The alarm goes off at 0646 and both Nancy and I continue in bed until the snooze goes off. We make it to the MAC in time to be the first ones in the pool at 0800. I swam my 45 minutes (1500 yards). For the first time in a month I swam with no pain and it felt good. As usual Nancy and I head to Meijers for our weekly supplies. Nancy is also buying supplies for AJ who we expect to arrive in MI some time towards the end of the week. Of course she had to buy some treats for Ms P. I topped off the gas tank on the Taurus. We need a full tank for our trip tomorrow to Mt Pleasant. Gas was $2.46 per gallon.
Since I mentioned the price of gas let me start a short rant. The US should put a $40 per barrel tax on imported oil. I would not tax North American oil. The US should remove all troops from the Middle East. If congress wants to keep troops in the Middle East they should impose a mandatory draft and a war tax. Nuclear waste should be moved to Yucca Mt immediately.
At the MAC I talked to the owner of Flanagan's downtown. I asked about the impact of the art contest. He said it had doubled his business and his biggest fear on Saturday was running out of food. I forgot to mention, in yesterday's blog, that while kayaking I noted that the water temperature was at least 10 degrees warmer than the air temperature. It is a strange feeling when my hand got near the water I could feel the heat radiating from the water. In the spring it is the other way around.
After a breakfast of Nancy's world famous poached eggs I took a short nap. When I got up I mowed the grass. It took slightly less than 2 hours. The GPS said that I walk 1.5 miles while cutting the grass. It is now 5:47. I am writing early so I can watch the National Park special.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a clear and warm Tuesday. GG only noted that he husked corn.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Saturday September 26, 2009
Nancy wakes me up at 0630 and asks if I set the alarm. I had set the alarm for 0636. She could have slept 6 more minutes. I get up and started my Saturday routine when I hear Tasha waking. I ask Tasha if she wants to go to breakfast. Of course she said yes. So I took the $10 certificate we won at the OHNA Ice Cream Social and head for Wolfgang's. Today Tasha is heading for Kazakhstan and what I hope is the last leg of her big adventure.
After breakfast I realize that I have several hours until I have to take Tasha to the airport so I load the kayak in the Aztek and head for Reeds Lake. It was overcast with a slight mist in the air. I saw a lot of turtles looking for their last meal before spring. In fact I saw the grand daddy of all snappers. I think its shell was 27" long. I also saw several muskrats. The critters come out after all boaters and water skiers leave. It was very pleasant on the water. It takes an hour to paddle around the lake.
At 1130 I take Tasha to the airport for her 1315 flight. My next stop is the Apple store to buy a wireless printer for Nancy's new Apple. The kid said that an idiot could install the printer. I did, however, have to go to the web to download the printer drivers. The kid was right, it took awhile but I got the printer to work. I spent about an hour playing with the computer. I think it is easy to use.
This evening Nancy and I headed to Russ' for soup and a hamburger. We were the youngest people there. After dinner we drove downtown to look at some of the outdoor art. Downtown was jammed. People were walking around with their maps of where the art displays were located. The downtown eating establishments have to be happy. Business looks to be booming.
It is now 2147 and I am finishing writing the blog. Ms P has been very sad since Tasha left and I hope tomorrow her spirits will improve.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. GG wrote that it was clear and warm with the temperature reaching 80. In the afternoon cousin Glen and aunt Laura went to garden and picked 4 bushel of corn. GG noted that they received no paper today and that it looks like war in Europe.
After breakfast I realize that I have several hours until I have to take Tasha to the airport so I load the kayak in the Aztek and head for Reeds Lake. It was overcast with a slight mist in the air. I saw a lot of turtles looking for their last meal before spring. In fact I saw the grand daddy of all snappers. I think its shell was 27" long. I also saw several muskrats. The critters come out after all boaters and water skiers leave. It was very pleasant on the water. It takes an hour to paddle around the lake.
At 1130 I take Tasha to the airport for her 1315 flight. My next stop is the Apple store to buy a wireless printer for Nancy's new Apple. The kid said that an idiot could install the printer. I did, however, have to go to the web to download the printer drivers. The kid was right, it took awhile but I got the printer to work. I spent about an hour playing with the computer. I think it is easy to use.
This evening Nancy and I headed to Russ' for soup and a hamburger. We were the youngest people there. After dinner we drove downtown to look at some of the outdoor art. Downtown was jammed. People were walking around with their maps of where the art displays were located. The downtown eating establishments have to be happy. Business looks to be booming.
It is now 2147 and I am finishing writing the blog. Ms P has been very sad since Tasha left and I hope tomorrow her spirits will improve.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. GG wrote that it was clear and warm with the temperature reaching 80. In the afternoon cousin Glen and aunt Laura went to garden and picked 4 bushel of corn. GG noted that they received no paper today and that it looks like war in Europe.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Friday September 25, 2009
Friday and today I am changing my routine. I slept in until 0700 and then performed my normal routine except I did not use the rowing machine. Instead I ran to the MAC, a distance of 2.4 miles. I performed the rest of my exercises and then ran home. I wore my GPS so I got a good reading on the distance, 2.4 miles x 2 = 4.8 miles. This is the longest I have run in a year. My average speed, however, was disappointing. My average time per mile was 11 minutes. This is quite slow. After the run and a shower I rode the AT to the Kava House.
Kim came and cleaned the house today. Last week Nancy bought a new vacuum cleaner and Kim gave it a grade of 3.8. After lunch I took a short nap. I got an invoice today from my CPA for work done in March. I thought I had paid the bill, in fact, I wrote paid on the original invoice. I checked my cancelled checks on-line and sure enough I forgot to pay. I rarely forget to pay a bill and I immediately called and asked if there would be a late fee charge. He was great and said no. I sent the check today.
I bought Nancy an Apple imax computer for her birthday. It came today and I set it up. It was really easy. She is up and running and getting email. Sasha helped me pick out the machine. I am grateful for her assistance.
This evening Nancy and I attended a OHNA open house for all the new neighbors. It was well attended and the neighborhood is filling up with young families. This is great.
Tonight Tasha is coming with Ms P. I am writing this blog and expecting them to arrive any minute. Tomorrow Tasha is heading to Kazakhstan. Ms P will be in our care for about a week.
Ossineke, MI this week in 1938. It was a clear warm Sunday. GG drove to a local orchard and purchase 2 bushel of apples for $1.95. They then drove to my grand parents and gave them 1/2 bushel of apples and 2 pounds of honey.
Kim came and cleaned the house today. Last week Nancy bought a new vacuum cleaner and Kim gave it a grade of 3.8. After lunch I took a short nap. I got an invoice today from my CPA for work done in March. I thought I had paid the bill, in fact, I wrote paid on the original invoice. I checked my cancelled checks on-line and sure enough I forgot to pay. I rarely forget to pay a bill and I immediately called and asked if there would be a late fee charge. He was great and said no. I sent the check today.
I bought Nancy an Apple imax computer for her birthday. It came today and I set it up. It was really easy. She is up and running and getting email. Sasha helped me pick out the machine. I am grateful for her assistance.
This evening Nancy and I attended a OHNA open house for all the new neighbors. It was well attended and the neighborhood is filling up with young families. This is great.
Tonight Tasha is coming with Ms P. I am writing this blog and expecting them to arrive any minute. Tomorrow Tasha is heading to Kazakhstan. Ms P will be in our care for about a week.
Ossineke, MI this week in 1938. It was a clear warm Sunday. GG drove to a local orchard and purchase 2 bushel of apples for $1.95. They then drove to my grand parents and gave them 1/2 bushel of apples and 2 pounds of honey.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Thursday September 24, 2009
It was cooler this morning. Temperature was in the high 50s. After the at-home routine I got on the all terrain (AT) bike and headed for the MAC. This was my first ride with the new coaster brake. I even got someone to say, nice bike. After the MAC I headed to the Kava House to read the DFP and WSJ. I stopped the NYT and loaded the WSJ. It has been a week since I charged the Kindle and I got a message saying the battery was low. I did get my reading done.
This afternoon I ran several errands. I stopped by Alger Schwinn to get some valve caps for my bikes. I made a template of the glass table top and delivered it to West MI Glass to get a new top made. My final stop was Todd Wenzel Pontiac to get my oil changed. Pontiac recommends changing the oil every 3,000 miles or 3 months whichever comes first. This has been the first time 3 months came first. I walked around the yard and looked at some cars. Wenzel is a high volume dealer and with Pontiac gone can they sell enough Buick and GMC vehicles?
Tonight Nancy and I are going to Great Lakes Shipping for dinner. I do not think we will sit outside.
Every day I check my sceco and rhs email. In the past month I have not received any work related emails. As dugout Doug would says "old civil engineers never die they just fade away".
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a clear, warm Saturday. GG picked peaches in the morning and brought in some ice. He also picked some Hubbard squash. In the afternoon he cut 2 Norway pines for fire wood. He also spent some time husking corn. After supper he brought in 1/2 bushel of musk melon.
This afternoon I ran several errands. I stopped by Alger Schwinn to get some valve caps for my bikes. I made a template of the glass table top and delivered it to West MI Glass to get a new top made. My final stop was Todd Wenzel Pontiac to get my oil changed. Pontiac recommends changing the oil every 3,000 miles or 3 months whichever comes first. This has been the first time 3 months came first. I walked around the yard and looked at some cars. Wenzel is a high volume dealer and with Pontiac gone can they sell enough Buick and GMC vehicles?
Tonight Nancy and I are going to Great Lakes Shipping for dinner. I do not think we will sit outside.
Every day I check my sceco and rhs email. In the past month I have not received any work related emails. As dugout Doug would says "old civil engineers never die they just fade away".
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a clear, warm Saturday. GG picked peaches in the morning and brought in some ice. He also picked some Hubbard squash. In the afternoon he cut 2 Norway pines for fire wood. He also spent some time husking corn. After supper he brought in 1/2 bushel of musk melon.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Wednesday September 23, 2009
Wednesday is first full day of fall and also Breakfast Club day. This morning the talk at the table was the art contest being held in GR. I was surprised that almost all the guys had made an effort to see some of the art work. I thought when the contest was first proposed that it was kind of dorky. Now, however, I think it is a great idea.
The Breakfast Club meetings are held at the Women's Civic Club on the SW corner of Fulton and Lafayette. The breakfast is buffet style with scrambled eggs, meat, waffles, oatmeal and assorted fruits. The food alone is reason enough to join. Today a big announcement was made about the marriage of John Horbach, the retired city engineer, and another breakfast club member, Darla. A special cake was prepared and served. The cake was great.
After breakfast I stopped by the post office to send a birthday gift to LA. Today the sprinkler company was stopping by to winterize the system. They said a service man would arrive some time between 10 and 1. Surprise! The service man arrived at 0945 and was finished in 15 minutes. Since it was still morning, I took out my Kindle and started reading the DFP. I immediately fell asleep. So to rectify this problem I took an hour nap. I woke at 1130 and got on the retro and pedalled to the MAC for a 30 minute swim.
I had two errands to run this afternoon. First I stopped by the Grand Rapids Bicycle Company and picked up my all-terrain bike. I had a coaster brake installed and the caliber brakes removed. I love coaster brakes and now all 3 of my bikes have these brakes. The 2nd errand was to take the end table, that had its glass top destroyed, to a shop for repair. I headed to Mid West Glass and they are going to make a new glass top.
Tonight is cereal night and Nancy and I watched the news as we ate. Except when we have company, Nancy and I always eat in the kitchen. At 8 a new show called Mercy was on and I watched 30 minutes. I did not like it. Last night Nancy and I watched a new show called NCIS LA. It is a spin off of NCIS. The show was terrible. It was phony macho and I think the intended audience was 14 year old boys. I gave it a 0.77.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a warm and clear Friday. In the morning GG and GGM drove to Alpena. GG deposited $100 in the bank and then bought some chicken feed. He also mentioned that he traded at the A&P. "Traded" was GG's word. GG last entry was "preacher home, Huey and Jim cut rest of corn".
The Breakfast Club meetings are held at the Women's Civic Club on the SW corner of Fulton and Lafayette. The breakfast is buffet style with scrambled eggs, meat, waffles, oatmeal and assorted fruits. The food alone is reason enough to join. Today a big announcement was made about the marriage of John Horbach, the retired city engineer, and another breakfast club member, Darla. A special cake was prepared and served. The cake was great.
After breakfast I stopped by the post office to send a birthday gift to LA. Today the sprinkler company was stopping by to winterize the system. They said a service man would arrive some time between 10 and 1. Surprise! The service man arrived at 0945 and was finished in 15 minutes. Since it was still morning, I took out my Kindle and started reading the DFP. I immediately fell asleep. So to rectify this problem I took an hour nap. I woke at 1130 and got on the retro and pedalled to the MAC for a 30 minute swim.
I had two errands to run this afternoon. First I stopped by the Grand Rapids Bicycle Company and picked up my all-terrain bike. I had a coaster brake installed and the caliber brakes removed. I love coaster brakes and now all 3 of my bikes have these brakes. The 2nd errand was to take the end table, that had its glass top destroyed, to a shop for repair. I headed to Mid West Glass and they are going to make a new glass top.
Tonight is cereal night and Nancy and I watched the news as we ate. Except when we have company, Nancy and I always eat in the kitchen. At 8 a new show called Mercy was on and I watched 30 minutes. I did not like it. Last night Nancy and I watched a new show called NCIS LA. It is a spin off of NCIS. The show was terrible. It was phony macho and I think the intended audience was 14 year old boys. I gave it a 0.77.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a warm and clear Friday. In the morning GG and GGM drove to Alpena. GG deposited $100 in the bank and then bought some chicken feed. He also mentioned that he traded at the A&P. "Traded" was GG's word. GG last entry was "preacher home, Huey and Jim cut rest of corn".
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Tuesday September 22, 2009
I woke at 0620 and it was pitch black outside. Today is the first day of fall. There are signs of fall everywhere. The leaves are turning and I have noticed that a lot of trees are dropping their leaves. Some folks should start raking. Today we have 12 hours of day and 12 of night. For the next three months the days will get shorter and shorter. It is always a little depressing when we have the dark, gloomy days of November. I can remember taking bridge photos at noon in November and the camera's flash would go off. On a plus side the temperature today and for the next week will be in the high 70's.
I cancelled my subscription to the NYT and added the Wall Street Journal. The WSJ cost $15 per month, the same as the NYT. After reading the DFP I did not have time for the NYT. The WSJ has a lot of short articles that give me an idea of what is happening in the business world.
After the Kava House I ate a quick lunch and then headed for Gazelle Sport to buy a new pair of running shoes. My old shoes were showing some serious wear. I also got gas at Costco, $1.42 per gallon and bought some storage baskets at Staples. The weather has been so nice that I have not yet put away my summer clothes or brought out the cold weather clothes. Maybe I will do it next week when the weather cools a bit. I finished the afternoon with a 3.25 mile walk.
For dinner this evening Nancy cooked a pasta dish with green beans, corn and chicken. It was good. I am doing the blog early tonight because we have 2 hours of new NCIS programs.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a warm, clear Thursday with no frost. In the morning GG and GGM cut and picked corn. In the afternoon GG cut and stacked some oak in the barn for the little stove. He took 2 Norway stumps to the wood machine. GG and GGM also visited my grand parents in Hubbard Lake.
I cancelled my subscription to the NYT and added the Wall Street Journal. The WSJ cost $15 per month, the same as the NYT. After reading the DFP I did not have time for the NYT. The WSJ has a lot of short articles that give me an idea of what is happening in the business world.
After the Kava House I ate a quick lunch and then headed for Gazelle Sport to buy a new pair of running shoes. My old shoes were showing some serious wear. I also got gas at Costco, $1.42 per gallon and bought some storage baskets at Staples. The weather has been so nice that I have not yet put away my summer clothes or brought out the cold weather clothes. Maybe I will do it next week when the weather cools a bit. I finished the afternoon with a 3.25 mile walk.
For dinner this evening Nancy cooked a pasta dish with green beans, corn and chicken. It was good. I am doing the blog early tonight because we have 2 hours of new NCIS programs.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a warm, clear Thursday with no frost. In the morning GG and GGM cut and picked corn. In the afternoon GG cut and stacked some oak in the barn for the little stove. He took 2 Norway stumps to the wood machine. GG and GGM also visited my grand parents in Hubbard Lake.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Monday September 21, 2009
Once again I slept in until 0640 this morning. I thought today was the first day of fall but I guess it is tomorrow. It was very humid this morning. Of course it was raining. The morning routine went as normal. I did not get home from the Kava House until 1300. I was surprised that the DFP did not have much local news. Is the Kindle edition different from the print? I will have to check.
So far this afternoon I have checked my email and looked at maps of Munich and surrounding cities. I was surprised that Prague, Vienna, and Zurich are less than 5 hours from Munich. We are thinking of getting a rail pass.
I am heading to the mall to see if I can find a fall jacket. LL Bean has one I like but I want to see if I can get a similar one locally. Most of the stores had a jacket that was similar to LL Bean but lack at least one feature that I liked. I came home empty handed.
I then took a 3.25 mile walk. I wore my GPS and it said my average walking speed was 19' 30" per mile. At Nancy's reunion I met a classmate that was into distance walking. She could walk fifty miles and average about 14 minutes per mile. My running pace is 10' 30" per mile.
For dinner tonight I had Original Shredded Wheat. The original has large biscuits and is unsweetened. My grandfather loved Shredded Wheat. I think he liked their high fiber content. Even in the 50's old folks needed their fiber.
Nancy and I watched the 2 hour "House" TV show tonight. I also read an article on Hank Paulson that was featured in Vanity Fair. I enjoyed the article and was surprised by Paulson's favorable comments on Representative Franks and the House Speaker.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a rainy Wednesday. GG worked in the garden picking and cutting corn. The rain drove him home.
So far this afternoon I have checked my email and looked at maps of Munich and surrounding cities. I was surprised that Prague, Vienna, and Zurich are less than 5 hours from Munich. We are thinking of getting a rail pass.
I am heading to the mall to see if I can find a fall jacket. LL Bean has one I like but I want to see if I can get a similar one locally. Most of the stores had a jacket that was similar to LL Bean but lack at least one feature that I liked. I came home empty handed.
I then took a 3.25 mile walk. I wore my GPS and it said my average walking speed was 19' 30" per mile. At Nancy's reunion I met a classmate that was into distance walking. She could walk fifty miles and average about 14 minutes per mile. My running pace is 10' 30" per mile.
For dinner tonight I had Original Shredded Wheat. The original has large biscuits and is unsweetened. My grandfather loved Shredded Wheat. I think he liked their high fiber content. Even in the 50's old folks needed their fiber.
Nancy and I watched the 2 hour "House" TV show tonight. I also read an article on Hank Paulson that was featured in Vanity Fair. I enjoyed the article and was surprised by Paulson's favorable comments on Representative Franks and the House Speaker.
Ossineke, MI this date in 1938. It was a rainy Wednesday. GG worked in the garden picking and cutting corn. The rain drove him home.
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