Small Talk: The Welcome Mat

[dbklmt]

26 minutes ago, Netfoot said:

Sorry, guys! Stupidly forgot to make the link public! 

It should work OK now...

Couldn't see anything.  Just heard the noises of the wind and something I presume flying?

[Netfoot]

15 minutes ago, dbklmt said:

Couldn't see anything.  Just heard the noises of the wind and something I presume flying?

It's an audio file. The sound was taken in my back yard last night. You can hear raindrops striking the driveway. The other noises are "Pretty Dick" whistling frogs. They were very vociferous last night because it was damp. They are out there whistling away now!

Packing the van for today's trip to the club. Mo sticking close to hand and keeping an eye on the process;

Mo stands on daddy's lap to watch the action on the flight lone line. (windsock visible behind his ear.)

Relaxing on the grass as we pack up to go home again:

Edited June 19, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

First order of the day was to mount the .76 in the engine test stand, hook up a fuel supply and  throttle linkage, and prepare to test it:

We swapped out the pusher prop for a standard 11x7 unit because the pusher blades are harder on the starter cone. One spin of the starter (about ½ a second) and she was running! You can even see the exhaust plume which shows that she is s a little rich. The more fuel you burn the more oil departs via the exhaust, and the "smokier" your exhaust gets.

After some tweaking of the carb jets, she was running beautifully.

So a good job on that motor and a satisfying afternoon at the club.

Edited June 20, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Not a bad day. 

Did a bit more work on my software project. The major stumbling blocks (apart from my poor skill) seems to be the restrictions placed upon me by the operators of my server in...

Actually, I have no idea what part of the USA my server is located. Initially, it was in Hawaii but that was years ago. But the company has relocated me several times, and I don't know where they are now. I know they were in Washington for a while. The state, not the district. Let me do some googling... OK, apparently the data center is in Utah.

And as I was saying, they are very restrictive as to what you can install on your server. They provide a mass of stuff you can use. From an Apache web server to WordPress for blogging, online store, etc. And in between, a full mail server (POP, IMAP and Web), an rdbms... generally if not all the gubbins, a great many gubbins. However, if there is some gubbins that you want to install, they probably won't let you.

For example, they provide the perl language development system (and <retch> python, and Ruby, etc) but when I wanted to install a perl module - of which there are thousands - to predict sun and moon rise/set times plus the phases of the moon, they denied the module. Similarly, several modules that fetch weather data to allow forecasts of windspeed, direction, cloud cover, precipitation and so forth.

So a large part of the difficulties I'm facing is that I sometimes have to reinvent the wheel because the Utahians don't want me to install a third-party wheel that would simplify my task.

The trip to the club was a success, and Mo behaved quite well. I only had to use the electric collar once, and that was to beep/vibrate only. No use of the ⚡zap⚡mode so far. Thank goodness. I feel like such a heel when ever I call him and he stands patiently for me to install his latter day torture device! I let him wear it several times a week So he doesn't associate the collar particularly with going to the club.

Had the balance of last night's pasta for lunch, and sandwiches for dinner. Same as usual: NZ cheddar, tomato, cucumber and thinly sliced raw onion. I ran out of my Red Pepper Flakes mayo, so I made up a new batch of mayo with  cilantro, garlic and just a hint of cayenne. And later? Two Ceylon mangoes. Yep, I never even hinted about them because I forgot all about them, but Austin remembered and brought me a bag.

The house is secure and I'm about to turn out the lights but first I'm going to visit with Mo on his bit of carpet outside by the front door. I wish I could persuade the baby to come to bed. He came into the bedroom this afternoon as I was changing to go out, and we had a delightful cuddle in the bed for about five minutes, but then he decided to leave, and couldn't be persuaded to stay.

Nope. He cuddled when I sat on the floor with him, but he wouldn't follow me back to bed. 😢

Edited June 20, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Mid morning, I wandered into the bedroom for something and Mo followed me in. We had a great cuddle for about 5 minutes and then he looked around the room, and left. 

Didn't do much today other than watch videos and play games. Tuna on biscuits for lunch, and peanut butter and jam for dinner, with two mangos for desert.

I'm planning to cook some soup tomorrow, and have begun by soaking a bag of "soup mix" overnight.

Looks like mostly green, orange and yellow split peas with s few other things thrown in as well. I don't want to blend them, so I want to soak them for a good, long time so they're soft and fall-aparty without needing the blender to help them go mushy. I plan to put in English and sweet potatoes plus carrots. And I will make a big batch of dumplings as well. If I can find any in the fridge, I will put some pumpkin in early, like with the carrots, so it also gets mushy and dissolves into the soup rather than having solid pieces of pumpkin floating around. Just trying to make things come out a little different while using the same ingredients for the most part.

I began sorting through a bunch of old tins of food, discarding those that are obviously too ancient to consider keeping. Some tins were "Best Before" 2017 and one tin was BB 2015 !! I recognize that "Best Before" does not mean "Inedible After" but 5-7 years past is more than I am willing to risk. However April 2022 and even a little earlier (depending on the appearance of the tin) is OK.

Or is it? How far past the BB date do you think is OK?

Frogs are whistling again tonight. But not that many, and not that loud. There is one guy right close to the bedroom window and he is particularly noisy! But the others are very quiet in the background. And I hardly notice even the loud ones if I'm not specifically thinking about it.

We haven't seen an actual crapaud in the garden in weeks and weeks! We don't even bother to take the crapaud bucket with us any more on our pre-bed garden stroll.

Mo has been very sweet all day. He went out and got himself soaking wet when the rain came down, so I fetched his towel and started to dry him off. But he grabbed the towel and had a fight with it, do I left him with it and walked away. He became quite angry that I left him wet and didn't continue to dry him off while he was chewing and shaking the towel. He practically stamped his foot in frustration when I ignored him. Eventually, he brought the towel back to me and stood still long enough for me to give him a rub-down all over, including tummy and feet.

Regretfully, he still won't come to bed. I've put a pillow out by that piece of carpet where he sleeps and hope I don't trip over it any time soon. I'm considering shifting everything around in the bedroom, with the hope that what ever he doesn't like will cease to be a problem. I'll start by removing the crate entirely, as well as the replacement platform I tried. If he wants to sleep with mr, he will have to share this mattress just as Buddy did for years.

Off to sleep, now!

[Spunkygal]

Regarding canned food, I doubt I would eat anything with a BB date of 2015 or 2017. You could open it and sniff and look at it if it’s still under consideration but I don’t think it’s worth the risk! 

I think you’re stressing too much about where Mo is sleeping. In a relatively short period of time (a few months), Honey went from sleeping on the bed with me, to on her bed on the floor in my room to another bed of hers in the den. She finally decided she liked sleeping on her bed in the den the best and for years, that was it. No amount of coaxing to return to my room made her change her mind. Dogs are funny. She was the boss so I just let her sleep where she wanted! 

Bean soup is a particular favorite of mine. Although I associate it with cooler weather, I may go ahead and soak some dried beans for soup this week. I like to put diced smoked sausage or ham in mine. Maybe put a dollop of chow chow on top. Yum.sometimes I’ll throw in some freshly wash greens. My favorite is turnip greens but I never met a green I didn’t like! And I cook it all together in a combination of water and homemade chicken stock. See what you started, Netfoot, I won’t be happy until I fix my bean, sausage, greens soup. I can assure you I won’t be sharing with anyone! .

[Netfoot]

5 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

Regarding canned food, I doubt I would eat anything with a BB date of 2015 or 2017. You could open it and sniff and look at it if it’s still under consideration but I don’t think it’s worth the risk! 

Certainly, all the stuff that old gets dumped. But if something expired within the last year, I consider the condition of the tin before throwing it away. So, stuff dated April '22 or December '21 I'm keeping, unless the can is obviously compromised.

Your bean, sausage, greens soup sounds pretty good. I wish I had some sausage I could add to mine! But I guess I'll all fall back on that old familiar tin of Corned Beef. Thankfully, I actually like the taste of corned beef. 

Edited June 21, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

A couple days ago, with Mo now sleeping on his own in the living room, I took him a pillow. Since then, I've seen him sleeping with his head on the pillow, and this morning, he was curled up entirely on top of the pillow.

Well, I guess he decided the pillow needed some alteration. Because, while my back was turned, he dragged the pillow out into the rain, and 

Edited June 22, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

It's been a damp day, and Mo spent some time bitching at me because I wouldn't make the rain stop. 

Other than the five minutes he took to join me in the bedroom and cuddle, and another five minutes where I sat on what was a pillow on the floor and we played a game involving snuggling and tickling, he spent most of the time out in the garage. 

When ever I went out to look for him he was sitting in the short driveway in front of the van, and it's obvious he wanted to do something. Used to be I'd put Dotty or Bud in the car and we'd just drive across the island and take a swim in the sea down by Bath beach, or something. But with gasoline approaching $17/gal. I just can't do that whenever I want to. And today being wet and dreary, where would I have taken him anyhow? Heidi has refused to have him visit her house (her pack of nasty little Jack Russells wouldn't like it, she says) and I can't think where else he might go. 

But it's not nice to see him languishing. Much rather see him rushing around like a mad thing, à la the two videos I linked a week or so ago.

He's a handsome devil, but he can be difficult to live with. It was an old, beat up pillow, but it was useful for him to sleep on, or at least lay his head on. Or for me to sit on when I get down to play with him on the floor. Just about the cheapest pillow I can buy around here is about $60, and that's assuming prices haven't skyrocketed like everything else, since last time I bought new pillows! And I've got far better things to do with a spare sixty bucks than buy a new pillow for him to sleep on!

Made my bean soup, and my immediate conclusion, drawn before tasting, was that I need a bigger pot! There was no room for diced tomato or dumplings in the first iteration, and I would have liked to add another liter of water to offset the thick state of the beany goodness!

The beans I showed before, after soaking for nearly 24 hours were then set to boiling in stock, with the carrots. I peeled and chopped an onion, and cubed a piece of belly pumpkin and added them next, along with thick slices of sweet potato (white, not the orangey variety). Corned beef went in at this time. Left that lot to simmer while I peeled and diced English potatoes. Don't usually peel spuds but today I felt to.

Apart from some Bajan seasoning I added cayenne and garlic powder and salt to taste. I had a big, hot bowl for lunch and it went down very well, considering the rainy nature of the day. It was thick. Like a thin porridge.

Later, as dinner time approached, I went into the kitchen and added diced tomatoes to the pot. Then I put the kettle and a small saucepan of salted water on to boil, and made up a ball of dumpling dough. All-purpose flour, Indian corn flour, lentil powder, salt and garlic went into a bowl and I added water in dribs and drabs until I hit the consistency I wanted. Then I began to roll out lumps of this dough on a floured surface, and making the two types of dumplings I've mentioned before. When about two thirds of the dough had been used (and the dumplings put into the small saucepan to cook), I had an idea.

Grabbing half of the remaining dough, I rolled it into a ball, and pressed it flat, into a disk about 6-7" diameter and ½” thick, and using a sharp knife, I cut it into strips about ¾” wide. Each strip was then cut up to create rectangular dumplings! They looked strange but tasted perfectly normal. When they were cooked, I scooped them into the soup with a slotted spoon, then poured in the water as well, stirring as I went. On top,  a few ounces of boiling water from the kettle and the pot was full again.

So a nice dinner too. And the last of the mangos for dessert. 

The little Monster is sleeping outside tonight. He will be safe from any rain because he has a long garage to find a dry spot in, and he isn't interested in sleeping with me anyhow. He's got food and water out there, and if he can't find anything soft to lay down on, well, that's his own damned fault.

If the day is dry tomorrow and the lads elect for some mid-week flying, I may join them at the club. Mo would enjoy a day out of the house, and I'm not immune to going stir-crazy myself! No, the decision is in no way based on the local mango shortage!

Edited June 22, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Naturally, I went and let him in...

[Netfoot]

After two days of eating carb-heavy soup, I decided tomorrow would be a day for lighter meals. I like to do this every 2-3 days. Anyway, so I scooped the remaining solids (most of them, anyhow) and had them for dinner. I left most of the liquid soup behind, and will have it in a mug tomorrow. More on the soup later.

Went to the club with little Mo, and he was mostly well behaved. I put his buzz-collar on, but didn't have to use it. I don't mean to suggest that the little rapscallion is learning to behave - only to mention that this afternoon he just happened to behave. 

That's  him, standing by the van, and here he is again, sitting near the clubhouse:

He was glad to get out of the house, and honestly, so was I.

Had a good afternoon chatting with Austin and some positive decisions were made.  Also, a couple of youngsters came around and we were glad to see them because they have visited with us before. I think we might get them interested enough perhaps to join.

We were late getting there, though, because when I opened the gate, someone escaped the car and shot out into the road and spent the next 10 minutes cavorting around the neighborhood with me in hot (well, lukewarm, anyway) pursuit.

Edited June 23, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Now, let me tell you about the soup.

I used the bean mix I showed before, and because of all the pretty colours, decided not to run them through the blender, thereby homogenizing them all together. But in the pot, the colours all faded so they weren't pretty to look at in any special sense of the word. And there was no advantage to having the different varieties individually represented. You put a spoonful in your mouth and you taste bean.

So in future, I will use one or at most two types of beans and I will blend them into a near-liquid state after they've cooked a bit. Enough escape the process to leave individual beans in the soup, but it isn't all beans. At lunchtime I had to add a lot of boiling water to make the soup liquid enough to pour. It  had sort of solidified over night.

The reason for this may we'll be that I distinctly found barley in the soup! There's nothing wrong with barley in soup, but I don't think it has any place in a "bean mix". I don't think barley is a pulse or legume. I'm pretty sure it's a cereal or grain.

So in future, instead of buying fancy bean mixes, I will stick to what I know I like. Like lentils. Or black beans. Or a mix of the two. Maybe the occasional batch of split peas in one colour or another: yellow, green or orange. That way I won't get any mystery beans, and no barley will creep in unless I want it to! And I can blend the cooked beans (or a portion of them) to release some if the flavours and get more liquidy soup.

But no more soup for the next few days, anyway. At least, only the mug-drinkable liquid from this latest batch tomorrow, and after that, I dunno what.

We may see a new model at the strip this weekend. Built by a member who has passed away, and changed hands twice since then. It's been around for years, yet as far as I know, it has never flown.

It is a WW-I RAF S.E.5 at about ¼ scale if I remember right. In this case RAF stands for "Royal Aircraft Factory" not Royal Air Force. (There was no Royal Air Force for most of WW-I, just as there was no US Air Force in WW-II.)

Anyway, the aircraft had passed it's ground testing, and is scheduled to fly this weekend. Fingers crossed.

Mo is in but still sleeping in the living room. He will venture into the bedroom to find me during the day and will rough and tumble on bed with me then, but isn't interested in sleeping next to me at night. I don't think it's me -- if I go lie in the floor next to him he will be happy to snuggle then. But my old bones don't sleep comfortably on the tiled floor these days so I won't be doing that too often.

Edited June 23, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Just FYI, here is a photo of the S.E.5 mentioned previously. 

Shown with John, her original builder, who has now passed away.

While it was an undeniable workhorse for the RFC, I always thought this was an ugly aircraft, especially when compared with the Sopwith models of the day: The Pup and Camel, for example.

And to tell you the truth, I think the most iconic aircraft of the era were all flown by the Germans. Anthony Fokker's amazing Dr.1 "Dreidecker" & ground-breaking D-VIII "Flying Razor" as well as the whale-tailed Albatros D.V with it's sexy, curvaceous fuselage  being my favourites, although the French Morane-Saulnier AI also appeals to me -- probably because (like the flying razor) it is a parasol design, and I just have a thing about parasol aircraft.

Still hoping to see the S.E.5 fly on Sunday.

[Netfoot]

So, last night I didn't get my eyes closed until the light of dawn was shining through my window. Don't know why. I was in bed long before that, but my eye-string like it did pop! So tonight, I'm going in early.

Lunch was a mug of soup with fried bread. I burnt myself repeatedly! First, when flipping over the bread I managed to get a finger tip into the hot oil. Then I brushed against the pan itself. Next, I managed to splash some bubbling soup over my hand. And finally, scalded my tongue while sipping the soup! Other wise, the meal went well... Mo certainly was pleased that I fried some bread specifically for him. He enjoyed it so much, he ate half of mine as well. 

Dinner was similar, except there was no more bread in the house so I broached a packet of crackers which, broken up, made good soup fishes. Mo agreed, which is why I had hot breath on my hip for the entire meal.

Hoping to get to PriceSmart tomorrow. The 20 lb. bags of puppy chow are back in stock, and just in time! Mo's current bag is nearly empty. I've been buying smaller - and therefore more expensive - chow out of the supermarket. 

I had a very nice cuddle with him in bed shortly after lunch. He doesn't seem to mind visiting during the day but won't follow me into the bedroom at night. 

I've disposed of the cage. Crate. Folded it up and stashed it in the garage. And the structure on which it sat had gone away as well. What ever it is that keeps him away at night, I hope he forgets about it eventually.

No other news, so let me try a couple pages of my book and see if it can help me to drop off to sleep quickly tonight.

Edited June 24, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

When Buddy was a tiny tot, he used to escape over this low wall. 

I was forced to add some chicken wire to make it difficult for him to get out.

Bud grew up and stopped his escape-artist ways, the wire deteriorated offer over the years, and I never gave it any thought. 

A couple days ago, I noticed a large hole had appeared in the wire. I repaired it quickly, by twisting pieces of the broken wire back together, around the perimeter of the hole. This closed the hole up.

Just a moment ago, I heard a scratching, twanging noise outside. And when I looked, the hole had been reopened and enlarged as the photo shows, if you look closely.

Standing next to the wall in alignment with the hole, was Mo, with a "Who, me?!??" Expression on his face. The little rascal is trying to get out!

I have some more chicken wire in better shape, that I should be able to use to repair the hole by essentially replacing all that shore section of wire. What I do not have, is any bailing wire I can use to attach it. 

Do So fingers crossed I can get the necessary supplies to replace the wire before he makes his escape and picks an argument with a bus.

I can't afford to have him fixed up if he should get himself injured!

Edited June 25, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

This morning at a quarter to get five, Mo woke me up to open the door. Normally, I'd wait for him to do his business and relock the door. But I fancied I could see dawn's first light if of day to the east so I left the door open and went back to bed.

At about half past six, Mo joined me in the bed and we had a really nice, playful cuddle and some snuggles and when I got up around seven, I noticed the wind had blown the door shut.

So, did he come a-cuddling only because he wanted the door open? He was behaving quite differently to how he did at minutes to five!

We went to PriceSmart to buy a 20 lb. bag of puppy chow. It's been out of stock for weeks and their website showed it back in stock. So off we went.

Out of stock. They brought 80 bags, and up to this morning when they opened, they had 11 left. By time I got there at lunchtime, those 11 were gone. 

Damn! Not only did I drive out my $17/gal. gas for nothing, I now have to buy more of the expensive chow to feed him! Well, I picked up some onions, tomatoes, bread, etc but those I could have got much closer to home.

Lunch was sandwiches, but dinner was an experiment. I stuck a couple smallish potatoes in the microwave, and sliced up a small onion into hot oil in a small pan. When the onions were ready I added a tin of my favourite beans and left the mixture at the lowest heat.

Meanwhile, I made up a mixture of corned beef, flour and eggs in a bowl and smooshed it all together. It ended up sticking to everything worse than mad-man's shit to a blanket. (As they say.) I kept adding flour but the stuff remained a sticky mess. So I gave up on trying to un-sticky it and began rolling it into balls. Each ball got slightly flattened and put into a wide pan with a bit of hot oil in it. Eventually I had six of them in the pan, and after a while I flipped them over, and kept flipping back and forth until I liked the colour on each side.

By this time the potatoes were done and I split them in the plate, added a sliver of red butter and beside them, a heap of corned beef... Cakes? Patties? Fritters? Whatcha-muh-call-ems. Poured the bean/onion mix over the spuds, and made myself a lime squash.

But before I could eat, I had to clean sticky corned beef gloop off the entire kitchen as well as myself. Asshole to eyebrows! (As they say.)

Tasted darned good. Six were really too many for me so I didn't eat them all. In a salt bread they would make a nice corned beef burger. Or a fried corned beef cutter. One tin made enough for six burgers, so three meals for me. And I think if the mix wasn't so gloopy I might have been able to make one or two more by making them all a little thinner. As it was I didn't have much control over the patties because half would end up stuck to my hand making the patty smaller, or what was stuck to my hand from the last one would make the next one bigger!

I will do that again, but I want to investigate ways of making the mixture less sticky. Adding more and more flour to the mix didn't seem to be the answer. Maybe breadcrumbs? Who knows?

Mo is now refusing to come into the house at all for bed. Past midnight and he is sitting out by the gate. When I go to talk to him and suggest he comes in, he stares at me woodenly, with no intention of doing as asked. And if I get too close, he runs off into the dark and literally vanishes 4 feet from where I'm standing. He must think I want to grab him and drag him inside. But I sure done don't want to pursue that little rocket-ship around the garden by the light of a torch.

He is literally becoming an unmanageable little boy. He does what he wants and point blank refuses to even consider anything that doesn't appeal.

I'm tired and I want my little boy inside where it's safe. I will go and try again now...

Edited June 25, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Used a duck-herding stick to get him into the house. He then curled up next to the door, and I went to bed. After half an hour or so, I went out and sat next to him, and he climbed into my lap and began playing and cuddling and kissing and snuggling. After 10 minutes of this, I picked him up and took him to bed. 

He played games for half an hour or more. His favourite is pretending I'm a mattress. Or a cushion. He was crushing my lungs, digging his elbows into my ribs and getting tickles, scratches and tummy rubs the whole time. He's dozed off now, and I'm about to put the light out. He will most likely get up and move around during the night, and might even go back out by the front door. But at least now he knows that what ever he was avoiding in the bedroom, crate or otherwise, is no longer a matter for concern.

So now, with The Who (See me, feel me/Listening to you from the Woodstock recording) playing and the puppy curled up behind my knees, the light is going off and I'm going to sleep!

Edited June 25, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Baby stayed with me the entire night until it was time to open up in the morning. There was snuggling galore, all night long!

I repaired the wire that he was trying to break through by adding another layer. It is heavier gauge and not well rusted like what was there to start with. I also used a much heavier wire to attach it. It is such a heavy gauge my wire-twisting pliers won't handle it. I had to twist by hand with a vice-grips. And snipping the twist short was very difficult, especially since I had to snip through a double thickness at the twist.

I don't think Mo will be able to get through that mesh now. Of course, he might still climb (or jump) over the wire...

While I was at it, I reinforced the attachment of the mesh on the gate as well.

Now my back hurts, I am drenched with sweat, my shoulders are sun-burnt and my hand is aching from cutting those twists.

[Netfoot]

I made fried egg cutters for lunch. I broke the yolks and spread them a bit so there would be yolk in every bite. And I placed the bread cut-side down in the pan to crisp up. Some of my home flavoured mayo and the eggs, a sprinkle of Sriracha and a lime squash on the side. Very tasty. Mo will confirm, because he was blowing hot breath on my hip the whole time. Naturally, I can deny him nothing.

I fell asleep waiting for the eggs to cook. Dropped my phone on the floor and hit my forehead on the desk. (No damages -- it's made of durable wood.) Which is why I'm going to take a nap very soon.

It's a hot day, but it's also windy, and a sweet breeze is coming in that window!

There isn't much of that mayo remaining. Which means I'll want to knock out some more, soon. But what flavours would you suggest? I've got Bajan seasoning, garlic powder (and minced), cayenne, red pepper flakes, cilantro, dried basil, paprika, curry powder, balsamic vinegar, pancake syrup, sesame oil... I don't keep a wide variety of seasonings in the house because there isn't a large variety available in the shops. Any ideas? Maybe if I get some more mangos from Austin I can put one in the blender and have mango and red pepper flakes mayo? But I'm not asking him! If he offers me mangos I'll take them, but I'm not going to ask him. I've already begged him for a nice breadfruit...

Edited June 25, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

I'm feeling sick. My bask back is still burning from the sun this morning. I never did respond well to a sun-scorching, and even less so, since I got the skin grafts. The grafts can't take the sun much at all! And my shoulders and back are all grafted.

I suppose I'm s a dummy for staying out in the sun in just a pair of shorts, but I didn't realize how hot the sun actually was. I suspect a strong, cooling breeze disguised the real state of affairs from me. I'm an idiot. I've been around long enough not to get caught.

Now I think I have a touch of sunstroke.

After lunch I retired to bed and Mo joined me. There was plenty of play, mostly involving him trampolining on my tummy and biting my nose.

 But eventually, I got 40 winks.

I had macaroni for dinner, with s a sauce made from onion and diced tomatoes. No meat - I was thinking of adding some chicken or even fish, but wasn't up to the task. Managed to burn myself with the colander and dump nearly half the pasta on the floor. So Mo made bank, but no lunch for me tomorrow, now.

Mo is laying on the driveway in front of the van. I could herd him inside or pick him up and carry him, but if he prefers to spend the night outside, I don't really object. At least he's quiet and not barking down the neighborhood.

The wind isn't as strong as during the day, but some rain has fallen. This has cooled things down a bit, and brought the whistling frogs out in force.

I'm in bed now, and soon to turn off the light. Took two Panadol and hope to feel better tomorrow. So let me wish you goodnight!

Edited June 26, 2022 by Netfoot

[andidante]

Hope you are feeling better Netfoot!!

[Netfoot]

Rain spoilt play. There was quite a bit of it this afternoon, so everyone decided to give the club a pass today. Austin says Wednesday but Wednesday's forecast is for winds 25 gusting to 31 MPH, so...

I believe Mo was dropped on his head as a puppy. The rain was falling... not bucketing down but not a drizzle, either. Does Mo come in and keep dry and good? Nooo! Mo stands in the rain! Mo finds a comfy spot for himself to lie down on the sodden lawn where the rain can find him! I dry him off with his purple towel, and he not only does run right back out again, he takes the towel with him, so it will become sodden and no use for drying puppies!

Well, I recovered the towel before it could be drenched, took his collar off, and left him to do his own thing. When he needs to dry off, I will dry. When he goes out again, he will get wet again.

It's actually no longer raining (although more may come) and it's just gone dark, with the whistling frogs singing away en masse.

Funniest part was when there was a little thunder. Mo, who was actually inside at the time, went charging out, growling fit to burst! I think he was going to find that thunder and make it understand who was boss around here! Poor Mo never did find the thunder...

All the rain has driven the humidity way up, and it's been a hot day besides. I'm sitting here sweating away. This is one of those times when you feel a cool shower would be nice but you know that when you came out of the shower you would not be able to get dry.

Still feeling fairly rotten. This morning was as bad as last night but as the evening sets in I'm starting to feel a bit better. I had cheese cutters for lunch (English cheddar) and Mo helped me eat them. I think dinner will be simple as well. Either eggs and sausages or perhaps just crackers & cheese. Or maybe sausage and egg with beans? I'm actually fairly hungry but don't feel able to mess about in the kitchen too much so something simple.

[Netfoot]

Cheese & crackers. I just couldn't face lighting the stove and standing over eggs and sausage while they cooked.

Mo is in. It took 5 minutes of persuading, but he's in and the house is secure. He's sleeping by the door, but that's better than damp concrete between the gate and the van. Maybe he will resume his Midnight Snuggler persona but if he doesn't, I am happy he is safe and dry, at least.

Only a thin handful of pages left in my book, Dragonsdawn, about the arrival of the first colonists on Pern, their introduction to thread and the development of dragons to help combat it. I've been reading this book for weeks, usually limited to a couple pages a night. I hope to finish it tonight, and I've already picked my next read: The golden apples of the sun by Ray Bradbury. This is a true classic, first published in 1953!

But if I am to finish Dragonsdawn, I had better end this and get to it!

Edited June 27, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

The Midnight Snuggler struck again, but not actually at midnight. He came a calling around 4AM and played a lengthy game of Tummy Trampoline while alternating between kissing my face and biting my nose. He was as back around 6AM when I opened the door. He scurried out to make sure nobody had stolen his yard, then returned to demand tummy rubs.

Blood sugar this morning was back up again. 5.3 which is still well within the acceptable range, but higher than it has been recently. The median is 5.0 but I prefer it to be under that if possible. Still, it's better than being very high, like when I was in hospital for my surgery. It peaked at 22 in there. Now that was scary! It's been 6 weeks since it was last out if range, and that was a too-low sample (3.9) rather than too high.

For lunch I cooked what I should have cooked last night for dinner: sausages and eggs, with fried tomato and beans with onion. With fried bread on the side, and a lime squash. Don't worry, I deliberately cooked some sausage and fried bread for Mo, and each piece of his fried bread got dipped in the beans.

When making my lime squash, I noticed something. Yesterday I filled all my water bottles. I have four 1-liter bottles for water. When I made the lime squash, I used the last of the water in the last of those bottles. So, four liters in 24 hours, pretty much. (Googling...) The Boffins say 3.7 liters a day is about right, but it seems like much more than I normally drink. I'm the guy who Dr. K. says is perpetually dehydrated! I guess it's just a sign of how hot yesterday was.

It's been dry all day so far, and hot. But now, the temperature has suddenly dropped and the breeze has a distinct flavour of rain. Strange that this would be a surprise to me, seeing as I've been working on a weather forecast data retrieval system all day!

But then, when I was employed at a large company here, I could work with their data all day long ensuring that it was accurately maintained and speedily accessible, but at the end of the day I couldn't tell you anything substantial about the data I'd been staring at all day.

I'm trying to access a weather forecast database to produce a forecast before each flying day or group of flying days and automatically post that forecast on the group chat the day before. Flying days are Saturdays, Sundays, Wednesdays and bank holidays. So I want to post a forecast Friday morning for the upcoming weekend, and Tuesday morning for Wednesday. Holidays will also be included.

So, for example, Christmas falls on a Sunday this year. So the sequence starts on the 24th, which is Christmas Eve but it's a Saturday. The 25th is a Sunday, Monday 26th is Boxing Day, Tuesday 27th is a holiday because Christmas day was on Sunday, and 28th is a Wednesday. So we need a five-day forecast for 24th through 28th, posted to the group on the previous day (Thursday 23rd) in the morning.

The following weekend, new years day falls on a Sunday, so the holiday will be observed on Monday 2nd. Hence a 3 day forecast will be required on the morning of Friday 30 December.

This is so members can decide whether they want to fly powered of go gliding, depending on wind speed & direction. They can then service and charge their equipment to suit. Or, if conditions are expected to be wet/stormy, they can choose to stay at home instead.

I'm lying in bed contemplating a nap. Mo visited earlier but didn't stay long. Boy, that breeze really is sweet! If I'm not careful I will just drop off to slee;&;;++)@+6*"*NO CONNECTION

[Spunkygal]

Netfoot, don’t forget to replace electrolytes when it’s super hot. Water doesn’t always provide enough hydration. I personally like Gatorade Zero. It seems to be lower in sugar/carbs than regular Gatorade or other similar drinks, so always look at the label. About 2 years ago, I had an overnight stay in hospital when I wasn’t feeling well. Come to find out, I needed a few bags of potassium chloride via IV. I apologize if I’ve mentioned this before! I’m so full of great advice that I can’t remember who I’ve shared my helpful advice with! 

[Netfoot]

Naptime at our house:

Good tip, @Spunkygal! Must get some coconut water tomorrow.

Uh-oh! Here comes the rain...

Edited June 27, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

After my nap, I somehow was not as rested as I expected to be. 

The rain came again, and the whistling frogs are singing in chorus. Took Mo for our evening stroll around the yard but didn't dally. We're in for the night and all locked up tight, with Mo near the door and me in bed. In the middle of the night last night, I went into the shower and at the time I checked on baby Mo. At first I couldn't find him, but he was curled up under the chair j usually sit on during the day.

For dinner I made a dinner of linguine with a sauce of chicken, onion, cucumber and tomato, diced and fried in a little olive oil. I'm not sure 'sauce' is the right name here. Anyway, it was seasoned with a very little red pepper flakes and a sprinkle of salt. It was tasty, but I should have made a little more linguine or a little less 'sauce'. 

I dressed the meal with a spoonful of my new mayo. It contains garlic powder, balsamic vinegar and a little maple syrup to offset the vinegar. Also dried basil and rosemary. I like it!

I am low on warfarin so I will visit the pharmacy tomorrow. Also need tea (boiled the kettle only to discover there was no tea left!), lime juice, salt, Worcester sauce and a few other essentials. I also have to have the van roadworthied prior to paying the insurance next month. And I need some #6 washers and a little CA glue.

Finished  Dragonsdawn, so now  ready to start a new book. I was looking at Ray Bradbury but I may have read that only a few months ago. If so, I will dig through the pile and see what I can come up with.

I'm going to tiptoe out and snap a photo of sleepy Mo. Very unlikely he won't hear me coming, but I'll try...

Well, well, well! I asked him if he would like to come and sleep with me, and he hopped right up and followed me back to bed! Now he's leaning against my back. 

Dunno how long this will last, but I will enjoy it while it does!

[Netfoot]

Collected a prescription for warfarin. Didn't see Dr. Kristi; apparently she is in parts foreign. I did send her the picture of Mo with his head resting on my chest. Her response was "So sweet!" Agreed, but what about Mo?!??

Went to the hardware store to buy some #8 washers and a few other related bitz, and a bottle of CA  glue. By time I got back to the van, Mo had pulled his head out opf his collar and was roaming free inside the car. There is a danger that as soon as I open the door, he will make a break for his freedom and be running around in the road between traffic. I tightened his collar a little bit.

Went to the supermarket and bought some supplies as previously described. Also a new bag of dog chow for Mo,  sausages, pak choy, plantains, and fresh thyme. And  because I saw baguettes from Martinique for the first time in years, I treated myself to one, as well as a piece of nice cheese ($11.40, down from $20 the last time I saw it for sale) and two Tiger Malt. I will probably regret that piece of Gorgonzola when I need the $11.40 for something important.

Anyway, I had the baguette and Gorgonzola for lunch and washed it down with a Tiger Malt. Mo likes expensive cheese! No surprise because Budweiser did as well, and so did Dotty in his day.

As I'm writing this, I'm getting messages on the group chat from one of our members (I won't name him but you have heard me speak his name and post his picture and his models more than once.)

His wife and two daughters were at their home in Canada. It seems that the 19 year old son of their neighbor fancied the younger daughter. Last night (presumably after rejection), he stabbed her, her sister and her mother multiple times. 

It's so comforting to know that in Canada now, you can't own a gun to protect yourself. Instead, you have to wait for the police to arrive, so they can shoot the bad guy and one of the victims when they finally get there! We will obviously never hear definitively whether Mom got killed by knife or gunshot wound. Or in fact we probably will hear definitively, but just won't know whether to believe it or not.

Mom and youngest daughter dead, eldest daughter in hospital with "multiple serious stab wounds," She is in serious condition with injuries thankfully not thought to be life-threatening.

I don't know what to say. The girls were sweet, gifted young women who, in this, took after their mother. I don't even know what to say to my friend who has done a great deal for me in recent years, and who I suppose will never get over this no matter how long he may live.

And the bastard dead, so he can't even go kill him with a claw hammer, as I'm sure he would like to do. Hell, he could even have borrowed my hammer, and he wouldn't have had to bother to bring it back.

[Spunkygal]

Oh how horrific! I am sickened to hear of this. 😭 So many truly batshit crazy people out there. Praying for the other daughter’s recovery. I can’t imagine the lifetime of trauma she will deal with. 

Edited June 28, 2022 by Spunkygal

[Netfoot]

3 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

Oh how horrific! I am sickened to hear of this. 😭 So many truly batshit crazy people out there. Praying for the other daughter’s recovery. I can’t imagine the lifetime of trauma she will deal with. 

He is trying to get up to Canada to be with her but his flight has been cancelled. Probably because there is a cyclonic system only a couple hundred miles away to the south (unusual place for it) which is causing all the rain and wind.

The wind was so strong this morning it literally blew my wheelie-bin over. Mo can't keep his butt out of it so he is constantly coming in, loudly demanding to be dried off, then stealing the towel and dragging it back out into the rain again. He usually goes to stand in the bed before he starts demanding a rubdown with a towel .

[Netfoot]

We're in and secure. It is very windy outside, but no rain right now. Whistling frogs are a bit subdued. 

When I asked Mo to come in, he promptly sat down. Right by the front gate. But when I started dancing like a drunk Trini at carnival, he couldn't get into the house fast enough. He's laying against my back right now.

The breeze through the window is intermittent. When it stops, things feel sort of hot and pensive. When it gusts it's cool and turbulent. Ah... A sprinkle of raindrops just blew in and landed on me in bed.

Baked potatoes with red butter and salt, topped by diced sausage & tomatoes, caramelized onion rings, and chopped pak choy. And axlarge a large plantain on the side. Washed down with another Tiger Malt, a lime squash and a glass of water. I'm thirsty. I brought to bed a large glass of iced water and a liter of water for topping up.

Getting more familiar with the weather API. Can now request, receive and interpret hourly and daily forecast data for the next 15 days, or between any two days within the next 15 days. With this I can produce my forecast and push it out to the members the day before any flying day or group of flying days. The biggest problem only being deciding what to push out, because there is such a huge amount if data available, it boggles the mind. I can probably leave out snowfall in inches, but what about the rest?

I think I'll go with wind speed, gust speed, wind direction, cloud cover and %age chance if rain. Or go with this simple forecast and generate a more complete forecast on the website and link to it at the bottom of the simple one.

And I'm doing this without having to install any 3rd party packages, which my host won't allow me to install anyway!

What I haven't figured out is how to receive weather alerts. They are secondary, but it sure would be nice to receive a notice when ever the met office released an advisory, bulletin or warning. 

Starting a book called On The Wings of Eagles by Ken Follett. It's about the rescue from Iranian jail of some executives of EDS, Ross Perot's Dallas based company. I'm sure I've seen at least one, possibly two movies of the story, but I'm hoping to get some of the details that obviously must be left out of a movie, even a long one!

Puppies are all different. Dotty and Bud would both lay down with their back to you, but Mo often insists on laying down with his horny feet and claws towards you. 

I'm waffling. Time to call it quits.

Edited June 29, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

The house is secure and I'm in bed... but Mo insisted on remaining outside. He is laying on the ground in front of the van, only a yard or two from the gate. And the ground is damp. 

He looks like something out of a sci-fi horror movie, with freeze-ray eyes!

The day hasn't been windy. I understand the weather system has been to visit the ABC islands and probably moved past by now. But while winds have been light, we have had rain.

I don't mind Mo sleeping outside in principle, I am concerned about it in practice. He doesn't stay well back in the garage where he can be dry and snug. He wants the open sky above his head!

Well, it won't do to grab him and drag him in, so if it's out he wants, it's out he gets.

Damn, I forgot to lay out my meds for the next three days. Better get out of bed and do it now... BRB!

Ok, done.

No word from my friend today. I'm assuming he got out to Canada somehow. I'm not looking forward to our next meeting. I have no idea what to say. I keep telling myself "It must be a false alarm!" but as more time passes, the more impossible that becomes.

Frankly, the world seems to be going from bad to worse. Every day is another horror story. Mostly the stories are about other people, but sometimes the story is about us!

As I get older I hear myself saying things my dad used to say, and that's worrying. Because my dad was never right. And because it just might mean the world isn't actually getting worse; it's been bad all along and I'm only now noticing how bad it's always been.

Off to sleep, then...

[Netfoot]

A few years ago, I made an Adirondack chair. I was prototyping, and several parts had to be discarded and remade differently, until I was satisfied with the design. Because I didn't want to fashion and then discard parts out of expensive wood, I used the cheapest crap I could find: old plywood and pallet wood. I put it together with drywall screws and no adhesive. The idea was to perfect the design, then using the parts as patterns, make new chairs out of decent wood, for myself and a friend.

The project stumbled when the other  guy continued to find fault in the design, while being unable to point to what was wrong, other than to say that "Sophie's dad made good chairs!" I don't think her dad's  chairs were what he was really focussed on... but that's another story.

So I've got this really shitty Adirondack chair in the garage, and today I decided to sit in it and read my book. I soon had company.

ETA: There is nothing wrong with the chair. It's fine. If I had to make new chairs out if expensive material I'd use this pattern. The only thing wrong with it is, it's made of garbage. 

I deliberately put the chair right next to the steps, so my little friend would be able to talk to me eye-to-eye. He seemed a bit nonplused and took a while to accept the idea.

But he was pretty cool with it in the end. 

Edited June 30, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

He runs off and entertains himself with a squeaky toy every so often. Then he's back, trying to steal my phone or shaking my arm so I can't read my book...

...or just lazing about, and being s a very handsome boy. 

Edited June 30, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Another photo from this afternoon:

Thinking about biting me on the nose, I suspect.

He's sleeping outside again tonight. I couldn't even persuade him to come out of hiding and say good night before I closed the door. It's a wet night with the whistling frogs going nuts, but it isn't raining. I think it must just sprinkle a little, every so often, to account for the wet everywhere.

Last time I went shopping I bought some chicken chunks. I usually cut them a little smaller when I go to cook them. For lunch I had them with baked potatoes and red butter. The chicken was cooked with onion and pak choy and the mixture poured over the potatoes. I was quite satisfied with how it tasted.

As there were more chicken chunks remaining, I had them on a bed of rice. Apart from salt, he rice contained only a large dollop of Bajan seasoning and about six leaves of pak choy rolled up and sliced into long strips except for the stalks which ended up similar to celery. The chicken was cooked with some onions until brown. Then I poured in some scalding hot water and some chicken gravy crystals. Deglazing the pan with the chicken and onions still in the pan, a lovely gravy formed with the chicken and onions. With a plantain on the side and a lime squash at my elbow, I thought the meal was great.

I have some more chunks, so I'll probably have them for lunch, only I'd like to think of something different to do with them!.

New book is interesting. Itching to get back to it.

Hoping that a weekend weather forecast will be auto generated and sent to the group chat. If it doesn't, I'll spend tomorrow figuring out why.

Missing the Mouse. Will pop off to sleep now....

Edited July 1, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Sitting out in my Adirondack chair again. It's quite pleasant, and I can pretend I'm making headway on my forecast program instead of stuck.

Actually, the automated weather forecast worked perfectly. It was delivered by Telegram this morning at 7:02, exactly when it was supposed to be. (Never run a cron job exactly on the hour!) Here it is, spoiler quoted to spare the uninterested:

Spoiler

Forecast - 2 flying days

Sat 2nd: Rain, Partially cloudy
Wind: 21.5 to 26.8 MPH
Direction: 95.9 (E)
Chance of Rain: 81.0%
Cloud Cover: 40.9%
Temp: Avg 79.8F Max 81.8F
Sunrise: 05:35 Set: 18:28

Sun 3rd: Rain, Partially cloudy
Wind: 20.6 to 26.8 MPH
Direction: 88.3 (E)
Chance of Rain: 47.6%
Cloud Cover: 31.4%
Temp: Avg 79.8F Max 82.3F
Sunrise: 05:35 Set: 18:28

What I'm working on now is the simultaneous generation of a detailed forecast in the form of a web page, with data presented hourly. When I get that working, the telegram will include a link to it at the bottom.

Right now struggling to generate moonrise and moonset times. Already got the moon phase in terms of %age full. Want to turn that into a descriptive term like "waxing crescent" or "waning gibbous" and so forth. Don't want to do it the hard way, so engaging in much effort to find an easy way.

Typical. Spend three weeks writing software to eliminate a 5 minute task performed once a fortnight. Story of my life.

Mo has been very annoyed with me all morning. Because I wouldn't stop the rain from falling. I had to give him his lunch and then, as I made cheese, cucumber, onion and tomato cutters for my own lunch I had to give him two slices of NZ cheddar, bit by bit until lunchtime was over. And the extra slices of tomato and cucumber, too!

Anyway, let me return to my book.

[Spunkygal]

I’m very jealous of your forecasted temps and rain chances and am off to pout now. 

[Netfoot]

5 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

I’m very jealous of your forecasted temps and rain chances and am off to pout now. 

Temps are OK but rainfall? Don't see how those numbers are anything to be jealous of there!

[Netfoot]

Mo is in, but has decided to sleep by the door. He may come a-snuggling in the wee hours, or not.

Unusual dinner. It was fettuccine and the sauce was chicken chunks and diced sausage. I didn't have enough of either one, so I mixed them together in a pan with onion, shredded cucumber, rolled & sliced pak choy, and a small tin of tomato sauce. It tasted good, and there was enough remaining for another meal tomorrow. Only, I don't know I can wait for lunch so maybe it will be a fettuccine breakfast, or at least brunch.

If you have "brunch" instead of a "late breakfast" or even an "early lunch", does that elevate you above the hoi polloi? I could use some elevating right now! But to be honest, I prefer "late breakfast" because it still leaves room in your day for lunch. Whereas "brunch" implies that you have actually had breakfast and lunch and "late lunch" categorically says you won't see a crumb until dinner!

Book continuing to entertain. It's been a long time I read for pleasure, other than in bed at night. Since I started this book, I've taken a couple ours in the afternoon to sit outside with Mo and read. This was not caused by the book. But I think getting to read while not yet tired out, has allowed me to absorb the material better, and I'm enjoying that.

The weekend is upon us but with all the rain I doubt many will be going up to the club. Also, the tragedy suffered by one member has cast a pall over everyone.

[Netfoot]

TMS came a-visitin' in the night and stayed until morning. He is very snuggly but has no boundaries. He will jump on your kidneys and lie down on your face with out any remorse.

Had my brunch and felt the hot breath of expectation on my hip the whole time. He got a few strands of fettuccine while I ate and I left a few more in the plate, which I placed on the floor so as to avoid having to wash it.

I may sit out again today, with my book and my puppy (if he will) but I'm not sure if I might not prefer a nap. Your night is not restful if you spend it with a puppy laying on your face, after all...

[Netfoot]

Adirondack chairs are characterized by their wide, flat arms. Ideal for resting your drink. Or coffee. Or a dinner plate.

Or, it would seem, a puppy's butt. 

First, he stepped off the, uh, steps into my lap. Walking across me, he plunked his butt on the arm of the chair, and leaned up against my chest. Pretty soon he was very comfortable, and I was having some trouble seeing my book!

I had to shift him, though. I had a mug of tea on the brew and I had to go collect it. It now stands at my elbow, cooling. Not in the arm of the chair, but on the step which is immediately adjacent. 

It's only a matter of time before Mo sticks his nose in the tea. I just hope I can discourage him until the tea is cool enough not to scorch his little snootie.

Puppy sleeping in my lap, surrounded by garage-junk!

[Netfoot]

Told the puppy that I was going to get some ice from the fridge and then lock up. He immediately ran out into the rain. I figured that was a fairly obvious rejection of the idea that he sleep inside! When I returned with my ice, as I was about to slam the door (doesn't lock properly otherwise) Mo came scooting in, soaking wet. I took a towel that I had handy and gave him a rub-down all over. Then, I pointed at the door and warned him it was about to get locked. He just looked at it. I closed it to about one foot open, and he just sat there watching.

Slam! The door is locked, he is in, and I'm in bed. He was right here snuggling up against my back, but now he's vanished. If he chooses to return, he will be welcome.

Dinner was cheese and cucumber on crackers. No tomato, onion, anything. Not even any mayo. My last mayo concoction is all used up and I haven't yet concocted any more. 

Testing my blood sugar tomorrow. It was high last time, so I'm hoping for a better number in the morning. Dr. Kristi always says she is satisfied with how I'm doing in that regard, and that the odd peak I'd is not an issue so long as I get it back down again, and prevent it from getting out of hand.

There is a cold breeze coming in the window, and occasionally bringing with it a few drops of water. I'm starting to get a little tired of the wet weather, now. But the lower temperatures are always welcome.

But all this water is bound to increase the numbers of mozzies flying around. I filled Mo's water bowl yesterday and when I glanced at it today I noticed it had 3-4 dozen wrigglers in it. In one day! Aedes aegypti, probably. They are more common than the Culex and Anopheles that are also seen here. Pretty soon the numbers of dengue patients at the hospital will begin to increase, and this will prompt the return of 'fogging' which, I believe, Mo hasn't experienced yet.

But Mo is a plucky little soul. There was some thunder a few days ago and he flew out of the house growling fit to burst! He had every intention of teaching that thunder who was boss! Mind you, he does run away from his own food bowl, when ever I pick it up, and won't approach it again until it's back in his little feeding station...

Who is photo-bombing whom?

Edited July 3, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Dinner tonight consisted of a heavy, corned beef and onions gravy over baked potatoes and the last plantain. Simple, quick to prepare, but filling and tasty too.

I made up some new mayo with the following additives: red pepper flakes, garlic powder, balsamic vinegar and maple syrup. Had it on my cheese, onion, cucumber and tomato cutters at lunchtime.

After lunch I was coding up some documentation for the new modules I've just written, when I heard Mo run past behind me, and escape outside. I figured if he was running it was to avoid being caught, so I went after him to see what he had half-inched. My book! Left on the bed, and now about to be dismantled out on the driveway! I was able to rescue it with minimal damage. Naughty little monster!

Some marking and a slight tear on the edge of the pages...

...and some bruising to the back cover, visible if the light is just so.

I'd not think twice about buying a second hand book with this amount of damage. And this is after all, a second hand book. But that's not the point: books are sacrosanct, and the puppy should consider them all off-limits.

Austin came on the group to say he would go up to cut the grass and do some whacking before grabbing a flight or two with his mk. 9 Spitfire.  I thought that whacking always hits me right in the lower back, but I cut the grass on the mower for years. So, intending to relieve him of that task, I gave the Crocs a break and strapped on my bewts. To my surprise, when we arrived at the club the grass was already being cut... by Unka Rudy!

Mo went doolally at the sight of Rudy, who was there with the wyf  Yinger. They're fresh back from UK where they visit fairly frequently, and nobody knew! (Silly wabbit! We have the internet now!)

So, I sat and chatted with Yinger while Rudy cut the grass and Austin whacked the weeds, and eventually Tony showed up. 

During the chatting it was mentioned that Dave and Alison had been up at the club yesterday (Saturday). This is an English couple who first visited our club years ago during the course of their vacation down from the midlands somewhere. They became amicus curiae at our club and have visited every year since. It's always a pleasure to see them. Alas, a hiatus was caused by the institutional stupidity caused by athlete's foot. So this is their first visit in a couple of years, and I missed it! And to my dismay, they fly out again in only a couple if days, so it is unlikely I will see them before they go.

Anyway, we had a good day, today. Rudy took Mo for a walk around the plot, but halfway around, Mo deserted him and ran back to the clubhouse with his afterburners on full reheat. We all admonished him gently for abandoning Unka Rudy to his fate.

We could actually see Rudy on the other side of the pond with his hand on his hips, shaking his head  and laughing at Mo's betrayal, so we knew this wasn't Mo's Lassie moment, since Rudy was clearly fine - not pinned under a tractor or anything. (Lassie is potential nickname for Molasses, but one I utterly reject!)

Mo himself had a ball all afternoon. Racing around behind the clubhouse, back out onto the strip in a curve, in through the western end and barreling across the 40' deck (looking terrifyingly like an orbital crowbar or some other kinetic energy munition) to jump directly into my lap. The resulting Oooff! to escape my lips dwarfed only by my huge relief that he only cracked my rib rather than throwing me and my chair backwards, probably to crack my spine instead! Some minutes later, he was doing it again. All afternoon. 

Here is Mo sitting next to Yinger:

The box on his neck is his beep/ buzz/ zap collar, which I didn't have to use all afternoon, which is a good thing, because I forgot and left the clicker at home!

And below is Rudy having eine für die straße. He usually has eine about six times before actually hitting the straße...

But eventually it was the straße for us all, as we made our way home.

And now with Mo choosing to sleep inside but near the door, I will try to make a little progress with the book before Mo makes another attempt at it!

Edited July 4, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

[Spunkygal]

Did anyone have an update on your friend who suffered the family tragedy and how the surviving daughter is doing?

[Netfoot]

One of the guys is fairly close with him, and periodically they send a message to him, but he hasn't responded for a couple of days.

The latest news we have is from a few days ago. He managed to get a flight as far as NYC, where he met up with his brother. The two of them were going to drive to Toronto from there, if no connecting flight was immediately available.

I have to assume that they either caught a flight or drove, and have arrived in Toronto by now. Naturally, we don't want to bombard him with requests for updates, so we can only wait for news.

[Netfoot]

Hey, I just realized today is your Independence Day holiday.

So, my best wishes to you, and I hope you have a good day but without getting too crazy for your own good!

[Netfoot]

Not even 9:30 and I'm in bed? What gives? Just tired.

Had to go get the van "roadworthied" today, then take the report to the insurance.  There was bumper-to-bumper traffic from my house to the mechanic. Then there was bumper-to-bumper traffic from the mechanic to the insurance. Then there was bumper-to-bumper traffic from the insurance back to my house. By time I was home again, I was frazzled. And Mo behaved like a complete hellion the whole time! 

Anyway, got it done so the van is quasi-legal for a while. 

Had a very nice dinner. Started with a pot of black beans & rice. I spread this on the plate then added tuna fish cooked with onion & pak choy. Then at that last minute I decided to try something different. Do So I fried two eggs and placed them on top of the plate. It all went down very well, with my usual lime squash. While washing up, I couldn't find the scouring pad so I naturally searched the garden... only to find it behind the colander. So, you see that if you get a reputation for something, everyone will blame you whether you're guilty or not!

Anyway, not going to bed early and sit up until late surfing the net. So hei-ho! Off to bed...

Edited July 5, 2022 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Went off to the grocery because (I nearly forgot!) It's the day the Book-tent is there! Managed to park right next to the tent, and went inside, leaving Mo to serenade the staff and customers at the tent.

I bought a few things, including a Sprite, just as s treat. I remember when I bought Sprites 24 at a time! Also trying a different type of sausages - they are a bit cheaper, but who knows if they are palatable or not?

The problem with shopping is not the shopping, it's the paying. Sounds like a joke about prices, but while that is an issue, what I am talking about is the time it takes to pay. You go to the hardware store, pick up a box of screws, and in 30 seconds you are queueing for the cashier. Then you wait 40 minutes to pay and leave!

No different today. I lined up at the pharmacy for 20 minutes and they still don't have my stuff ready. I exit, push my trolly to the main bank of cashiers, wait 20 minutes to get to the head of the line, pay, carry the groceries out to the van, pack them in, return to the pharmacy, and they still don't have my order ready. Despite the fact that 2 hours before leaving home I phoned in the order!

Tomorrow being a flying day, the automated forecast was to be generated this morning. And lo! At 7:02 like magic, a weather forecast for tomorrow popped up in the app. The temperatures are slated to average 80.8 with a peak of 83.2 tomorrow. Today feels hotter than usual too, but I didn't generate a forecast for today so I can't say how high it is.

I'm trying to think of other useful information I can auto-generate for the group. Considered jokes, epigrams and maxims à la the Unix 'fortune' program. Unfortunately, fortune generates formatted output, and I need it unformatted so Telegram can do the formatting based the user's devices.

[Netfoot]

One of the things I bought at the grocery today was a new jar of gravy crystals. When I'm pan-frying meat to make a meal, I frequently deglaze the pan afterwards and then add hot water and gravy crystals to make up some gravy to make the meal go good. I use Bisto crystals. 

I'm weird when it comes to gravy. I am perfectly happy putting chicken or lamb gravy on my beef,  beef gravy on my lamb or chicken...

So, I usually buy chicken crystals and use it in whatever I'm cooking. But today, when I was about to buy a jar of chicken gravy crystals, I spotted that they had crystals for turkey gravy, and it was significantly cheaper than the chicken. 

I suspect the turkey crystals don't sell for some reason. I hope it is not because the gravy tastes unpleasant, because I bought a jar.

 I'm also trying a cheaper variety of sausage, but I suspect I will switch back because I doubt these are anywhere near as tasty.

Long conversation with Dominique from the Ark. She was making inquiries about her dog - the one that lives at my house and I call Molasses. Dominique is the type of person who will send the puppy home with you, but to her, gone is not forgotten. 

She also said she might bring me a paw-paw. 

Today, Austin said he would be away for a week. He posted a photo of the island on the horizon, seen from the deck of a yacht. I know he goes crewing for a buddy sometimes.  I guess this is one of those times...

Going to see if I can persuade Mo to come in for the night, and then lock up the house. I still have my book to read. Didn't read in the garage today, because I worked on my forecast program instead.

Added moonrise and moonset data to the forecast. As well as moon phase. If the moon is full the guys might stay later and hit a few drinks or even light the coal-pot and cook some dogs or burgers. But knowing the moon is full or nearly full on the day is not enough. Quite often the moon will rise early in the morning and set again before the day goes dark. You don't want to plan a BBQ cookout on the full moon, to discover that the moon has disappeared by time night falls!

Off....