Monday December 3, 2018

Monday December 3, 2018

Blog time 1145 at Panera

Ms P got us up before 0600 this morning.  It was 32 but dry when first went out.

Nancy headed out at 0730 for a class at MVP.  After breakfast I bundled up, grabbed my winter bike and headed to the Y.  No wind so the ride was pleasant.  I took the five mile route.

Calisthenics and then a 0.6 mile walk at the Y.   It is only 0.9 mile from the Y to Panera.  

On this date in 1964 I had just started working for my Dad’s firm, Scott Engineering.  I had left Vietnam about one month earlier.  My Dad gave me the job as project Engineer/Inspector on a bridge project over the Muskegon River in Big Rapids.  The project was on a fast track with opening date in late February.

I was apprehensive about working outside in winter.  However, on this date we spent time setting control points for the bridge.  The temperature was near 70.  I said “I can live with this”.  Wrong!  The next week the temperature plummeted to the teens.  I spent the next two months outside in the cold and snow.  Each morning I put on so many clothes I could hardly move.  Come spring Nancy and I got married and headed to California.

Animal talk:

The deer have been eating my corn but so far I have not seen any.  I look out about two times each evening.  Visibility at night is increased dramatically with snow on the ground.

The DMZ between North and South Korea has been devoid of humans for over fifty years.  In this time many critters have found a safe home.  The Asiatic Black bear and Eurasian Lynxes are just two.  Also several rare species of bird have thrived from this human free zone.  Will peace between the Korea’s destroy this Sanctuary.

The world’s smallest mammal the Etruscan Shrew has been rediscovered on a small Italian Island.  The shrew is about 1.5” long and weighs less the 0.1 ounces.  The island was over run with rats.  The rats were eating an endangered bird.  The Government poisoned all the rats allowing the Shrew to make a comeback.  Apparently the rats thought the Shrews were tasty.

Good Grief what is happening in Europe:

The Brits are going bonkers about BRexit.  The French are rioting over fuel prices.  Spain has folks that want to split the country and a extreme right wing party just won an important election.

Democracy can be very messy.  But as Churchill said it is better than anything else.

Do matter how I dress on these cold days riding my bike lowers my core temperature.  As soon as I got home I took a nice long hot shower.  Lunch followed by a busy afternoon.  

I stopped at Macatawa Bank to get some cash.  I filled the Taurus.  Gas was $2.15 per gallon.

As soon as I got home I headed downstairs.  Turned on the fireplace and my iPod so I could listen to my tunes.  

I spent some time trying to get mailing labels printed.  I have standard size labels that fit in the photo tray of the printer.  I could not get the printer to move to the label tray.  I will have to find the manual.

I think I talked about this before but my handwriting has deteriorated a lot in the last year.  It is hard for me to write a legible note so I have started typing notes.  This afternoon I wrote my monthly short note to the Grandkids.  

Light dinner and then fixed Nancy’s cheese and pill snack.  We watched the news and Jeopardy before switching to Netflix.  We watched a new British police drama.  Nancy liked it but I did not.  

Nancy headed to bed and I watched another episode of my favorite Finnish crime show, Deadwind.  The weather folks say we will see sun tomorrow.  About time, did you know GR is listed as the sixth cloudiest city in the USA.