July 30, 2021

 Friday July 30, 2021

Set alarm for 0615 so Nancy can make her early classes at MVP.  I do all my calisthenics at home.  Breakfast of oatmeal and banana before heading out on my morning ride. 

It was 58 when I left.  I put two layers of long sleeve shirts on and it was barely sufficient.

This and that:

Times have really changed.  In the early 60s when I was a junior officer the Navy’s Civil Engineering Corps had 1500 officers.  No women.  Just read where a female Rear Admiral had just took over Command of the Atlantic region.  Now that is progress.

Carl Levin Michigan’s longest service US Senator has passed.  He gets accolades for his support of Michigan’s auto industry and the US Military.  RIP Senator Levin.

I like reading the Alpena News because I can read some interesting small town/rural news.  This morning the Dept of Natural Resources commented on a female Conservation Officer answering a call about a pig running wild on US 23 a major N-S road.  The Officer tackled the pig and moved it out of traffic.  The pig was returned to Grateful owner. 

As soon as I got home we got in the Escape and headed to Costco.  We were looking for a new kitchen waste can.  No luck Costco was out of stock.

Next stop was Bed Bath and Beyond.  They had kitchen waste cans but they were a bit pricey.  Will wait until Costco restocks.

Total Wines is next door to BBB.  I stopped in and bought three bottles of my favorite wine, Apothic Red.

After lunch I drove to Office Max.  I am looking for a desk top storage item.  I did not find what I wanted.  On way home I stopped at Meijer’s and bought a turkey sub for dinner tonight.

Found time this afternoon for a nap.

For dinner tonight Nancy had some pasta left over from last night’s dinner at NO CO.  I had the turkey sub I purchased earlier.

Tonight after the news we watched the last two episodes of “Line of Duty”.  Great series.

Missy FaceTimed this evening.  She is lonely with AJ being gone on her RV trip across USA.  

Yard check at 2200.  It was cool and clear.  I noted a small frog hanging on our garage door trim.  The tiny frog was about vey level.  I ran inside to get my iPhone to take a picture.  It was gone when I got back.  Temp in low 50s tomorrow morning.

July 29, 2021

 Thursday July 29, 2021

Blog time 1100 sitting at Panera

Up this morning with 0600 alarm.  Took the trash can to curb.

What a dud!!  The weather folks said we would get a lot of rain and high winds over night.   Did not happen, only light rain.  All our efforts to get ready for the storm were for nothing.

Nancy left early for her Thursday swim at MVP.

I checked the iPads downstairs.  I made some small moves on the new iPad and all the data was transferred.  My new iPad is now working fine.  I really don’t know what I did.

I do light calisthenics before breakfast.  After breakfast I drive the Fusion to the Y.  Calisthenics and a short walk.  Showered at Y and drove to Panera. Bought coffee and bagel before setting up my new iPad.  I like the iPad but my big accolades are for Apples new keyboard.  It is great!

Reading the news I get very confused on what officials are saying about the Delta strain.  Do we wear masks inside?  The impact of the Delta strain on vaccinated folks?  Etc,etc

At noon I drove to the Apple store.  I purchased an Apple Pencil for the new iPad.  Also bought a mini-iPad to replace my aging mini.

At home I put on bike clothes and took a 9.5 mile ride.  Took another quick shower.

For dinner tonight we drove to NO CO (north country).  NO CO is located at the intersection of Forest Hills and Cascade Road.  Same place as the old Forest Hills Inn.  I had fish and chips and Nancy had a pasta dish.  With both had a drink to go with the food.  We sat outside.  The food was very good and sitting outside on a pleasant summer’s evening was great.

Tonight we watched another episode of Line of Duty.  Great show, tomorrow night we will binge on the final two episodes.

Debbie and Missy both FaceTimed this evening.

Courtyard was quiet at 2200.  Haven’t seen a critter in weeks.

Tonight I reclined in bed and finished reading the WSJ on my new mini.  Could not get WSJ on old mini.

Big cool down this evening.  Temps in 50s tomorrow morning.

July 28, 2021

Wednesday July 28, 2021

Blog time 1030 sitting in Living Room.

Up this morning with the 0615 alarm.  Nancy quickly dressed and headed out to her 0715 class at MVP.

Today I had intended to attend Breakfast Club but because of our water problem I had to stay home to let maintenance folks in.

At 0800 I quickly drove to Panera and got coffee and a bagel.  Brought the coffee and bagel home. 

The maintenance folks this morning checked all our downspouts.  They had to do some minor cleaning but all downspouts are now working.

I hope a plugged downspout caused our flooding problem.  We are expecting some heavy rain tonight.  If out basement is dry I will assume the problem is solve.  

Just to be safe I authorized McDonald Plumbing to TV our basement sanitary sewer line.  I don’t think the water is from a broken sewer main but getting it checked will make us feel better.

Nancy got home from her classes about 1000.  This afternoon she is working at the Gardens.

Nancy drove to the Gardens only to find out that they can only accommodate 2 volunteers.  Nancy was the third so she came home.  Her next work date is in mid August.

Kim comes to clean tomorrow.  I jumped on bike and headed to Macatawa Bank to get her money. 

I go to the bank weekly and rarely do I see another customer inside.  How long can the bank remain open?

Took a short ride after the bank.  Total miles today 6.5 miles. 

After the ride I showered and then quick lunch.  This afternoon I took a short nap.

My new iPad arrived today.  I opened the package and set it up.  Typical Apple product no written manual.  They assume you are tech savvy and can follow their onscreen instructions.  I tried to transfer data from the old to new iPad.  Not much luck.

The weather folks keep talking talking about the big storm heading our way.  High winds and over 2 inches of rain.

To get ready for the storm we:

Brought the trash can in.  Will put out early tomorrow morning.

Removed umbrella from deck table.  

Placed towels in cedar closet so if flooding occurs we can easily mop up.

We had our light Wednesday dinner of Cheerios and fruit.  

Spent an hour after dinner trying to get data transferred between old and new iPads.  Even had Debbie assist me.  The old iPad told me it would take some time to get data transferred.  I left both iPads running all night.

Tonight we watched another episode of Line of Duty.  It is a real cliff hanger.

When checked the courtyard at 2200 the rain had not yet started.  Set the alarm for 0600 so I can get the trash can to curb before the truck arrives.

July 27, 2021

Tuesday July 27, 2021

Blog time noon at Panera

Up at 0630.  Nancy is going swimming this morning.  I do calisthenics before my oatmeal breakfast.  After breakfast head out on a 10.5 mile bike ride.

At home I shaved and showered.  

The maintenance folks had just arrived and they seem to be on top of the water problem.  

Got back on bike and headed to Panera, a distance of about 0.8 miles.  Ordered coffee and bagel before starting my morning routine.  At noon I headed home.

I cleaned up my desk before lunch.  Lunch as always was yogurt, with bottle of Ensure and a croissant.

At 1430 Nancy and I headed to Costco.  Nancy picked up her prescription.  We purchased eye drops, Cheerios and miniNaan.

I did watch some of the Olympics this afternoon.  Seems strange without the crowd noise.

This and that:

We have lost 45 minutes of daylight since June 22.

The baby Robin nesting on our yard light has left the nest.  It is ok.   I see it walking around and sitting in some low lying bushes.  It can barely fly.  The mother is bringing it food.  The baby looks healthy.

The heat continues,  when the temperature reached 85 I turned on the AC.  Will turn off when we head to bed.

The Feds are confusing everyone with their new mask mandate.  If masks are required in schools there will be a major backlash.

For dinner tonight Nancy fixed a pork chop with dressing and peas.  Very good.

Tonight we watched an episode of Line of Duty.  We had not seen this show for several months so it took awhile to get up to speed.  We now will watched a series from start to finish with no break.

It was still in high 70s when checked court yard at 2200.  

Debbie Facetimed this evening.  We gave a positive report.

  

July 26, 2021

 Monday July 26, 2021

Blog time noon at Panera

Up with the 0615 alarm this morning.  Nancy has several early morning classes.  She was out of the house by 0700.

I did all my calisthenics at home.  Oatmeal breakfast and then headed out on a 10 mile bike ride.

Critter report:

Last night about 0200 looked out the downstairs slider and saw a skunk eating some suet the birds had dropped.  I gently scared it away.  Lesson learned: Must keep area below suet baskets clean.

On my bike ride the morning for the first time in several months I saw wild turkeys.  Great to see them back.

At home I took a quick shower and then got back on bike and pedaled to Panera.  Nancy left about the same time to get her hair cut.

Panera lately has been empty in mid-morning.  Today was no exception.  

Ordered coffee and bagel and started reading.  First thing I read is the Alpena News followed by my email.  Next I finish yesterday’s blog and start todays.  I check the headlines on the Apples News app before heading home.  Normal departure time from Panera is noon.

After lunch I spent some time watching the Olympics on NBC.  I enjoy watching some of the minor sports.  Growing up I never thought I would see skateboarding, surfing, three women BB as Olympic sports.  

Our Condo’s maintenance group spent time this afternoon looking at our buildings water problems.  Blocked downspouts are the cause of much of the problem.

They also checked our basement water problem and they think it is also caused by a plugged downspout.  Work will begin tomorrow.

We keep reading how our legislators are working on physical infrastructure legislation but nothing happens.  The Dems want a social infrastructure package included so nothing get done.

Poll of GOP supporters indicates that Don Trump Jr is the favorite for 2024.  Good Grief who are these idiots.

We had our standard Monday night dinner of Cheerios and fruit.

Watched some of the news and then switched to Netflix.  First show was Call The Midwifes followed by The Kominsky Method. 

The temperature reached 90 today.  I turned the AC on at 1900 and off at midnight.

No nocturnal critters, skunks, raccoons spotted when made my evening check of the courtyard.  Nice bright full moon.

July 25, 2021

 Weekend Update for WE 25Jul21

Blog time 1750 sitting in living room.

Saturday July 24.  I was just getting ready to post Saturday’s blog when I lost it.  Major league Bummer.

The following is a brief review of yesterday.

Up at 0630.

Breakfast at Gathering Place.

Nancy did laundry and I took an 8 mile bike ride.

Lunch and spent most of afternoon watching Olympics.

For dinner we drove to Ada and got an ice cream.

Watched a musical comedy on Apple+ followed by Wild Bill on BritBox.  Debbie Facetimed us tonight.  Everything ok.

Our water problem I have concluded is caused by ground water leaking through a crack in our basement wall.

Sunday July 25, 2021

Up at 0630.  Dressed and had quick breakfast. Drove to Panera for coffee.  It was sunny and warm.  Temp will reach 90 this afternoon.

Nancy and I left at 0845 for Trinity Lutheran.  Good turnout at today’s service. 

After church we took a drive to Grand Haven.  Took Fulton to M45 and headed west past GVSU, Allendale to US 31.  In Grand Haven drove to the State Park.  We did not enter the park because traffic was backed up several miles.  

All the recent rains have really helped the corn crop.  We were surprised at how tall the corn is.

At home I put on bike clothes and took an 8 mile ride.  After the ride I had quick lunch and then showered.

After lunch Nancy and I drove to Meijer’s.  I filled the Fusion up. Gas was $3.28.  Nancy bought milk and yogurt.

At home I took a short nap.  I did watch the USA and France BB game.  France won.  USA looked sloppy.

Dinner tonight of scrambled eggs, spinach pie, and sausage. 

After dinner we watched the Olympics for an hour.  We finished the evening watching New Tricks.

Debbie Facetimed this evening.  Everything ok. 

Missy just got home from the East Coast.  Akerke is joining her friend Grace and family on a motor home trip across the USA.  They will stop a several National Parks.  Missy will be home alone for about 20 days.

Noted at bright full moon when checked the front yard at 2200.

July 23, 2021

 Friday July 23, 2021

Blog time 1100 at Panera

Boy! Did it rain last night.  It started at 0300 and was still raining hard when I left at 0800.

We got up with the 0615 alarm.  Nancy has two early classes at MVP.  I do my chin-ups and pull-ups before my normal breakfast of oatmeal with banana.

This morning because of the rain I will do my calisthenics at the Y.  Noted when I arrived that the Y was nearly empty.  

I did my calisthenics and rowed 1,000 meters.  Also walked 1/2 mile.  Showered and drove to Panera.

Today is Mary Namey’s birthday so Nancy is taking her to lunch. They are going to the Cork.  They plan on sitting outside.

Today’s Alpena News had an article on the opening of a time capsule from Alpena Catholic Central High School.  Catholic Central has been closed for several decades.  

Attending the Ceremony were many graduates from the 50s.  I recognized several old neighbors.  

The design and building of Catholic Central is an interesting story.  My Dad’s firm badly wanted the design work.  However, even though Scott Engineering was a local firm my Dad was not Catholic.  To solve this problem my Dad teamed up with an Architectural firm out of Bay City.  Paul Brysalbutt (sp) the owner was a graduate of Notre Dame.  Everything worked well. I was surprised that the cost of the School was less than $400,00.

The rain has stopped when I headed home at noon.  As soon as I got home I put on my bike clothes and took an 8 mile ride. 

Lunch and then took a short nap.  After the nap I spent some time reading.

For dinner tonight I drove to Panera and bought a bowl of Summer Corn Chowder.  The building was locked up so I had to use the Drive Thru.

For dinner in addition to the Corn Chowder Nancy fixed me a bowl of fresh MI blueberries.  I finished dinner with two oatmeal cookies.  Because of a heavy lunch, Nancy just had a piece of toast.

We did not watch any news tonight.  Started the evening watching episode 1, Season 2 of Ted Lasso on Apple +.  It was good.

Finished the evening watching an episode of New Tricks.  We have 4 seasons of viewing left.

Debbie FaceTimed this evening.  She had a busy week and said she would just relax this weekend.

Missy and AJ continue to send photos of their East Coast trip.  Looks like they are having a great time.

Checked courtyard at 2130.  Everything ok.  I was in bed at 2200 which is early for me.

July 22, 2021

 Thursday July 22, 2021

Blog time 1120 at Panera

Up this morning at 0630.  It was cloudy with temperature of 56.

Nancy will go swimming this morning.  She has to take the Fusion because I will be taking the Escape to Ford Garage for repairs.

Calisthenics at home and then put my single speed in the Escape and drove to Fox Ford.  My plan was to leave the Escape and ride the single speed home.

The mechanic at Fox looked at the front end of the Escape.  :Bottom line he said if all our electronics including AC are working the repairs would be cosmetic.  He actually talked me out of a $1,000 repair.  

Happily, I accepted his recommendation and drove home.  Nancy had already left for her morning swim.  I grabbed my iPad stuffed it in backpack and pedaled to Panera.

Nancy stopped at Panera for her morning coffee.  She sat with me as I told her the news on the Escape. She was happy.

Between 1200 and 1400 Fish Window Cleaning is going to clean the condos window.  I got home at 1200 and Fish was already cleaning the windows.  Four folks were on the cleaning crew.  They finished all our windows, inside and out, in 90 minutes.  I was surprised that the cost was the same as the past two years.  They did a great job.

I have finally concluded that our water problem is not caused by a faulty sewer.  After my shower I let the water run for an hour to see if we get any leakage.  No leakage was noted.  

Made a quick run to Meijer’s to fill up the Escape.  Also bought a box of mini naans.  

Late lunch and then headed downstairs to check accounts.  Our financial advisor called and recommended we buy a Pfizer spin off.  I authorized this small purchase.

For dinner tonight Nancy and I drove to Cascade Roadhouse.  We arrived at 1700 and were immediately able to get a table outside.  Timing is everything.  I had beef dip sandwich and Nancy had a pasta dish.  We gave the food high marks.

This and that:

The new strain of coronavirus has many folks worried.  I still don’t understand why several of our senior friends refuse to get the Vaccine.  

The news media is handling President Biden with kid gloves.  The hysteria associated with actions taken by President Trump is gone.  This is good.

I do not give President Biden high marks for many of his decisions.  

I have no interest in the Olympics or for that matter any sports.

Tonight Nancy and I watched an episode of Death in Paradise.  After the show I checked the front yard and headed to bed. 

Lately my bedtime has been 2200 instead of 2300.  

Debbie FaceTimed this evening.  We gave a positive report.

July 21, 2021

 Wednesday July 21, 2021

Blog time 1030 sitting in Panera

The alarm goes off at 0615.  Nancy has early classes at MVP. This afternoon she is working at the Gardens.

Today will be a cloudy cool day.  High temp only 70.

Wednesday is my easy day so I do calisthenics at 50%.  Immediately after calisthenics I got on bike and took a 10 mile ride.

While on my ride I received a call from Plumber Don Somerdyke.  He knew a man who could TV our sewer line and would send me a txt with the number.

We think that either the downstairs toilet or groundwater leaking through a crack in the basement wall is the source of our water leak.  So we will not  use downstairs water facilities until problem solved.  

I cleaned up at the kitchen sink using just a wash cloth.  I think the kitchen water supply is isolated from the downstairs water.  

I drove the Fusion to Panera.  Ordered a bowl of oatmeal and croissant.  Checked email and messages.

Left Panera at 1100 and headed to D&W to purchase Fiber One cereal.  Bought 4 boxes.

Nancy wrote me a check to cover the cost of our water repairs.  Drove to bank to deposit check.

Lunch and then a quick nap.

Activities this afternoon:

Did a load of laundry.

Gathered up trash and recyclables and took to curb.

Finished reading all the news apps on my iPad.

Downloaded several books to Kindle and iPad.

Wednesday night, so we had Cheerios and fresh  blueberries.

Watched the news and then an episode of Jack Irish.

Debbie FaceTimed this evening.  Everything ok.

Nancy and AJ have exchanged txt messages.  Missy and AJ are in Boston.  AJ’s friend Grace has joined them.

It was still light when I checked the front yard at 2130.  The days are getting shorter.  We now have 14h49’ of daylight.

I was in bed by 2200 tonight.  The earliest in quite a while.  Started reading the book I downloaded today.

July 20, 2021

 Tuesday July 20, 2021

Blog time 1740 sitting in office

Slept in until 0700.  Nancy is swimming this morning.  Today will be another warm day with high temps in mid 80s. 

I do my calisthenics and the head out on a short bike ride.  I took the Bianchi bike because the Cannondale is in the shop.  As soon as I got home I had Nancy drive me to Ada Bike.  I picked up the Cannondale and pedaled home.  Total miles today 15.

Shaved and showered and then Nancy and I headed out on some errands.  First stop Sam’s Club.  We wanted to get some Fiber One cereal but they were out.  We did buy a pack of croissants.  We also split a cup of frozen yogurt.  

Next stop was Staples.  I want to buy several crates so put clothes in.  No crates.  Final stop Dick’s Sporting Good.  Nancy bought a pair of swim glasses.

At home:

Nancy noted water in the Cedar Closet.  We clean it up.  Also moved all our clothes out of the Cedar Closet.  Bummer.

Took a nap

Called McDonald Plumbing to have them TV our sewer line. They are so busy they cannot do the work until early August.  We might have to take our showers at the Y and MVP.  If things get worse we might even have to say in an Extended Stay Hotel.  This of course is worse case.

This evening after the news Nancy watched Call the Midwives on Netflix.  I sat in living room and finished my reading and blog.

Together we watched another episode of New Tricks.  As I said many times my favorite show.

Checked the front yard at 2200. Everything is ok.  Noted the orange colored moon.  The Weatherman on Channel 8 said the orange color was caused by smoke from Canadian forest fires.

Debbie FaceTimed this evening to see how we are doing.  Except for our water in basement problem we are doing ok.

Missy has been sending us photos from Massachusetts.  She had lunch with her Aunt Peg and her family.  Peg is Nancy’s sister.  She and AJ are having a good time.

July 19, 2021

 Monday July 19, 2021

Blog time 1150 at Panera

Up with the 0630 alarm.  Nancy left almost immediately for her classes at MVP.  Later this afternoon she has a Dentist appointment.

First thing I did this morning was pick up all the pants that got wet during our Cedar Closet leak.  They were all dry.

This morning I did all my calisthenics at home and then took my morning bike ride, 11 miles.  

Noted this morning that traffic was light.  Also noted that for the first time in over a year only one car in line at Starbucks.

As soon as I got home I put the bike rack on the Escape. Took the Bad Boy bike in for a check up.

On way home I stopped at Panera for a quick cup of coffee.  Lunch and then spent time in office reading and writing blog.

We are having all kinds of water problems.  Our condo neighbor has had water in his garage.  They think it is caused by our garage downspout.  Luckily maintaining the downspouts is the responsibility of the Condo Association.  I notified them of the problem.

Our other water problem is the water leak we had in our cedar closet.  For the past several days we have checked the leak area and it has not reoccurred.  

Monday night and instead of cereal I finished the leftover pizza.  Also pineapple and grapes.

After the news we watched an episode of Shakespeare and Hathaway. 

Debbie FaceTimed the evening.  This evening Missy and AJ are taking the Red Eye to Boston area.  We also found out that Veronica and Lucas are also heading to New England.  Lucas will attend at Baseball camp at Dartmouth College.  

Checked the front yard at 2200.  The temperature was still in high 70s. For the past few days the moon had been orange.

I turned on the AC at 2200 to cool the house down.  At 0100 I turned it off.

July 18, 2021

Sunday July 18, 2021

Blog time 1700 sitting in office, listening to XM Satellite 40 tunes on my iPhone.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STEPHEN.  Today is son Stephen’s birthday.  I remember his birth clearly.  

This morning while getting ready for church Nancy walked into the Cedar Closet.  She was barefoot and noted the floor was wet.

On close inspection a small section of the floor had a thin coat of water.  We mopped it up.  I had some clothes stored in a hockey bag on the floor.  All the clothing was wet.  We located the leak at our east wall.  It looked like the leakage had stopped.

After some searching it looks like we will have to have our sewer line leading to the street scoped.  Will call tomorrow.

Church was crowded this morning.  The band was back for the first time in 18 months.  Everyone was in a good mood.

After church Nancy and I stayed and helped fill food bags.  The bags contain four ingredients.  Soy, vegetable, protein and rice.  All are dry ingredients.  The bags are given to folks needing food.  Just put the bags in boiling water for several minutes and you have a nutritional meal.  The goal today was to fill 25, 000 bags.

Trinity Lutheran provided snacks after we finished our shift.  Good cookies.

When we got home I spent time reviewing our leakage problem.  Originally we thought our neighbor might have a problem because we saw a plumbing truck in their drive last week. 

Nancy checked and this was not the source.  Only running a TV camera down our outlet will identify the problem.

This afternoon I took a nap.  After the nap I read news headlines on my iPad.

Because of our heavy lunch at church we had a light dinner.   I had a cup of yogurt with fresh fruit and Nancy had toast.

Tonight we watched 60 Minutes followed by the last episode of Bosch.  Disappointing finish.  Finished the evening watching Shakespeare and Hathaway.

Missy FaceTimed the evening.  They leave for the east coast Monday.

We finally got hold of Stephen to wish him a Happy Birthday.  He was watching Lucas’s baseball game.  

Orange half moon when checked front yard at 2200.  Temp was in high 70s so I turned the AC on.  Turned it off about 0100 when outside and inside temps were equal.

 

July 17, 2021

 Saturday July 17, 2021

Blog time 1700 sitting in office

Up this morning at 0700.  We dressed and drove to The Gathering Place for breakfast.  When we arrived the place was empty.  When we left 45 minutes later the place was full.  

The food is good.  Nancy had a Western Omelette and I had oatmeal with scrambled egg.  We both had coffee and raisin toast.

Nancy wants another house plant so we drove to Fruitbasket Flowerland.  Wasted time the place was not yet open. 

Nancy started the laundry and I put on bike clothes and headed to Ada.  Stopped at Ada Bike.  The store is completely out of inventory.  If I wanted to order a new bike I would probably not receive it until 2023.  Sad.  

To avoid some steep hills I took the long route home.  Total miles today, 14.5

Showered and shaved before lunch.  This afternoon I finished reading the news.  I have subscribed to Apple’s A+ News.  It provides me with headline stories from USA, UK and Canadian papers.  Good investment.

Found time this afternoon for a nap.  

For dinner I drove to JT’s Pizza for a medium ham and pineapple pizza.  Very, very good.

Talked with both Debbie and Missy this evening.  Nancy also had a talk with Akerke.

Missy and Akerke are headed to the East Coast next week.  They are leaving on Monday’s Red Eye.

For viewing this evening we watched an episode of Brokenwood Mysteries.  This season the episodes have not been very good.  Finished the evening  watching episode 7 of Bosch.  One more episode left in what they claim is their final season.

Noted a bright half moon when I made my 2200 check of our courtyard.  Good News! the Robins finally have chicks in their nest.

July 16, 2021

Friday July 16, 2021

Blog time 1220 at Panera

Nancy has an early MVP class so I set the alarm for 0630.  Nancy left at 0700.

I did all my calisthenics at home.  Breakfast of oatmeal and banana.  

Hopped on my Cannondale Bad Boy and took my 10.5 mile route.  No critters were seen.  At home I showered and then drove to Panera.

 As usual Panera was cold.  I took a sweater.  If not for the real cheap coffee I would find another coffee house.

Left Panera at noon and headed home.  Quick lunch and then we drove to the Tanger’s Outlet Mall.  I bought a pair of Sketchers cushioned shoes.  Nancy came up empty handed.

I finished the afternoon with a nap.  

For dinner tonight Nancy fixed a Cod TV dinner she had purchased at Trader Joe’s.  Also had peas, cottage cheese and cup of fresh fruit.  

Debbie FaceTimed this evening.  Everything ok.

Tonight we watched episode 8 of Bosch.  Two more episodes to go in the final season.

Finished the evening watching New Tricks.  I think we have about our 8 more seasons.  Good! New Tricks is my favorite show.

Robins have made a nest on top of our automatic courtyard light.  So far we have not seen any chicks.  I want to look in the nest but Nancy say no.  If chicks hatch will they have time to mature before their parents head south?

When I make my evening courtyard check the automatic light comes on and the Robin takes off.  After I make the yard inspection the Robin returns to the nest.

Speaking of birds we had a dead cardinal on our deck.  We think it crashed into our slider window.  I disposed of the body after saying an appropriate prayer.  

July 15, 2021

 Thursday July 15, 2021

Blog time 1220 at Panera

We both got up this morning at 0700.  This morning Nancy is swimming at MVP.

I checked the weather and rain will start at 1200.  Hot and humid today.

My early morning game plan was to bike to the Y.  Do calisthenics, shower and then bike to Panera.  I would be home before the rain started.

Wrong! Five miles into the ride it started to pour.  I bypassed the Y and headed straight home.  I was soaked when I arrived home.

Kim was cleaning.  I told her that I would quickly shower and head out.  Took a long hot shower.  Dressed and took the Escape to Panera.

This and that:

Today is BASTILLE DAY in France.  July 15, 1789 the King was dethroned.

Schools and masks are a hot topic.  Today I read in the Alpena News that the Alpena School District will not require masks for K-12 students.   Also no masks on buses.

Bad weather is also causing havoc in Germany and Belgium.  Heavy rains are causing serious flooding.

Kim was still cleaning when got home in fact the kitchen floor was still wet from her recent cleaning. 

I set up my mobile computer stand and continued reading.  Finally the kitchen floor was sufficiently dry that I could move the furniture back and have lunch. 

This afternoon I rearranged my office furniture.  I do this about every three months.  

Fell asleep reading in my rearranged office.  Decided to go upstairs and take a real nap.

Akerke Facetimed Nancy late this afternoon.  They had a nice talk.  Akerke has been practicing drawing human form.  She is getting good.

For dinner we drove to Brann’s.  A lot of empty tables but an hour wait.  No staff.

Next stop was Copper’s Hawk.  Again a lot of empty tables but a two hour wait.  We left.

Drove by Sundance and saw that it was no longer open for dinner.

Finally we stopped Bagger Dave’s a hamburger joint near our house.  Plenty of empty tables.  We both ordered a drink.  Nancy had a cheese sandwich and I had fish and chips.  The food was good.  We will return soon.

Both Debbie and Missy FaceTimed this evening.  Everything ok.

Watched an episode of Bosch this evening.

Checked the front yard at 2200.  Everything ok.  Set the alarm and headed to bed.

About midnight we heard a noise on our deck.  Looked out and it was a raccoon.  I thought I had scared it away.

At 1300 we again heard movement on our deck.  Looked out and there were two raccoons on deck.  This time I grabbed a stick and opened the slider.  

Loud screech, I had set the alarm off.  I had to hustle to get it shut off.  Within a minute of getting the alarm off I get a call from the Security Firm, EPS.  I told them everything ok.  Of course the raccoons were gone when I checked again.

July 14, 2021

 Wednesday July 14, 2021

Blog time 1630 sitting in office.

Today is Breakfast Club Wednesday. Up with alarm at 0530.  Performed some calisthenics and then got dressed and headed downtown to the University Club.  The meeting started at 0700.

Great turnout today.  The breakfast food was great.  It is served Buffet style.

The speaker today canceled at the last minute.  However, the substitute was great.  I can’t remember her name but she is head of the GR Real Estate Brokers and also is a real estate agent.  She talked about the current confusing real estate market and explained all the problems and eventual solutions.  Excellent talk.

At home I finished calisthenics.  Today is my easy day so the calisthenics were at 50% as was my bike ride.

After the ride I showered and drove to Panera for coffee and some reading.  Not much news that I want to comment on except my ex Navy friends are disappointed in the sorry state of readiness for our Navy.  Risk adverse, top down management that takes front line Captains out of the loop.  No mistakes allowed, the top brass says One and Done.  This is stupid several famous WWII Admirals made mistakes early in their careers and were forgiven.

The Navy is up to date on diversity and other woke programs but their ship handling skills are horrible.  We hope the recent report is a wake up call.

At home I had a quick lunch.  Being Wednesday I did a load of laundry and took out the trash.  Also had time for nap.

It is now 1700 and Nancy just got back from her shift at the Gardens.  She said they were not very busy.

We had our normal Wednesday cereal dinner with a great bowl of fresh Mi fruit.  Fruit this time of year is great.

Watched the News and then switched to BritBox.  Tonight we watched a 1981 UK cop show set in Jersey.  It stars John Nettles from MidSomer.  We gave it a B-.

Debbie FaceTimed this evening.  She said that she had ordered a new iPad Pro for me.  I replied the check is in the mail.  

It was muggy when checked front yard at 2200.  Rain predicted for tomorrow.

July 13, 2021

Tuesday July 13, 2021

Blog time noon at Panera

Up this morning at 0645.  Looked outside and saw puddles so I knew we had a shower last night.  Neither of us heard it rain.

Nancy is swimming this morning.  She left home at 0800.  I stayed home and did calisthenics.  Slowly I am getting back to 100%.  This morning I was at 80%.

Breakfast and then headed out on my morning bike ride.  Today I will not stop at Panera but complete the ride, shower and then drive to Panera.  

Today I took 40 year old single speed bike.  I like the bike’s geometry and handling.  The route I use does not have many hills so pedaling is easy.  I rode 10.5 miles.

At home I showered and shaved.  Drove the Fusion to Panera.

While at Panera it started to rain hard.  Glad I did not take bike.

It is now 1230 and I am heading to Meijer’s. It being the 13th I will buy a lottery ticket.

Nancy this noon is having lunch with friends.  This evening we are having dinner at Mary Namey’s.  Some of Mary’s family is visiting from Virginia.

Lunch and then spent time in office reading.  No nap this afternoon. Nancy and I did make a short trip to our banks. 

At 1700 we drove to Mary Namey’s for dinner.  Mary’s daughter-in-law was visiting.  She is also a Mary Namey.  In fact it was young Mary who prepared the dinner.

Linda and Tom Moleski, and Judith Collier from Book Club were also in attendance.  The food was great as was the conversation.  The one thing I noted was no cell phones were visible.  We left for home at 2130.  A very pleasant evening.

No TV tonight.  As soon as we got home I checked the front yard and headed straight to bed.

July 12, 2021

Monday July 12, 2021

Blog time 1500 sitting in office:

I am back after taking a month off from blog writing.  It was a nice break.  

We left for Ca on Monday June 14.  We flew from GR to San Jose with a stop in Denver.  We came home on the 4th of July.  Every flight we were on was 100% full.

Debbie picked us up at the airport.  The San Jose airport is just a short distance from Debbie’s home in the Willow Glen area of SJ.

Spent 6 days in SJ.  Every morning I would walk to Starbucks for oatmeal and coffee.  Alway brought a cup home for Nancy.

Debbie worked every day we were in CA.  She is working from home, 100%.  

Debbie just acquired a new dog.  Her name is Violet, a Border Collie/Shepard mix.  She weighs 45 pounds.  Nancy and I spent many enjoyable hours walking Violet.  

The weather during our entire stay in Ca was perfect.  Clear, blue sky every day.  Temperature  in high 70s and occasionally in low 80s.  

San Jose is very bike friendly. Every day I would jump on Debbie’s bike and take a 14 mile ride on the Los Gatos Creek trail near her house.  

One day on my way home from my ride I encountered a detour. I got very confused on the detour.  Rode through the streets of Campbell, Ca but even the busy streets have bike lanes.  Ended up riding 26 miles, a long ride for me.

The Willow Glen neighborhoods has many great restaurants.  Several nights we sat outside and enjoyed the great weather.

On Saturday June 19 we headed south to the LA area.  Debbie booked us an Air B & B in Marina Del Ray.  

Debbie drove and I sat in the back seat with Violet.  Except for one episode of car sickness Violet travelled well.

On our way south we passed several water reservoirs.  They were very low.  The drought in CA is very serious.  I am sure most residents would gladly sacrifice a day of sunshine for rain.

Heading south on I 5 we passed through miles of some of the most productive farm land in the USA, the San Joaquin Valley.  Even with irrigation the farmland looked parched.  It was 105+ degrees in the valley both going south and two weeks later going north.

During our stay we visited daughter Missy and Granddaughter Akerke in the Brentwood area of LA and son Stephen, his wife Veronica and kids, Lucas and Alessandra, in Long Beach.

Nancy and I tried to evenly split our time between Missy and Steve’s family.  We think successfully.

Missy belongs to the California Yacht Club which is located in Marina Del Rey a short distance from the air B and B.  We had several evening meal with Missy and AJ at the Club.  We sat outside and had a light meal with drinks.

One afternoon we visited Missy’s store in LA.  The store sells Women’s modesty clothing and is located in a pleasant commercial district.  

Our Air B&B had a nice size swimming pool so AJ went swimming on several days.

Missy found a hole in the wall ice cream store near our rental. After dinner several evenings we had ice cream and frozen yogurt at the Penguin.  Superior ice cream.

We watched several of Grandson Lucas’s baseball games.  His summer seems to be consumed by baseball and soccer.  One one day he had two baseball games and a soccer game. 

However, Lucas has developed a fondness for fishing.  Some thing his father or grandfather never developed. 

Granddaughter Alessandra stayed with Debbie the first week we were in Marina Del Rey.  The second week she had a summer camp.

On Friday the 19 we attended Lucas’s Confirmation into the Catholic Church.  It was a nice ceremony.  After, we all had a nice meal at a local restaurant.

Every day Nancy and I would take Violet for several walks around the Marina.  Marina Del Rey is a big marina loaded with hundred of big boats.  Nice place to walk and people watch.  Most of the residents in our area were young.  We saw few young children.  Most residents had a dog.  The area was nice but we missed lawns and small critters, squirrels and rabbits.

You are not going to believe this.  Bob and Nancy did not watch any TV for three weeks.

Some general comment on CA.

Boy, do they need rain!

The homeless problems is getting worse.

I saw more Tesla sedans than Ford or Chevys.

Everything is organic.  I don’t think I could have gotten a cup of non organic coffee.

Noted the Californians were good about wearing masks.

Can’t beat the weather.

Michigan is green, California is brown.

The State is too damn WOKE!

We arrived back home late on the 4th.  We saw a lot of fireworks displays from the plane.  Milwaukee was best.

Spent the first week home just catching up and getting rid of jet lag. 

This morning we got up at 0630.  Nancy had class at MVP at 0830.  I drove her in the Fusion.  Drizzle with temps in 60s.

Last week the Escape was involved in a minor parking lot bump.  The Escape drives ok but I wanted it checked out.  Wanted to make sure the Escape was ok to drive.

While Nancy attended her class I headed to Panera for coffee and a chance to do some newspaper reading.

Picked Nancy up and we drove to the Hanger Clinic near the new Metro Hospital.  The Hanger Clinic makes foot braces, etc. Nancy met with some technicians and they decided she did not now need a foot brace.

Dropped Nancy at home and then drove the Escape to Ford dealer. They looked at the front grill and said the car was safe to drive.  Good news!  Will take the Escape in next week for some grill work.

At home took a 10 mile bike trip.  Intermittent light drizzle during ride.  Shower and then Lunch.

 Spent some of the afternoon reading.  I did find time for a nap.

Monday night so we had cereal for dinner.  Watched the news and then an episode of Bosch on Prime.  Nancy headed to bed and I spent some time reading the WSJ.

Checked the courtyard at 2200.  All clear.  While we were away a Robin made a nest on top of our motion detecting light.  Our movements do not seem to deter her.