I had a firepit the evening of July 4 (surprise, right?) despite the current heatwave and was treated to a show that I wasn't fully expecting. Oh, we always have some fireworks in the neighborhood, but with all the municipal fireworks cancelled due to the pandemic I was surrounded by pops, bangs and flashes for hours on end. They came from all over, but mostly to my right, and behind me to the left, but the biggest was in front of me and about a block away.
*Laws change wherever you go, but I believe the only things legal within Madison are snakes and sparklers, and absolutely nothing that goes into the air. Thank you, neighbors!
Happy holiday, everyone! If you're like me, though, you're probably just staying at home. The pandemic has made a comeback yet I see more and more people out and about and not wearing masks. Alas, will it ever end?
I've been out by the fire the last two evenings despite the heat and humidity. If I go out shortly before sunset both are falling so it actually isn't as bad as you'd think it would be, sitting by a roaring fire. Maybe I sat a bit further back from it, but no other issues - except mosquitoes. They have fully arrived now and will be with us for the duration of the summer.
I hope everyone is having a great holiday weekend!
Today, almost exactly two years after I got my first face cord of firewood we had our second one delivered. I looked at a couple places online but wound up going with the same place I used last time. While it was a little more expensive than last time, $159 then and $179 now, it was still cheaper than other places and I already know the wood is good. Again, I got kiln-dried mixed hardwoods; Oak, Cherry, Hickory and Walnut - but I know I saw some of the higher-end Birch in there as well. It all makes for good burning. In the picture, the small pile on the left with the weathered ends is what is left of the old firewood, the pile next to it won't fit on the rack and is mostly odd shaped pieces that will be burned first, after the old stuff.
Before it got here I moved the last bit of the old firewood and set about leveling the rack a little bit. Thankfully that was quick and easy because it is and has been very hot and humid. I didn't know when it was going to get here, but I hoped sooner than later because storms are predicted late afternoon/early evening, and kiln-dried wood should be covered, I'm told. The driver was a nice guy who used to work for the Milwaukee Bucks and I happened to have a Bucks t-shirt on. He regaled me with funny and interesting stories about some players and the former owner, Senator Herb Kohl, as he unloaded the wood in the driveway.
My wife was away at her dad's so I set about getting it stacked right away. It was a good workout, for all but my aching back. Thankfully I didn't injure it, but it is very tired right now. We'll see how much I stiffen up later. I loaded the wheelbarrow from my knees and had a lawn chair by the rack to avoid bending so much, and it seemed to help. I lost track of how many wheelbarrow's full it took to get the job done, but it's more than it looks, I assure you. It took a little over an hour, and by the end I was tired and drenched in sweat, but it will be worth it for the next two years. Still, what a way to start the holiday weekend.
I've been playing with some camera features on my new phone. I did a time lapse of my fire last night, but this first one I did two weeks ago was better. Enjoy the fire with me.
I read yesterday that Body Count just released their 2017 song No Lives Matter to radio. I had forgotten about this song, especially since they released a newer album earlier this year so when I have listened recently it has been the new one. Interestingly, I have to choose when I listen to this band as it is pretty angry music and can affect my mood. I stopped listening to it when I'm at work, for example.
So the Black Lives Matter movement is almost 7 years in (per google) and going strong. There are still protests here in Madison every day but thankfully I've not heard of any recent violence. After it all blew up here at the end of last month all the stores at downtown gathering spot State Street had their windows boarded up, broken or not. Then they had scores of local artists in to paint the plywood, trying to make it a little nicer to look at while being safer for the businesses. Since then there have been marches down main roads and major highways all over town.
It's not surprising to me that Madison got so involved. We have a large black population and made our own national news when a white Madison police officer killed local black teenager Tony Robinson in 2015. The protests then were very much like they are now, and may continue to happen until some tangible change takes place. Police do a vital service protecting us, but people should only be judged by their actions and not pre-judged, or 'profiled,' by their color, and there is a line that should not be crossed where the force used no longer equals the infraction.
You don't have to like the music to watch the video, but I would recommend at least listening to what Ice-T has to say for the first 40 seconds. Better yet, listen to the song, hear the lyrics, the anger.
I don't have the answers, and I don't march, I don't yell. I just try to be the best me, behave accordingly, and be aware of the things I can change. What are your thoughts?
It's not often we get a tropical storm here in Wisconsin, but that's what's going to happen soon. Pretty much straight up from the Gulf of Mexico. I guess it's just called a tropical depression now, but it is muggy and overcast, and the rain is supposed to start in a few hours or so. At least it looks better than yesterday when it showed Madison as directly in the path, now it looks like it will go west of us slightly, the center anyway. I think the storm had a name but I can't think of it now for the life of me.*
Should be interesting, I like a good storm. It seems the big thunderstorms often fall apart as they approach Madison, perhaps due to the lakes, I'm not sure. I don't want to see damage or anything, but otherwise I hope it's a good show.
On a cuter note, last weekend our friend Terry stopped over for a bit with her brand new 8 week old puppy. She named him Karma, and I can't help but hope that doesn't come back to bite her! Figuratively speaking, of course. Very small, very cute and very much not welcomed by Hamish the hissy cat!
*Former tropical storm Cristobal. No wonder I forgot the name.
While the cats were napping yesterday their new water fountain arrived. They get pretty finicky with their old water fountain when it gets the slightest bit dirty, and it's a huge, heavy, awkward ceramic thing, so I thought I'd try to find a cheap and lighter alternative that may also be easier to clean. We do worry about them drinking enough water, and Basil has had all his urinary tract issues, so the hope is they will drink more water now. I got it all set up, and managed to capture a very cautious Hamish as he discovered it. So while I'm posting videos today, here's another. I even added suspenseful music quietly in the background.
Both cats seem to have taken to it well, so it will be moved to the landing where the other one is now and the old one will be stored or donated.
Just got lucky and caught an F-16 out the window. They're really flying today! Though we see them almost daily lately, it's hard to be in position to get them on video. Speaking of video, I'm trying the blogger version instead of uploading to Youtube since it's so short.
As I was beginning my summer-long ritual of cutting grass today I saw some new additions down the street by Starkweather Creek. Actually, my third time mowing today but the first two times were only partial mows as grass in some areas grew faster than others this spring, so my first time mowing the whole lawn this year. Anyway, the new signs were notable because we had just walked past the area yesterday and hadn't noticed anything different then. Yes, we started going on short daily walks together this last week. Both for exercise and to get out of the house more. Now, how many more subjects can I add to one paragraph?
The sign warning of PFAS in the creek had been swapped out for a more durable metal sign, and a sign was added to encourage social distancing on the bike path. I've heard that hardly anyone wore masks while on the bike path, but that was a few weeks ago so I hope that's changed. Staying six feet away could be an issue on the narrower parts of the paths but usually there's room to step to one side. Oh well, Wisconsin got a grade F on following the CDC recommendations of social distancing, mask wearing and gatherings for a reason. Even though we Americans apparently are allowed to get 20 cm closer to each other than most of the rest of the world.
I almost didn't notice it, but off to the left of the slide area is what looks like a camera, facing south along the creek. It didn't look like it was hooked up yet as it had a wire coiled around it and tape over the front, but still it made me wonder why? Is it a trail cam to capture canoeists, to monitor activity on the creek, or to see if anyone is using the canoe/kayak slide the city installed last year? Maybe I'll find an article in the paper on it soon. Once it seems to be in use I may have to find my Halloween mask and get up to some hijinx down by the creek.
After the break are some closer pics if you're interested in reading the signs. And I had a fire last night and I always seem to take pictures so I'll throw some of them in there, too.
Yesterday was our annual spring plant day, when we get plants and fill pots. With the current conditions we didn't want to go to a big place where there would be lots of people, so we went to a smaller, more local place and picked out a few things to fill the tree stump again this year.
Also, last weekend my wife planted several new plants, many in the tree stump area. I'm glad we got the green coated chicken wire because it is much less of an eyesore, but if the plants will have any hope of surviving the rabbits they will need protection until they are better established.
Speaking of the rabbits, there's been a couple around (at one time I saw 3 at once in the back yard) but it still doesn't seem to be as many as last year - for now. And I have chipmunks digging dens on the side of the house again. I already trapped one (humanely) and let him loose down by the creek, but I may have to do it again. Did I ever mention the time I trapped a squirrel? Probably.
Several posts ago I wrote about the solar plastic owl I bought to hopefully keep the rabbits away. Remember the clothesline post I was thinking of putting it on? Well, I was out beside it and felt the top to make sure it wasn't rotted - and it snapped off in my hand. The part that was in the ground was all rotten and just gave way at my light touch. It surprised me when it happened, but not when I thought about it more. I guess the surprising part should be how it stayed upright this long. So far I have put the owl on a post of the back steps a couple times for a few hours, and it does seem to work.
So anyway, with nowhere to pull the clothes line to I took the old roll-up clothesline thing off the side of the garage. It got used as a shelf more than anything, usually for a bluetooth speaker or just a place to put my phone. The bolts are still there, maybe I'll put a little shelf there. When it gets a little warmer it will be time to get going on the cat box area again. This could be a quick little side project at that time. Maybe.
Yesterday was Wings Over Wisconsin, a flyover of several hospitals in the lower part of the state as a thank you to all the healthcare workers. Yes, the orange one ordered these flyovers through Operation American Resolve without realizing the cost of such flights, so our local Air National Guard integrated this into one of their usual training exercises.
By coincidence, the day before I finally got lucky and got a short video of one of the F-16s we have now based at Truax Field. Yesterday I had the schedule, same as you see above, but I had no idea which way they would be taking off or landing or if I would even catch a glimpse as all the Madison hospitals are on the other side of the isthmus. And jets are powerful, they get up and down much quicker than passenger aircraft.
As I was outside waiting I decided to take video of a squirrel romping around in the treetops. Of course as soon as I started he settled down, but a few seconds later a passenger plane came in for a landing so I got a pretty good shot of that. Later, as the jets were due to arrive back to fly over the Madison hospitals I actually did see them, though at a distance. At one point I could see all 4 through the trees. It was brief, but I finally got video of the F-16s! I will keep trying for better.
Below is all 3 videos; a jet from Monday evening, passenger plane from yesterday evening and the jets in the flyover later last evening. Best in full screen, jets are small in the last part.
I'm over 50, married and child-free. My wife and I have a home not far from downtown Madison, Wisconsin, since 2009. I like music, taking pictures and good humor - plus writing about it all here. I am still not on farcebook or other social media, only Blogger and YouTube. Email me at scoakatsblog@gmail.com. I check it every so often.
