A great day for doing nothing. And I do nothing really well.
But…7:20PM
After dinner with my friends and a couple of glasses of wine – the sun came out just in time to set.
Almost.
I did finish the model later today. I am pretty sure that I’ll not make another one – unless I get to be an astronaut. But, I am glad I made it. I think this is the first model I ever figured out just by looking at the finished product. I am too lazy to take a picture of the model tonight. Leaving that for tomorrow. Then I’ll pitch it out the window.
Today’s Spring Flower. Lavender, from my own huge lavender bush that wants to be a tree.
Winter is hanging on. Did a very little work on my garden box. It’s supposed to rain a couple of inches over the next few days. So, this seemed to be a good time to finish planting the plants that arrived a week ago. The box looks barren. I have to remind myself that the plants will grow. And fill up the empty spaces. If not this year. Next year. The goddess willing.
Doctor’s Order.
A retired doctor was a breakfast this morning. He mentioned that this fine ice cream was on sale starting today at the grocery next door. He also remarked that on occasion he borrowed storage space in a neighbor’s freezer so he could store extra ice cream. Ice cream. Just what the doctor ordered.
The addition of ice cream to my freezer reduces the space available for soup. I am hoping that soup season is coming to an end.
The Twilight Zone
Anthony Bourdain wasn’t able to escape his demons. Nevertheless, he left us with some great advice. “Eat at a local restaurant tonight. Get the cream sauce. Have a cold pint at 4 o’clock in a mostly empty bar. Go somewhere you’ve never been. Listen to someone you think may have nothing in common with you. Order the steak rare. Eat an oyster. Have a Negroni. Have two. Be open to a world where you may not understand or agree with the person next to you, but have a drink with them anyways. Eat slowly. Tip your server. Check in on your friends. Check in on yourself. Enjoy the ride.”
Didn’t go on a formal brisk walk today. But, I did enough running around to get in a little over 2.5 miles. Plus some good aerobics.
Alexa just said “This is a reminder Happy Hour”. Always obey Alexa.
Feeling irresponsibly boring today. I didn’t go out in quest of anything unboring. Today I just “was”.
I did get my yoga stretches in. And a short very brisk walk. It was cold. Just barely made 2 miles today.
It’s ½ done.
Think I will put the other half together and then try to get the halves together. I believe that is how Soichi Noguchi did it in his zero-gravity video. Perhaps I’ll sail it out of my window when I am done. That might get me kicked out of the joint! Maybe I could put a small helium balloon inside of it. That might get me arrested for violating the Capital Area air space. All manner of things I can do that will not be boring!
Can you imagine how boring it must be to spend months on the Space Station? Think I’ll put Scott Kelly’s book on my to-read list. Don’t know why I didn’t read it when it first came out. Guess I was “too busy”.
Another nice day. But the chill is expected back tomorrow. Today’s main event was wind. Made my 3 mile walk without any problem.
The Twilight Zone
Had to make a new entry in my Learning To Be Old List
10. No excuses – 5 minutes of yoga stretches every single day.
Turns out that one of my favorite DC Cherry Trees is loved by many and it is scheduled to become mulch (along with 150 other cherry trees) later this spring. Nothing nefarious. A seawall needs to be replaced.
And still it blooms. There is a lesson here.
I got a nice picture of the tree last spring. That’s better than going down to see it this year and knowing it’s “the last time”. Remember, I don’t like “last times”. There is a second lesson: Nobody is promised tomorrow.
WIP – Origami.
I am temporarily stymied. But remain optimistic that I can get it together. If not then off it goes to recycling.
Today’s Spring Flower. Pussy Willow. I failed to nail the focus on this one.
This shot would have been better with a “real camera”. I didn’t nail the focus. I am not even sure that I could have. And the fake bokeh is really bad.
The Twilight Zone
Rite of Passage: Turned in my driver’s license last week. Got my state ID yesterday.
Some Assembly Required.
In 2005 Soichi Noguchi, a Japanese astronaut on STS-114, assembled a model he called “UFO” and tossed it around the space station for a couple of days. That model is my next challenge. I know what it looks like. And I know the 32 parts are correctly folded. It remains to be seen if I can get them together.
20° cooler than yesterday. But nice and sunny. So, no complaints. Also, no excuse to not get outside for a small “brisk” walk. 2.5 miles.
Mostly today I thought about going on a trip. And I attacked another model from my new origami book.
12 pieces all folded and ready to assemble.
First, fold the structural members. I am feeling pretty good right here. How hard can it be to get them into a cube?
Not too sure about this.Not even close. Time to drink some coffee. And try again.Got It. It took about 50 minutes from 12 pieces to an acceptable cube.Today’s cube with the original cube.
These things can only go together one way. I have no idea how anyone figured out how to make the first one. And yes. This is useless. But no more useless than jigsaw puzzles, crossword puzzles, or Netflix binge-watching.
I would normally be out taking pictures with a “real” camera and a macro lens. But my real camera days are over. The Google phone does an OK job. I just miss looking through a view finder.
Reallocated some funds today to get a higher current yield. I decided that my current investment horizon is 5 years. Not sure how my brain came up with five years. But, I’ll go with it for now. And, I can always reassess the horizon as my personal condition warrants.
Cat Picture
Humph.
Today I decided to ignore The Princess Cat. Today I went into the apartment and didn’t see the cat. I didn’t go looking for her. I went about watering the plants. And who should show up? Meowing pitifully. Poor neglected Princess Cat.
Only logged 1.5 miles today. I am giving my old body a day off. I am in Day 29 of NO online shopping, doom scrolling, social media, YouTube, or games until after dinner. With the occasional slip.
Today’s Spring Flower. Not yet flowers. Spring Planting.
My plants were supposed to arrive on Monday. And I was rather grumpy because it is supposed to be chilly next week. Well, in the 50’s not the 70’s. But, surprise. The plants arrived today. Two I planted and two are stashed under the rosemary bush. Acclimating.
And that was today’s big adventure. Only got 2 and a quarter miles in today.
Cat Picture Coming UP
The Princess Cat is not overjoyed to see me.
She did not hiss at me today. She’s learning. She better be nice because we replacement humans are the only servants she has until Tuesday afternoon.
If of thy mortal goods thou art bereft, And from thy slender store two loaves alone to thee are left, Sell one, and with the dole Buy hyacinths to feed thy soul.
Saadi – The Rose Garden
That sounds nice. But not very practical. I fear I would come down on the side of investing in some seeds that could be planted and perhaps yielding a meal. Or maybe steal a chicken and buy some chicken feed in hopes of getting an egg now and then.
Finished up the taxes this morning. Signed and shipped them off. Electronically. Mail a check to the Tax Guy. Set up funds transfers to pay my large tax bills. And set up quarterly payments. The only thing I didn’t do yet is to get a copy of the returns to keep. The Tax Guy’s new system is completely online. And there doesn’t seem to be a good way to get copies. This is a first-world problem.
Warning Cat Picture.
I forced The Princess Cat out of hiding to get her treats. Bad Peg. She hissed at me. Bad cat.
4.5 miles today. Almost 10K steps. According to my watch, I have done my required weekly cardio. So, I can just chill until Monday.
Finished pestering the Tax Guy today. I found an error. He fixed the error. That reduced my tax bill by $13. I am sure that it increased my tax preparation bill by much more than $13. Maybe next year I’ll trust the process and not check the return.
Warning: Cat Picture Below.
I have a regular reader who loathes cats.
After that taxing experience, I went to visit The Princess Cat. Her well-trained human is away and she has to rely on subpar replacement humans for a week.
Today’s Spring Flower. The ever-unpopular Bradford Pear.
The first “Government Work” task of the day was to turn in my driver’s license and apply for a state ID card. I had to do that in person. Since it was a nice day, I figured I’d check that item off my Shit2Do list. The state computer system didn’t seem to be setup to handle that transaction elegantly, so, it took a while. But, what else did I have to do?
The Twilight Zone
Giving up my driver’s license – no problem. I stopped driving about 25 years ago when I stopped owning a car. I kept a license for “just in case” and for ID. But for many of us old people, turning in our driver’s license is huge.
Taxes. Actually. I got two tax emails this morning. One from the Tax Guy saying my taxes were ready to review and another from a brokerage house telling me I had a “Corrected 1099”. I don’t think the correction is material. But, I am not pleased with the Tax Guy’s first go at the 2023 returns. More work is required on my part tomorrow. He did OK last year. But he has “new improved” software this year. Yeah. Right.
But, for now. Things are just fine.
Arlington Wall Art.
Managed 2.5 mile walk today. That was on the way to the DMV for my state ID. Walk some. Bus some.
A beautiful day in the ‘hood deserves more and better images. But all I have to show for today is a lone hellebore.
Nice day today. And what made it nice was the weather and getting away from The Asylum. Went to my yoga class in person today. I Ubered to the class and walked and bussed back home. One hour of yoga. Three miles of walking. It was time for a little nap after I got home and had a late lunch.
The Twilight Zone
Being on the road from 80 to dead shortens the horizon. It sneaks up on you. A friend at dinner the other night mentioned that she no longer buys things in Costco-size quantities. I saw an article this morning about United Airline’s plans for the 2027-2028 time frame. Well, I decided that I could just wait until 2027 and see if I care what United Airlines is doing in 2027. As the T-shirt says: “Don’t Mess With Old People Life in Prison is no longer a deterrent.”
My friends are either at the theater or in Florida tonight. So, I plan on making an omelet and having dinner in the Old Bat’s Cave. Then I will read a cheap detective novel until bedtime. Or enjoy the forbidden screen-based activities. I am now in day 24 of NO online shopping, doom scrolling, social media, YouTube, or games until after dinner.
