Thursday April 30, 2015

Thursday April 30, 2015 April is over already. Time does fly. On this date in 1961, it was a Sunday and I wrote my Mother. I told Mom that I was no longer a civilian. On Wednesday, the 26th, I raised my hand and was sworn into the United States Navy. I was now Officer Candidate Seaman Apprentice Scott, USN. I already had my airplane tickets to OCS at Newport, RI. This will be my first flight on a commercial airline. I thanked Mom for my birthday present a pair of PJ. I then went on to complain that they were the wrong size. I was kind of a jerk. Friday night I went to see Mein Kauf. It was about Nazi concentration camps during WW II. I was interviewed after the movie by a local radio station. I did not give the radio guy the answer he wanted and we had words. Saturday night I went and saw “A Raisin in the Sun”. I liked it. I went on to say that by the time I leave for the Navy I will be debt free. The Navy recommended I have some money for the first month. I will have the amount recommended. I think my pay at OCS is $80 per month. Back to 2015: today is swim day for Bob and Nancy. The sun was out bright at 0640 today. Nancy left at 0730 and I stopped at Panera for coffee. At 0930 I got on my bike and headed to MVP. The pool was crowded this morning but I did find an empty lane. I swam my 20 laps. Nancy today swam a mile. Great Job Nancy. I used my iPhone holder on my bike handle and measured the distance home, 3.76 miles. I did stop at Starbucks so I could finish the WSJ. When I got home I looked for Nancy and found her asleep in a chair on the deck. The sun was beating down on her. I grabbed Ms P and we went on our walk. The dryer repairmen came this afternoon. They replaced some defective parts on the dryer. I got cold swimming so I took a short nap under the electric blanket. Both Nancy and I get very cold swimming even though the pool water temp is about 76. Water temp at the old MAC was in the 80s. I actually like the cooler water for swimming.

Wednesday April 29, 2015

Wednesday April 29, 2015 Got up at 0555 because today is Breakfast Club. It was daylight when I left at 0630. Very small crowd at BC. The group must be getting too old. The average age at the table I sit at is 83. The speaker talked about the new exhibit at the GR Public Museum. It is about King Tut. I really am not a big fan of ancient Egypt. After BC I drove to Breton Village for coffee and to read the WSJ. The troubles in Baltimore dominated the US News. The earthquake in Nepal dominated the World news. After coffee I walked over to Fitzgerald’s to look at blazers. My recent weight loss has made my sport coats much too big. I was looking for a summer blazer. They had just what I wanted but much too pricey. I will continue my search later this week. At home I assembled an iPhone 6+ handlebar holder. I can now place my iPhone on the handle bars and use it as a GPS device. Took Ms P on short walk and then did a load of laundry. I had my usual weekday lunch. I took another walk around the block. Nancy is working at the Gardens this afternoon. It is now 1618 and it is suppose to rain soon so I think I will take another walk. Have to get my 10,000 steps in.

Tuesday April 28, 2015

The sun was up at 0638 so when Ms P and I went out at 0700 I had a bright sun in my eyes. It was great. It was 39 when I headed to Panera but it is now 61 at 1650. The cool mornings and then rapid warm up make selecting proper clothes difficult. I do have a back pack so I can remove a layer if I get too warm. I left Panera and biked to MVP. I was worried that I might have a problem getting a lane in the pool. No problem I had my pick. I swam 20 laps but Nancy this morning swam 33 laps. That is over a mile. At home my first chore was to take Ms P on a walk. She is still under the weather so it was a short one. After a quick lunch I took a nap, mainly to warm up. The pool was cold this morning. I spent several hours scheduling appointments for service. We have dryer repair man on Thursday, EPS Security on Friday, Fox Ford and AC folks on May 5. My computer guy is going to email me for an appointment next week. Tonight Nancy and I are meeting the Horling’s at the Grove for dinner. Stay tuned. It was Tuesday but the restaurant was crowded. The food was excellent. I had the white fish and Nancy a beef brisket. The Horlings are great dinner companions.

Monday April 27, 2015

Slept in until 0700. Nancy to MVP and I did the at home stuff. At 0800 called plumber to tell him our drain he cleaned is plugged again. He arrived at 0830 and was done by 1000. I then headed to Panera for morning coffee. After I finished WSJ I got on bike and took 14 mile ride. Ate lunch and then walked Ms P. Spent until 1800 putting together glider. Took dinner break. Finished assembly at 2000. It works. It is now 2100 and we are watching Midsomer Murders on Netflix. High today 54 but tomorrow will reach 64. The warmup continues.

Sunday April 26, 2015

Weekend Update: Saturday April 25: We both slept in. It was too late for Sundance so I had a ham and eggs sandwich at Panera. I see that reporters are asking potential GOP candidates if they would attend the gay wedding of a friend. Several have said no. I certainly would attend a friend’s wedding. A friend is a friend. Enough said. After breakfast I took a bike ride on my standard route. I have said I ride the route backwards but backwards is now the new standard. It is just easier. Spent most of the afternoon setting up for our 1800 dinner party. Nancy left at 0930 to Costco to get a leg of lamb for dinner. She spent most of the day preparing the meal. The guests were all right on time. We opened several bottles of wine and Nancy fixed a cheese spread. It was a tasty before dinner treat. A little wine makes everyone more social. Nancy’s meal went over well. The dinner was also a birthday party for Ed Namey and Bob Scott. Ed was 77 on the 18th and Bob on the 22nd. We had chocolate cake and butter pecan ice cream. I indulged. In fact the chocolate was so good I overindulged. So much for the sugar free diet. I think it is ok for one meal. We retired to the living room to talk. The party ended at 2230. A great day. Sunday April 26: Up at 0655 and got ready for the pool. The pool is always crowded on Sundays so Nancy and I put on our swim suits before we leave. I put my socks in my backpack. We do this so we can be first in the pool. It does not alway work. This morning I shared a lane. However, we both swam 20 laps. Gas a Meijer’s was $2.50 this morning. We did not need many groceries so got home early. We watched some early morning news shows. Nancy fixed her world famous scrambled eggs for breakfast. I took my Sunday nap. After the nap I took Ms P on a mile walk. Aldi’s had a glider on sale today so I drove the Aldi’s and bought one. We got a phone call from our security firm telling us that our downstairs drain backed up. I checked and sure enough it had backed up. This is the same drain we had cleaned last week. The Drain Company said they back up their work for 30 days. Tomorrow we will check. I finished my afternoon activities with a walk around the block. Veronica called this afternoon and gave us an update on the Scott Team in Long Beach. It is now 1750 and I am sitting in the living room writing this blog. Nancy is fixing black beans, chicken and rice for dinner. We will finish reading the GRP and watch 60 minutes this evening. Maybe even a show on netflix. A busy weekend. On a weather note. It is now 56 with some sun. The coming week the high temps will be in the 60s and 70s. No more freezing weather. Good news.

Friday April 24, 2015

Friday April 24, 2015 Retired folks look forward to Fridays as much as working folks. Nancy headed out at 0710 for MVP. She walked a mile on a treadmill and then took the “Healthy Lifestyle” class. Nancy lately has been increasing her swimming distance. Yesterday she swam 1500 meters. I only swim 1,000. Way to go Nancy. This morning I did the at home calisthenics. For the first time in 60 years I did not do neck bridges. My neck has been sore lately so I decided to quit. It has helped. I finished the at home routine with a 15 minute row. I showered and then got on the bike and pedaled to Ada Village, five miles. I had coffee at Hubs. I took time to read the WSJ. I am glad Comcast backed out of the merger. I think Greece should be kicked out of the EU. Kim came today to clean. The house looks great, ready for tomorrow’s party. Nancy and I ran some errands. We stopped at the Cascade library to drop off a book. At Ace Hardware we bought a shovel, Roundup and Preen. Nancy wants to plant a small area in our backyard. The final stop was Costco. Bought a birthday cake and some supplies. Costco did not have a leg of lamb. They promised Nancy that they would have the lamb tomorrow morning at 0930. I have a pair of Merrell shoes that I really like. The model has been discontinued but I was told the Rockford Outlet might have several pairs. I drove to Rockford. The Outlet did not have any. Bummer. I took a short nap and then walked around the block. Ms P is still under the weather but slightly better.

Thursday April 23, 2015

Thursday, swim day for Bob and Nancy. Nancy left at 0700 and after breakfast I pedaled to Panera. I left at 0930 and was in the pool at 1000. Swam my 1,000 meters in 31 minutes. Pedaled straight home because Ms P has an appointment with the Vet at 1220. Ms P has been under the weather lately. The Vet checked her over and concluded that she just had an upset stomach. Ms P got a shot and was given pills that start tomorrow. I took a short nap. For dinner Nancy and I headed to Shepard’s Grill. On the way we stopped at Meijer’s to buy some wine for Saturday’s party. We both had the salad burger for dinner. On the way home we stopped at Macatawa Bank to get some money for Kim. She is coming to clean tomorrow. It is now 2103. We are watching Midsomer Murders on netflix. Think spring!!