw it, I put some in my basket, frowning a little at being present at the end of an era... 

Late afternoon

 It rained hard about mid-afternoon today, and the deck was still wet a few hours later, but the chairs had drained and dried, so the little black pooshka chose one for a post-supper rest.  No sign yet of her scruffy big ol' creampuff boyfriend. 

Blotted out

 After several pleasant evenings listening to an audiobook of Tom Sharpe's Blott on the Landscape, I found the YouTube copyright police had learned of the pirate version and deleted the account and all its contents.  Still had 3 hours to go, too.  If this is like other unauthorized publications I've witnessed in the past, I'll have another chance to hear the rest of it.

Transplant, thriving

The Indian blankets are doing well since we replanted them.

John's Day Off

Dot dot dot... drove the Highlander to Krause Toyota for a fuel pump recall fix; while it was there I had them do the state inspection... a bright morning, showing off the wildflowers along the roadside; chicory in the industrial park and popping up next to Grange Road... after picking up the prepared Toyota, I drove west on Route 22 to the Kutztown exit, turned around and drove back east on Old Route 22, past Pinnacle Ridge Winery, past a flock of sheep, past a couple of brick buildings with big picture windows that likely housed new cars half a century ago... back on 22 at New Smithville, back off again at Fogelsville, then south on 100 to the Wawa.  

Months ago, I'd drive on an interstate highway to Tabby's Place, then stop at a convenience store for snacks before driving back home.  This was the closest I'd come to that experience since March.  And believe it or not, doing that rough approximation this afternoon helped my frame of mind.  Getting tired of work from home, play from home, stay at home except for a grocery run.

Leg muscle injury feels nearly normal now... not sure if it's only because it's healing or whether taking Pat's pain meds is the reason.  Nice to be able to climb steps again, though.

Gave up on the '68 Cardinals after yet another loss, and managed only 2 of the final 10 games, both losses.  The Cards finished 89-73, eight wins less than real life, and in a tie for 2nd with the Pirates, six games behind the Giants.  When you have a cleanup hitter worse than .250/.300/.400 (Cepeda), you're not going to score many runs.

Pizza and Pepsi for supper.  Made two 800-gram crusts and six half-cup servings of sauce, with the extra going into the freezer.  

Pat picked out some shoes and I ordered them.  Still waiting on my latest purchase of U of Nebraska apparel, and both of us are waiting for Overhead Door to reschedule the installation of garage door openers.  I've emailed OD twice and never got the courtesy of a reply.  That's not good business.

Today I re-learned

 I believe it was Harry S Truman who said the only new thing on earth is the history you don't know.   This particular citation is dated 1899.

Buzzy, if a bit fuzzy

 

Spotted during a walk

 While I was taking a walk after lunch, a spotted lanternfly landed on my right leg.  I wasn't about to squash it on my leg, so I brushed it away and it flew off before I could do anything else.  Haven't any predators emerged yet?  

What I Do

 "The work is easy and interesting."  World News Today, sponsored by Admiral Radio, October 3, 1943.  Originally recorded from WBBM, Chicago.  (The Air Theatre, the Wrigley Building)  At the end of the news, the commercial:  advertising for people to come work for Admiral.  Directions included which streetcar to take.   Any adult female and any 4-F male, welcome to apply, and soon, puleeeze...

While the news from 77 years ago is on YouTube, I play Fishdom 2 haphazardly and without a timer.  Occasionally I play Strat-O-Matic, replaying the 1968 NL Champion St. Louis Cardinals.  Some things are relatively close to real life (Bob Gibson is overpowering) and some are way off (Lou Brock batting .225 instead of .275, and getting thrown out stealing more than he should; Tim McCarver has more than two dozen errors in around 100 games).  There's some surprising good news, too; Mike Shannon is probably 50 points higher than real life and has already hit more homers than he did during the season.  Ron Willis has an ERA under 1.00 and leads the bullpen in saves.

Homemade cinnamon buns baked up Sunday afternoon.  Let the 20-year-old Hitachi bread machine process the dough over an hour and forty minutes, then roll it out, apply the butter-brown sugar-cinnamon mixture, let it rise, and bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes or so.  Top with cream cheese icing.

A muscle in front of my right hip has been sore for the past week or so, and I don't know how it happened.  But if I try taking the stairs, either up or down, and put pressure on that spot, it's immediately 6 or 7 on a pain scale of 10.  So this is age 64... I don't look that old, I don't think that old, but my body knows.  Tinnitus for several years, floaters in the eyes making it tough to see standard-size text on a computer screen, and recently, soreness in both shoulders.  Pat and I have discussed hiring a lawn service and having me retire from mowing the lawn when I turn 65.  

One less on the TiVo

 Last November 4, I recorded National Lampoon's Animal House.  Tonight, I finished watching it.  Now, the oldest thing I haven't started to watch yet is Fargo, from March 21.  I've seen about a half-hour of Atlantic City, recorded in February.  

The little black pooshka, keeping watch

 

It's not as if nothing has happened over the past three days.  I even took some notes one afternoon, but seeing the pooshka sitting on the railing of the deck was the first time in awhile that I felt there was something worth posting.

Sunday post

Slept well.  Got up, gave Nelson a brushie.

Signed on to work laptop and found 40 emails from Friday's day off.  Handled a few of them, filed a few more.  It'll make tomorrow morning a little easier.

Bowl of cereal, grapefruit juice and seltzer

Raked up twigs and branches dislodged during tropical storm.  Jerry next door volunteered to take them away.

problem with refrigerator.  changed filter and the water dispenser stopped working.  took out the filter and it worked again.  put in a different filter and it stopped working again.

mowed front and sides, took a break

mowed the rest, saw a young rabbit hop from the shed to the island. 

took a shower.  weight now 241.8.  gave nelson another brushie.

tacos for supper.  graeter's black raspberry ice cream afterward

pat watching midsomer murders from the sofa.  kit on floor on his back in front of me.

Indomitable, part 2

 

A resident chipmunk's hole was covered and filled in by the landscapers, but then they left and the chippie went back to work reclaiming its little bit of property.

PTO

 Personal Time Off from work today.  I can't say I'm out of the office, because I haven't been in the office since June 2019.  I go with "offline."  

So how have I spent that free time?  Took the Toyota back to Krause for the no-charge 24-month maintenance, with just over 9,000 miles on it.  Took a dump and took that to the UPS store along with the rest of the Cologuard paraphernalia.  Then back home, put on the headphones and took a nap through some World War II radio, and a chapter of Tom Sharpe's Blott on the Landscape.

In about an hour, it'll be time to pre-heat the oven and prepare pizza for supper.  A good day off with pay.  

Indomitable

The weeds were pulled, covered and smothered, and yet they return.  How dare they?

Happy #WorldAntDay!

I just happened to have taken a suitable picture at Eagle Point farm market this past weekend.  Bless 'em all.

A pretty pose from Miss Nora

A visit from Isaias

A few words on behalf of...

A nice surprise to see the Cat Writers' Association hosting a fundraising benefit for Tabby's Place.

OK, researcher from the year 2070...

First enjoy looking up: 

‘Person, woman, man, camera, TV.’

Then these alternative answers:

Man

Woman

Birth

Death

Infinity

People of a certain age should be humming this now.

Some from a certain area of the country will will recall this.  (But you don't have to be a certain ethnic person to enjoy it.)

August 5 edit:  The certain ethnic references came from a show on Cleveland's channel 8 that featured classically bad movies with corny skits in between.  Yesterday, channel 8's longtime weatherman, Dick Goddard died.  Among many other things, he was an animal lover and sometime participant in the Houlihan/Big Chuck/Little John skits.

Things I Learned While Looking Up Something Else: Raccoons

"For climbing down a tree headfirst—an unusual ability for a mammal of its size—a raccoon rotates its hind feet so they are pointing backwards."

And thank you so much for the reminder...

"Riding the wave of the future"

I was actually looking for the TV commercial where the office boy walks his boss through buying stocks online, but this will have to do.  A blue wave looks nice.

Just signed up both Pat and me to get mail-in ballots for the fall election.  Another first.  

Groceries this morning at Wegman's, where the only obvious sign of the novel coronavirus is the requirement that everyone wear a mask.  There's plenty of flour and plenty of paper products, and no line to get in.  They never tried the one-way aisle thing that flopped at Giant and Walmart.   But just asking, where's the tapioca these days?  Everyone's out of it.