Happy Thanksgiving Thoughts 2021

With what I've been going through with my health recently and work frustrations bubbling up again I've been pretty down and maybe even ornery lately.  As I sat out by the fire last night I thought it would be good to think of things I am actually thankful for, so I gave it some serious thought and started a list.  Let's see if I can expand on that this morning and maybe get to 10 good and meaningful things for which I am truly grateful.

1. My wife.  It's hasn't always been easy but I just can't imagine my life without her.  I don't know anyone stronger who could deal with me and everything else she's had to deal with the last several years and more.  I've been guilty of being self-centered, taking things for granted and not listening as I should, and improving myself will only help her, so I am determined to become a better person.
2. My health.  I've taken this for granted, too, for far too long and it seems to be catching up to me.  I need to eat better, drink less, exercise more and lose some weight.  Very much easier said than done, but increasing health issues is a good motivator.
3. Family.  My mother and sister, specifically.  I don't like my father and my brother has been pretty distant.  When my mother's husband passed and then the pandemic hit I started to get closer to my Mom and my sister is always there with a smile and encouraging words if I need her.  I love them both greatly.
4. Friends.  I don't have many left these days, more acquaintances than friends.  I want to continue to work on those relationships and in some cases not let the distance between us cause that friendship to wane.  It seems harder to make friends the older I get, but much of that may be me so I should work on that more.
5. Blogger friends.  Delcatto and Blue Witch have been friendly towards me for a long time now and I'm grateful they keep coming back.  I like to read their blogs about them and their lives, and have learned much along the way.  Knowing they are there has helped me try to write better and more interesting things here.  I've not reached out to other bloggers much in a long time now, but Nic has been a relatively recent breath of fresh air and as a bonus he creates music pretty consistently so I always look forward to his next song.
6. Our house.  When this blog started in 2009 we started looking, and originally didn't think we could afford a house right in Madison.  But the market was in our favor and we found a nice house with a nice yard close to whatever we could need or want, right here in the near east side of Madison.  Yes, it is very small, seemingly too small for us at times, but overall I think we found a good one and have improved it in many ways over the years.
7. Madison.  Related to the last one, we live in a good area and city with a majority of like-minded people as us.  That changes rather quickly and surprisingly when you get outside the county.  When we traveled to pick up our last quarter cow it was shocking the amount of pro-Trump flags and signs in the rural areas.  I don't remember such divisiveness before he came along and thankfully don't have to worry about that too much here in Madison.
8. Music.  Music continues to be a joy and an escape for me even as I get older.  I don't go to live shows as much as I used to and am pretty unwilling to travel longer distances for it anymore, but I still enjoy discovering new music and I'm always looking for my next 'latest-greatest,' even if at a lower volume these days. 

Well, 10 was an arbitrary number anyway and I don't want to add something lesser just to get to 10.  I may remember something good that I missed later, but I think I have 8 very good things to be thankful for here and it was good for me to consider and reflect upon these.  Now it's time for me to do some cleanup for Kate's family coming over to celebrate the holiday.  It's currently snowing big white flakes outside, and my wife has been busy cooking up the cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and other goodies while the turkey is already in the oven.

Happy Thanksgiving and a great long weekend to all!

May This-And-Thats

I have a few things on my mind, and it's too small to hold them for long, so it must be time to get them out.  Nothing very major, just some updates, thoughts, and an announcement to my email readers, so it's time once again to just start typing and see what happens.

• Blog emails are going away in July, they will no longer be supported.  I've been looking for another widget or service to do this, but I'm not going to pay for it so it may not happen.  I have over a dozen friends and family currently signed up and I'm afraid I will lose those readers when this convenience goes away.  If you are one, click the link to the site at the bottom of your email and save it as a favorite now!  I'll provide more updates when I have them.
• 
  Remember when I wrote about my site being probed?  Well, it's happened each month since.  739 hits on March 24 and 760 hits on April 26.  I have no idea why, who or what it is, but it doesn't appear to be doing any real harm, either.  We'll see how many hits I get for May in a couple weeks, I guess.
• The extra dirt and old grill are gone.  My wife put the dirt on the neighborhood farcebook page and in a day one neighbor picked up a couple big buckets and a day or two later another took almost all the rest.  The little that remained I found places for in the yard and gardens.  Also, the rotting wood that was the old gardens I cut up and took to the dump last weekend, so now I have my garage back.  And that old grill I put out to the curb a day early and it didn't take long for it to disappear, no sticker required.  Maybe someone will try to clean it up and get another year or two out of it, but more likely it will be sold as scrap metal.  But now I have a 35 dollar sticker that I don't need.  Maybe I'll pay it forward and have my wife put it on farcebook and give it away to someone with an appliance they need to get rid of.
• I mowed the lawn for the first time this year on Wednesday.  The front needed it more and the back just in places, typical for the first mow.  Thus begins a (mostly) weekly ritual that will last until late fall.  Thankfully, it's a small lawn.  It's also showing wear in areas that I'll need to get grass to grow again.  This is likely due to me spraying the weeds instead of getting down and digging them out.  Trouble is, my back is no longer built for all that low work.  The good news is last summer I got a tool that I can get the weeds out while standing up, but it does leave a divot.  I'll just call that aerating the lawn.
• 
  Remember the drawer that I built downstairs for the cat's litter box?  I still look at it and think of how nifty it is.  After using it now for quite some time, I really like how it contains the mess a whole lot better than when the litter box was on the floor.  Oh, litter still gets dragged out, but mostly only onto the walkway and a bit on the stairs, and I just sweep it into the drawer.  If anyone figures out how to get a cat to wipe their paws, please let me know.
• BW left a comment over at Nic's recently that got me thinking.  It's about getting used to music that's not on CDs or records.  To a certain extent, I have the same issue.  I do have many releases on digital only by now, but I also have YouTube Music as a premium member, so have been trying to use that more.  The issue I'm finding is it's geared more towards individual songs, not whole albums, and I am very album-oriented.  Are all music streaming services like that?
• I have my spring vacation in a couple weeks, and I expect it will be better than last year's.  I don't have any big projects in mind, but I'm sure I'll think of something.  Or maybe I'll just sleep until noon every day and have a fire every night.  It will be different because my wife will be here working from home all week, but I'll hit two weeks after being fully vaccinated so I do plan on going out and about.  We also want to start inviting friends over for firepits and outside socializing soon.  I know vaccination is no guarantee, but I feel the benefits will outweigh the risk, at this point.

Well, that was fun.  The weather has been seasonable and we're still getting overnight frost now and again, at least for this next week, it appears.  Might be a good night for a fire, tonight.  Have a great weekend, everyone.

Blogday This and Thats

I started this blog 12 years ago today, shortly before we bought our house.  It's kind of funny how I use this site to refer back to when we want to know when something happened.  Usually, if it's worth writing about, then I wrote about it here.  Of course, I've written a whole lot of nonsense, too!  Speaking of nonsense, time to type again and see what happens.

• I'm ready for spring, now.  I shaved for the first time since last October and got a haircut for the first time also since October - but 2019!  It was just time to shave off the winter face coat, and of course it was cool for a few days so my face got a bit cold, but I'm used to it now.  I'll probably grow my little chin beard again like I usually do.  And I remember starting to think about a haircut in March last year, but then everything got locked down.  Once I shaved, I knew I had to finally get that haircut.  It's as short as it's been in a very, very long time now, but it'll grow out.
• We got some rain last night and today, and there's some more in the forecast, so hopefully they will lift the local burn ban and I can have a fire this weekend.  As long as it's not raining.  That might also throw a wrench in proceeding with the gardens this weekend.
• I've been enjoying the concert livestreams since all this started.  No, it's not the same as going to a show, but for live music lovers it's at least something.  I've lost count of how many I've seen now; a few from Code Orange, Xordia, Richie Scarlet, Stephen Pearcy, Pain, Diamante a couple times, Steel Panther, Wednesday 13, and many others I'm forgetting now, both ticketed and free shows.  There's a couple more on my radar soon, Bruce Kulick on the 16th and Poppy on the 24th.  Rock on!
• Aside from the new car, we made another big financial decision recently and refinanced the house.  We've been paying off extra for some time now, but now we knocked off a third of the years left on the mortgage and have a much lower interest rate, which feels pretty damn good.  It was a good time to buy the house back when we did, and now it just keeps going up in value. So again, good for us!
• I get my first shot two weeks from today, the Pfizer vaccine.  I'm very much looking forward to it, actually.  Fully vaccinated, I will have much more confidence going out and about and getting some semblance of 'normal' back.  Live music, dining out, gathering with friends and family, shopping and even just stopping off for a drink somewhere has been missed greatly, but I'm hoping it all gets better as we go this summer.

Well, I thought I might have more but that's all I can think of at the moment.  The cat's have been well, and have been loving the few times we've been able to open the windows so far.  Here's a recent video of them and, if you couldn't tell by the coloring, they sure act like brothers here!

More Snow, Goodbye January

We got several inches of snow last night and this morning, and there is still a little more coming yet today.  The mounds along the walks and especially the streets are getting bigger, and it would be nice if we had a stretch of nice weather to knock them down some.  If I was a kid, though, this would be a lot of fun, especially if there was a sled hill nearby.  But at my age, well, let's just say it's not as much fun.  At least we don't have to go anywhere today.

The street has not been plowed yet but I'm sure it will get done before evening, and not all neighbors have their walks cleared yet.  I sometimes do the neighbors walks just as a courtesy, not to them as much as the walkers we can get through the neighborhood.  Neighbor Jane now pays someone to come out and do hers, so somehow that makes me less likely to go that way now.  Neighbor Dave was out shoveling last night, so his wasn't as deep.  I did a couple passes on his walk and he'll be out later to do his other areas and clean it up.

As for the back yard, there is a zero percent chance of a firepit anytime soon.

Still, as we leave January behind we are getting ever so slowly closer to spring.  Cheers, everyone.

New Fence

Yesterday we had our back fence replaced, and wow!  A side by side comparison really shows just how old, rotten and beat up the old fence was.  There were no real issues installing it, thankfully, and we gained a bit of our property back.

Neighbor Jane, on the right in the above picture has her back fence on the property line.  Neighbor Dave, on the left, has told me that his fence is a foot or two this side of the property line because when he installed it he didn't want to put it up a little hill he has at the back.  What they ended up doing is moving the fence line closer to the actual property line by several inches by the compost bin and the other side maybe just an inch or so, basically splitting the difference again.  So, no, it's not perfectly straight across the yard but you can't tell by looking at it.

Also, I wanted it straight across on top and there is a slight dip in the ground in the middle so while it is at ground level on the ends the middle is about 2 inches or so above the ground.  I can easily fill that in come spring, then the hostas will cover it all.  

Overall, I'm very pleased.  And after seeing it without a fence I am so very glad we have it.  It gives us so much more privacy back there and we don't have to look at the neighbor's odd junk behind and alongside their garage. I should have done it last year as the cedar would have been a bit cheaper but the miser in me wanted to get every last bit of use out of the old fence.  Oh well, it is done now and looks pretty good, I think.

If you're interested, pictures of the process will be after the break.

Cat Box Area is Finished!

This afternoon I fastened the walkway to the drawer to finish the cat box area under the stairs.  Pretty much what I envisioned, but it took longer than it should have.  After considering it for years I got a start on it during my spring vacation last year.  It was a lot of trial and error as I cut and recut, screwed and unscrewed, and leveled the unlevel, but I did get to the point of getting the base installed - the base being the sides to attach the 32 inch, 400 pound capacity drawer slides I had already bought for the project.  And then when I thought I had finished, it still wasn't square.

So on my fall vacation last year I got a board cut and painted that would make it square, but as my back was giving me trouble then that's as far as I got and it sat for the winter.   Fast forward to my spring vacation this year, which was canceled as a couple weeks earlier I missed a whole lot of time from work trying to get over this nasty virus that's going around.  Yes, that one.  So the project sat and we and the cats just continued on as normal.  There was nothing wrong with how things were, I just wanted something better.

Pulled out for cleaning.

Recently on my fall vacation this year it was time to get this done.  I replaced the piece I needed to, built, fitted, caulked and painted the drawer, but due to the weather making for long drying times the project did drag on for a week and a half since my vacation now.  Not a big deal as it was mostly done and I was happy to enjoy the last of the work.  I didn't make any more trips to the hardware store for the last part and just used what I had, which is plenty, but the walkway is two pieces fastened together and I used screws that were a bit too long so had to grind down the points on the other side.  One thing I did order from Amazon is the folding brackets so the walkway will fold down.  I was searching Amazon for folding brackets and trying to figure out what I could use when I saw folding table leg brackets.  Odd, I thought, but they looked like they'd work and sure enough, they did.

So now the cats have a new area, including a brand new litter box, scooper and a mat that is supposed to catch the litter that gets dragged out.  There will still be some litter escaping on their paws as it's impossible to teach a cat to wipe its feet, but hopefully most of it will stay contained so I just have to clean the drawer once a week instead of sweeping the whole area every day.  I don't know if they will know to use the walkway or how long it will take them, but if they get tired of jumping up or we get water on the floor I think they'll figure it out.  So, regular readers have heard me mention this project at times for a long time now, what do you think?

A couple more views after the break!

Friday Firepit and Cat Box Update

Last night was the first time I had a chance to have a firepit for two weeks now, and it was very nice to once again sit by the fire and ponder life's meaning.  After the last fire I was on vacation for a week so, of course, every day was wet.  Off work all week and I couldn't even do what I look forward to the most, this year anyway.  Then this past week I was back at work, so I couldn't wait for Friday night.  Oh, I could have a fire during the week but it does put a damper on it knowing I have to get up early the next day.  Tonight, Terry and Becky are coming over to celebrate my and Terry's birthday - postponed from last Saturday.  It will be nice to visit again and catch up around the fire.

The bright dot is the ISS flying left to right across the sky last night.  Below and a bit to the right is the North Star, and on the right side is Cassiopeia with the top left dot of the W obscured by light pollution.  I could still see the Big Dipper over the garage, getting lower in the sky, and later I even saw Orion and his belt hiding behind one of the trees.  The ISS will be flying by again tonight at 8:02, 63 minutes after sunset.

The cat box project is coming along.  I was thinking I started it years ago but it was actually June of 2019, I'd just been thinking of doing this for years now to help contain the mess.  The biggest problem was that nothing under the stairs was square.  I had gotten everything pretty square last year except for one piece that had to be replaced, but I had that piece cut and painted already, just not installed.  With that installed I was able to build the drawer but then it's been pretty much waiting for paint to dry between coats.  The drawer is now installed as of yesterday, and the cat box is moved into it, so it's about 90% done.  All that's left is a walkway so the cats can go from the bottom stair over to the drawer without stepping paw on the floor.  This way I don't have to do anything for them on the occasions a few times a year when water comes in.  I built and started to paint that walkway today, so it shouldn't be long now and I can finally share with you my latest DIY creation.

CarPEEt Removal

Before

Well, I can't let Blue Witch have all the home renovation fun this summer. If you remember, last year our cat Basil had all sorts of urinary tract issues and eventually wound up having corrective surgery. But not before he ardently let us know he was having issues by using our only carpeted room as his litter box. Time and time again I would shampoo this carpet, over and over and over again. I even used carpet deodorizor, and thought we had it taken care of - until we got the heat and humidity this year that brought back the smell.

Now, this is in our second bedroom, the one with the computer and otherwise used as an office and a place for much of my stuff. Yes, the room where the brilliance that is this blog is written.  It got a little old going to work every morning in here and smelling it, so the carpet had to go.  Last weekend was the time to do it, so it got done.  And it had to get done in a weekend so I could work on Monday.  We removed the carpet in the living room, hallway and bedroom #1 before we moved in. The carpet in this second bedroom was still in good shape so I decided to keep it at that time. I kind of wish we removed it back then, but I remember being pretty tired of removing carpet at that time, too, so that may have factored into my decision.

This time, just one room was more than enough for me.  My knees still hurt and my wife and I both still ache from the work needed to get this done.  It was a lot of stuff to move out of that room and back, but working on a floor is all down low work.  I don't do well with low work these days.  I remember telling my wife at one point, "The next carpet layer I meet I'm going to punch right in the mouth."  I won't, but they just go overboard with the hammer stapler and nails, it seems.  On the bright side, we have no more carpet to be removed.  At least the floor cleaned up pretty well, but it is noticeably a little rougher than the floors in the rest of the house

After

Not knowing ahead of time the state the floor would be in, we planned ahead.  We had a 7.5 by 9.5 foot rug in the living room that we bought shortly after we moved in and, while we like it, we replaced it with an 8 by 10 foot rug and moved the older rug into the computer room.  I didn't want to put a rolling chair directly on the hardwood, and we have the chair mat for a rug and it just made sense.  It's a little different walking into the room now and expecting a soft floor, but it looks pretty good and we'll easily get used to it.

Two things to end on.  First, I know I have two desk chairs at the moment.  One is for relaxing, the chair I enjoy, the other is for work, the chair that is better for my back sitting up and working.  I plan on looking for a better chair that can be for both, but I may have to spend more than I want.  Second, I took a bunch of pictures (more after the break!) and even a short time lapse video of myself removing the carpet and padding, before the real work began.  You can watch the time lapse video here if you want. I kept it private but I think you should be able to see it if I link it - if not please let me know.  But remember, I don't want to hear any plumber-butt jokes.  That's a warning!

Spring Weekend

We had a beautiful spring weekend, by far the best weather we've had this year.  The plants are growing well, trees are budding and the rabbits are back.  On Saturday we - mostly my wife - got lots of yard work done outside.  It was also the first day of the year we had all the windows open to let in that fresh spring air.  We just had to get the grill out, hamburgers for lunch and bratwurst for dinner.  Yes, we grilled out twice in the same day.  Why not?

Even though it was so nice out, it was also overcast most of the day.  Of course, until I started a fire.  It was still nice out by the fire, but very different than last time.  The temperature got up to 74ºF so I was in shorts and t-shirt rather than last fire when it was 48ºF and I was in long pants and jacket.  It was nice out there for a while but the wind picked up so I had to smother the fire eventually.  I have a lid for the firepit so I put the lid on it.

Sunday was also very nice but much more windy so it chilled too much with windows open like the day before.  And it sounds like this will be it for a while, unfortunately.  I think we may even be in line for snow flurries again later in the week.  Ah, yes, welcome to Wisconsin.  If you don't like the weather, just wait a few minutes...

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Lazy fool, any excuse to get out of chores and have a fire!

No leaves yet, but they're coming.

Alternate Side Snarking

This just happened.

We have alternate side parking in the winter.  This means that on odd number days you park on the odd side between 1 and 7 a.m., and vice versa on even number days.  This is designed for snow removal.

This afternoon, knowing the parking rules, my wife parked across the street in front of a neighbor's house - as everyone does, all the time.  This is not unusual, people.  Now, normally my wife doesn't happen to park in that particular spot but circumstances today made it so.  And a very nice parking job it is.

A few minutes ago, while my wife was out back for a smoke, the doorbell rang.  I answered, and it was the owner of the house in which my wife parked in front.

A little back story.  We seemed to like her when we met her, when she moved in not too long after we did.  Then we noticed, um, things.  Lets just say I call her "princess" when we talk about her.  She seems very entitled and we have many examples.  For one, she once asked me to get a motion light for my front door light because our light, and I quote from her text, "shines right in my window in my eyes."  Really?  There's more, but onward.

"Hi, I hope I didn't wake you up!"

Eh, I'm pretty beat so that's not a knock.

"I was hoping I could get my spot back?  I know it's not 'my' spot, but you leave so early in the morning that it wakes me up!  My bedroom's right there!"

Pointing to the areas in question as she goes.  And my wife leaves at a reasonable hour.

"I'm sorry to ask.  I'm asking nicely!"

Now this whole time as she's talking my only response is to say her name, 3 times total, while glancing down and shaking my head.  You know the tone I had, the 'I-can't-believe-what-I'm-hearing' tone.  I had to put a rather quick end to this nonsense.

Without using her name here, I said "Neighbor, it's time to start Adult-ing."  With that, I shut the glass door as she said something about that not being very nice.  And then I shut the front door.


What would you have done?

Halloween 2019

We got 3 inches of snow a few days ago, then we got 5.1 inches on Halloween day.  While most walks had been cleared it was still below freezing with snow and leaves everywhere for the evening trick-or-treaters.  I wasn't really surprised that there were less this time, maybe two dozen or so, less than half of last year.  It just means we have waaaay too much candy left over.  Dammit, I like candy.  But I'm not used to eating a lot of it.  I may get a tummy ache!

This is the third year I've used the mummy in the corner window.  It was just a cheap decoration - two plastics sheets to tape in the windows - but I got a lot of compliments from the parents on it this year.  In fact, one said it was the most Halloweeny house on the street.  I think the effect from the corner windows is good, especially if you are walking toward it down the street.  I also got a cheap red strobe light that I put in the kitchen window, just for fun.  After dark it seemed like a nice effect, anyway.  Also cheap window decals went unused due to the cold glass.  I did have a new skull mask with a moving jaw, but I think I only answered the door in it a couple times and even then quickly removed it.  I guess I was apprehensive about scaring the younger ones.

All in all a nice, but slow, snowy and cold Halloween.  Almost felt more like Christmas out there.

August This-And-Thats

Things have settled in to late summer around here.  Flowers are past their peak, football is starting and I've not been posting much of anything recently.  These are the times this kind of post is made for - with a twist this time.  This will be a more visual This-And-Thats than just a normal bullet-points rundown of different thoughts.  Just a few things I've been up to, so, with that, let's get on with it, shall we?

• I found the spider that had been making the massive webs between the garage and the porch.  After that picture in the last post we saw him working on another web, pictured here.  And the other day I happened upon his lair when cleaning up, so he had to go.

• A few weeks ago there was guano under our bat house behind the garage.  Our first sign of a bat using it since it was installed.  There's been none since, unfortunately, but I am encouraged as we are seeing more bats and more often this year than last in the evening skies.  This is a short video from Friday night by the fire showing some bat activity in the area - with an appearance from a plane taking off, of course.

• Yesterday I finished the edging of the walks out front.  Now, I know it's been a few years since I've done it, but the sod had already crept several inches over the pavement again.  It doesn't help that the walks in this older neighborhood are generally lower than the turf, especially for us.  Still, it was very gratifying to clean it up, even if it won't last forever.

• While taking pictures of the edging I took an inadvertent picture of the house.  This reminds me that I trimmed the arborvitae last weekend, and also swapped out the front light bulb.  The arborvitae has grown quite a bit in the last 10 years, and while I think it's kind of a pain to have I do like that it gives some character to the front of the house.  My (OCD) fear is that as it grows bigger it will get harder to keep looking good.  And for the light I got one that is LED and is supposed to not attract bugs, but what I really liked about it is that it has a sensor so it turns on and off at dusk and dawn by itself.  As for the bugs, it does appear there is less bug clutter on the front of the house now, but time will tell.

• August 20 will be one year since the great deluge of rain that gave Madison and western Dane County, especially Black Earth, all sorts of flooding issues.  The Yahara chain of lakes is finally closer to "normal" levels - except Waubesa - and still way too high for all, but that's where they've been kept for several years now.  If we receive any sort of deluge like last year the same thing would happen again.  I do know there are plans being made to help prevent all that rainwater being diverted straight to the lakes, and other plans like dredging to ease the flow of the Yahara River between the lakes.   Link for below screen capture is here.  Interesting article here, I've read it once quickly so I should re-read it soon.

I think that's more than enough for now, I've had my say.  Thanks for reading, see you soon.

Planes, Planes, Planes

We live on the near east side of Madison, Wisconsin, just a couple miles south of Dane County Regional Airport and Truax Field, home of the 115th Fighter Wing of the Wisconsin Air National Guard.  The main runway is in line with a few blocks to our west, so we get a really good view of the air traffic.  The amount of traffic can vary at times, actually rather busy as I type this, and consists of very small to medium/large passenger planes.  Depending on the day and weather we either get take-offs or landings.  I like the landings as we get a better view of the planes, while the take-offs can be louder because planes are accelerating but they are also getting higher and can veer off to either side.

We knew about this aspect when we bought the house ten years ago, and it wasn't a concern then and it still isn't now as we really love our house, our location, and our proximity to work and local businesses (and the bike path though we need to take more advantage of it).  I've even grown to really like watching them - in fact, I think I always have liked it.  Sometimes the jets can get real loud, but they are somewhat fascinating as well - and nice to know we are so protected here in the upper Midwest.  And they almost always go in twos, so if you hear one, get ready for another one coming.  They also usually advertise when they will be doing extensive training, but that doesn't seem to stop some idiots in the neighborhood from complaining on the neighborhood farcebook page (I'm told).  Once, we even saw a military transport plane taking off over us - it was so big and so low it felt like I could throw a rock and hit it!

Pursuant to a conversation with blogger friend Blue Witch in the comments a few posts ago, I thought I would try to get some video to share to show what we see daily.  Now, I may hear scores of them go by on a single day, but I'm not usually in a good position to capture it on video.  In fact, the first one I took after that conversation may be the best of them all.  It's the first one in the video compilation below, in the evening with the plane's lights on.  Over the last week or two I've tried to get video and found it's not as easy as I thought.  First, I've not had a fire the last couple weekends so I've not spent that much time out in the yard and ready to record.  I've tried running out when I hear one coming, but to very mixed results, as you will see.  And I always seemed to miss the bigger ones, and the Frontier ones where I can try and make out the animal on the tail.  I've no video of the jets yet though I'll keep that in the back of my mind for future, but they're not just loud - they're freaking fast!

Total, I got over a dozen videos, 11 of which are compiled below, one of which I would take out if I wanted to spend more time on it.  Only the last video is of a take-off, this afternoon and right overhead.  I used Windows video editor for the first time to make one video out of all the clips and spent very little time on it.  Sorry, but it's good enough for this purpose.  It is posted to my YouTube account, but it is not listed for the moment, it's only posted here.



Yes, we have noise in the background here on the near east side; airplanes, street traffic, even and railroad tracks a few blocks away.  I've noticed this more than ever during this recent time of trying to get video of airplanes.  I do remember once several weeks ago, later at night out by the fire, hearing a plane, a train, and the traffic all at once and thinking that would be an interesting thing to capture.  Planes, Trains, and Automobiles!  We'll see, maybe that opportunity will arise this summer.

Vacation So Far

So far it's been a good vacation, mainly because I've not had to go to work, but also because I've been getting lots of things done.  And that's despite coming down with a pretty nasty cold on Friday.  I didn't do much Saturday or Sunday other than lay around and be sick, but I steeled myself and powered through it on Monday and Tuesday, and finally started feeling like myself again yesterday.

First project was getting the basement steps painted, and it took two days because I did it in halves.  If anyone knows a better way I'm willing to listen for next time, but no, I did not feel every other step made sense as I know I would step on one I shouldn't while it was drying.  They had to be painted last at least several years before we bought the house, and we've been here 10 years now (yesterday).  I knew I wanted to paint them but didn't know how badly it was needed until I saw the side by side.  Drying time was mostly while the cats napped so there were no issues with them wanting downstairs.  I had a baby gate to keep them out and a temporary litter box upstairs if needed.

Aside from the stairs, I power washed and water sealed the back steps, washed and waxed the car, got lumber and hardware for the cat box area and did a plethora of smaller projects and tasks around the house that either needed to be done or I wanted done.  It feels good to mark things off my list, but unfortunately there's still just as much on the list as I've crossed off of it.  Mostly things that are not urgent and will not get done this week but I do want to keep them on my radar.

Yesterday evening my Mom and her husband Dan came up to see us.  It was a beautiful day yesterday, maybe the warmest day of the year so far as it made it up to the low 70's F.  We spent the hours around the fire pit talking and ordered out pizza and ice cream for dinner.  It was very nice to see them - and finally exchange Christmas gifts!  Yes, it had been too long as we didn't make it down there on Easter.  Thankfully, both seem very well and happy and it was a very nice visit.

Today is a different story.  I got a few things done early, then the rain moved in.  It should be gone by midday easily though there is a chance for more later in the afternoon.  In between the rains it's supposed to get even warmer today, into the upper 70's F, and my guess is it will also be very humid.  That leaves me to do a few inside chores today, but also a lot of resting as all the early week projects have left my back needing a break.  I've had some issues with my back recently, but thankfully not near as as bad as this time last year when I thought I'd be getting another surgery.

Tomorrow and the weekend looks like a few more showers expected, but hopefully I can get some more things done.  I don't plan on any projects over the weekend other than my wife and I want to get plants and fill pots on Saturday.  I've always enjoyed my spring 'plant day,' but it does get to be a little much so it will be nice having her help.  There are a couple other things planned, as well, but that's for a different post.

There's some more pictures after the break - with a little bit of captioning. ;)

Easter, Yardwork, Vacation Needed

My wife and I were supposed to go to my Mom and Dan's today for Easter lunch with them and my sister and her kids.  I bowed out last night, after working extra lately I was exhausted.  Yes physically, but much more mentally, either way rest is what I need.  It's my own fault for agreeing when I knew I've been in need of time off from everything to relax, and 4 hours driving is not relaxing.  So, my apologies to Mom and the family, I'll see you next time.

After another very long night's sleep I got a bit of yard work done today instead.  I moved the rock line along the back fence out another 6 or 8 inches and did a bit of garden repair.  The rocks always disappear when the hostas come in so I moved it out so maybe they'll still be visible and allow more room for the hostas and a better sight line in the summer months - and while mowing.  This was one of those jobs I really wasn't looking forward to, but I had it done within the length of the latest Slash CD.  I think I escaped without messing up by back, so I hope it's the last time I move those rocks.

Yesterday Kate cleaned up the stump area and gardens and planted lots of seeds.  The plants all around the yard are growing and starting to bloom.  But around the gardens the wood is starting to fall apart.  I knew they would have to be replaced eventually, I just hoped for longer than 10 years, I guess.  I staked the bottom right corner of the west garden by the door so it closes again and the wood doesn't fall out.  This will need to be addressed too soon, perhaps this fall and/or next spring.  I'll have to do some research this time before rebuilding.  And, for that matter, the back fence will also need replacing soon.

All in all, I only spent a couple hours working in the yard and have been pretty lazy most of the afternoon.  I need my batteries recharged for the upcoming overtime-mandated work week.  Soon I will be on vacation, I just need to make it a few more weeks.  But I'm tired.

Hanging Pot Rack

A few posts ago I mentioned a hanging pot rack that I was making and said I would post about it later.  Now is later as I completed it yesterday and, thankfully, my wife loves it.

When we got the new stove with the double ovens we lost the storage space under the old single oven so we needed a new place for our frying pans and some pots.  We looked at several online, but my wife wanted a wood one and we had very limited space.  In fact, the only feasible place was against the far wall of the kitchen in front of the window, and we didn't like the hanging ones we saw.  We settled on a wood kit from Amazon that I sanded, stained and finished so it would blend in better with our woodwork.  I also had to get much bigger brackets than the ones that came with it to place the rack out from the window a bit.

It came together rather easily, but when it came time to fasten the wood to the rack I ran into an issue.  The brackets had a hole near the end that I was going to use to bolt the wood rack onto, but the holes lined up with the end rods that hold the wood rack together.  It just barely fit as it was with the brackets right next to the window.  I couldn't move the brackets so I had to think of a different way to fasten them together.  What I came up with was a 1/2" screw to go into the wood but not hit the metal rod.  Now, the screws alone I'm confident would hold for normal use, but just to be sure I took some black zip ties and fastened the wood to the bracket towards the back of the rack.  Maybe not the best solution, but effective and you really can't even tell they're there.

This project was drawn out due to the winter temperatures and staining and finishing, but is finally done.  Now I need to start coming up with a plan for my spring vacation project.  I've talked about creating a cat box area under the basement stairs for a long time and I think this is finally the year.  In the next few weeks I'll have to come up with the plans and get the wood, paint and other needed hardware so I'm ready to go.  This will be a lot of fun for me to do, and I do really need the vacation.

Basil Update, A Truly Spring Day

Wednesday was one week since Basil came home from the vet after surgery.  It seemed sufficient time for the cats to see and smell each other, and any hissing had seemed to end, so we reintroduced them.  Things went very well, there was only a hiss or two, but the brothers were back together.  Of course, we need to watch when we leave the basement open because Basil is still not to go down there even though he really wants to use his regular litter box.  He does not like the litter he has to use so we bought puppy pads to place outside the box and he has been using them, though still reluctantly.  The carpet in the back bedroom will definitely need a good cleaning after this.

In a few days Basil will have his stitches removed, then we'll have to find out from the vet how long until we can take the cone off and also how long until he can use regular clay litter.  The sooner the better on both accounts to get our house back to normal.

Yesterday was the first day it thoroughly felt like spring.  The day started overcast, but the sun came out in the afternoon and the temperature rose.  I managed to do several things outside that have just become possible.  First, I got the garage organized a bit by putting away snow shovels and salt, swapping out the snow blower for the lawn mower, and giving the whole garage a good sweep.  With a clean garage and dust settled, I was finally able to apply the finish to what will be a hanging pot rack in the kitchen.  I'll write a bit more about that once it's complete.

I spent the late afternoon/early evening breaking in the fire pit.  The ground was solid enough that I hung out by the fire for a few hours, just watching the flames and enjoying the weather and relaxation.  It never gets old.  Just after sunset, as I let the fire pit die down, I fired up the grill for our first grilled burgers of the year.  I thoroughly enjoyed this first day spending so much more time outside than I have in a very long time.

More pics after the break!

Sixty!

This afternoon

No, not another milestone birthday.  It will be a while until I turn sixty, though my half-birthday was a few days ago.  Our temperatures reached 60ºF (16ºC) today for the first time since, well, seemingly forever.  Let the melting continue!

A month ago, February 18

Today started out mild at 49ºF when I left for work a couple hours before sunrise.  We had fog in the early daylight, sunny midday/early afternoon, followed by short periods of heavy rain, and now it is overcast and cooler than it was this morning.  If it snows tonight it would be like all the seasons in one day.


This week has slowly warmed up, culminating in today's high temperature before it will get back to more normal temps for this time of year, upper 30's to low 40's.  Then in a week we may see it start to warm up again.  Yesterday I even noticed daffodils breaking through the mulch.  This gives us hope - Spring is coming!

We can see the fire pit again, but it still may be some time before there's a fire.

New Snowblower - Now Stop Snowing!

Assembling the new snowblower, old one is on the left.

I can't seem to get away from mentioning winter weather lately, but that's what's been happening around here.  Last week Monday night into Tuesday we had another snow event and got almost 10 inches of snow.  Tuesday morning when I was clearing the driveway my snowblower started jumping around making a loud thunking noise.  I stopped the engine immediately and one look underneath told me there would be no easy fix.  The auger underneath that pulls the snow in rusted through in the middle so it was no longer attached.  Out came the shovels and out went my aching back.  I needed to get this resolved as soon as possible as we still have plenty of winter left.

Works like a champ!

I briefly considered trying to get this one repaired.  I bought it originally when we first got the house, so it made it almost 10 winters.  If I remember right, it may have been a clearance item then - I know it wasn't terribly expensive.  Several years ago a friend was trying to fix something on it and we found out the company no longer made gas machines, only electric.  There were no spare parts for it to be found.  So that's that, then.

The next day I looked online, pondered several, and ordered a new one, only to have them email me the next day and refund my money because they no longer had it to sell.  A day later I went to the big box hardware store and there wasn't a single snowblower to be found, so I went online again.  This time I found and ordered one from a different seller.  The only catch was it could take up to 10 days to get here.  Luckily it shipped pretty quick, but yesterday we got another 5 inches that my wife had to shovel by herself last night,  and then it kept snowing another couple inches overnight.  Thankfully the new snowblower was to be delivered today.

I got off work early this afternoon and rushed home to find the new snowblower had been dropped off by the back steps, and fairly recently, it appeared.  I changed clothes and set to work getting it put together and immediately trying it out by clearing the walks and driveway.  I purposely got one with an electric start, but I didn't need it as it started immediately on the first pull.  Very nice.  I was able to get everything cleared in short order - with a little break to talk to neighbor Dave and tell him the story.

I had always been thinking that when this one goes I was going to get a two-stage snowblower.  They're generally more powerful as they have two augers, one to pull the snow in and one to throw the snow out.  A single-stage only has the one auger to scoop the snow and funnel it up the chute and out.  A few things factored into my decision.  One was price, as 500 bucks would get you a higher end single-stage but only a lower end two-stage snowblower.  Secondly, a single-stage gets right down to the pavement and has a partly rubber auger while the two-stage must be adjusted just above the pavement as it has a metal auger.  It's not often I have to clear more than 10 inches at a time and I like it getting down to the pavement so I chose a higher end single-stage snowblower and I'm comfortable with that decision.

But now, really, it just has to stop.  The roads are getting narrower and we're running out of places to put the snow!

Home on the NEW Range

We finally replaced the range in the kitchen.  It had been a long time coming.  The old electric stove and oven was, well, old - very old.  My wife is quite the cook and knew exactly what she wanted to replace it, a gas range with a double oven.  This range has essentially been picked out for almost a year, but appliances go on sale in November so we waited and saved hundreds of dollars.

It was scheduled to be delivered early afternoon on Wednesday, so I got an early start to the weekend to wait for it to arrive.  The delivery men were in and out in short order and we had our new range!  Of course, there were a couple issues.  There always seems to be, for us.  Nothing terribly major.

Months ago we had our plumber extend the gas line to once again come up behind the range.  It had been removed long ago to install the outlet for the electric range.  But, he installed it with a fitting that is not normally used for gas ranges.  The installers luckily had adapters to use but that made the connection too big to get the range against the wall as close as it should be.  Now, we've used the same plumber since we got the house and while they have done some good work for us they've also done some questionable work for us, so after this we are ready to move on and try another local plumber.  This week I will find one and schedule them to get the gas connection sorted and possibly moved so we can push the range in farther.  (While they're here I may also have them look at some minor leaks by the utility sink downstairs.)

Also, both the new refrigerator and the new range (both LG) have the same type of electrical plug where the cord goes straight down, parallel to the wall instead of perpendicular.  I'm sure it's meant to stay out of the way when pushing the appliance in, but that means you can't use two of the same type of plug in one regular outlet.  There is space, so I will have to find an adapter to extend the top one out a bit, is all.  So, another upgrade to the kitchen, which Kate finished repainting yesterday.  Next on the kitchen list is flooring, counter tops, and a vent above the range.  All in due time, except for a hanging pot rack I need to build now - ASAP!