All posts by Duf

When I got home Thursday I tended to all of those time sensitive list items that needed to be done prior to leaving.  It actually did not take as long as I expected and by 9PM I had most things wrapped up.

I left my normal Friday morning 5:30 alarm in place so I could get a head start on things like washing the sheets, running the dishwasher and a few other things.  However I again found myself done sort of early, I had a good 90 minutes of time to kill before I left to pick up Ali at 10:30.  I said goodbye to Elsa which made me a little teary eyed even though I knew she was going to have a great time with Ali and Shugs.

I got to Ali’s work a little before 11:30.  I had her drive so she got some more last second Tesla training in.  She dropped me at the airport right about 12, the adventure was officially beginning.  I had not been in an airport in a very long time.  I would be hard pressed to tell you exacty how long ago it was without giving it some considerable thought which I don’t feel like usiing right now.  My rough guess is at least four years. It didn’t take long for things to get interesting.

I went through security and noticed they were taking a long time with my laptop bag.  I had a bunch of stuff jammed in there so I just figured they were trying to identify it all.  Well the bag then got moved to the secondary screening station.  Two women opened the bag and started digging through it which seemed odd.  They call me over after they extract a pocket knife, something I threw in the bag years ago and had forgot about.  They confiscated the knife as I felt pretty dumb about not checking the bag thoroughly before bringing it.

The flight to Charolette was great.  The American Airlines 737 we flew on seemed very new.  I also paid extra money for a emergency row seat whcih is a godsend for someone with legs as long as mine.  I spent the majority of the time in the air reading one of my books.  It made me drowsy so I took a few breaks dozing off using my hand as a support.  Repeatedly my head would slip off my hand snapping me back to being alert for a few moments.  I was surprised we got a full can of coke and mini-pretzels, it almost felt like first class.

We arrived in Charolette on time but I only had about an hour until the connecting flight to Allentown was scheduled to take off so I had to hustle as the gate was far away.  It turned out I could have taken a much more casual pace.  The crew for the flight was delayed so they didn’t start loading the plane until close to half hour later than scheduled.  Then we waited on the runway for at least another half hour because of storms to the north of the airport.

This flight was on a much older plane.  Even though I was once again in the exit row I was less comfortable as the seat was narrow and the recline mechanism did not appear to work.  I again alternated reading and sleeping during this flight.  I had a feeling the guy next to me was eager to have someone to talk to but when he got short responses from me he instead engaged with two women across the aisle talking nearly non-stop with them.

We wound up landing around an hour late.  I couldn’t believe when I took my phone off airplane mode and had an actual text message from my dad, the first one I can recall in my entire life.  Evidently the flight info in the airport never reflected the delay in my flight so he just sat around and waited.

The Allentown airport looked like I remembered from close to 30 years ago, the last time I was there.  It was like arriving in a time capsule with style and decorations straight out of the 70’s or 80’s.  It was quaint but certainly nothing resembling the ultra-modern airports you see in larger cities.

I got to ride in dad’s Hyundai Sonata hybrid for the first time.  He loves getting 50MPG, especially with current gas prices. We stopped and got dinner at an Asian Fusion restaurant.  We both liked our food but the AC was cranked down uncomfortably low, I was quite chilly in shorts and a t-shirt.

We arrived back in Lenhartsville around 9.  My stepmom was getting ready for bed but came down to catch up.  I got to reintroduce myself to their three cats who also got to visit me in my bedroonm during the night.  I was tired and took a shower.  I got a status report from Ali that all was well at the house which was a relief.  I also talked to Gladys, filling her in on how the day of travel went.

I had a decent night of sleep all things considered.  I woke up without an alarm before 7.  I got to walk around their property a bit, saying hi to their sheep and taking in some of the beautiful, serene rolling hills around them.  It is so peaceful there.  I took several pictures trying to capture how it felt.

We packed up the Hyundai trunk to the max before pulling out around 8:30.  Dad started out doing the driving.  He hates modern navigation assistants like a smart phone has which easily gives you the fastest route from point A to point B.  He wanted to take the scenic route where you got to see more things and experience the area which was fine by me.  I am up here so rarely it’s appealing to me to stop and smell the roses a bit.

We grabbed breakfast at the Beacon diner which was established in 1941.  Some parts of the place looked like they had not been touched since the 40’s but that was also part of it’s charm.  All three of our breakfasts were completely consumed, the food was that good.

Somewhere around 100 miles into the trip I took over driving which I think was a good thing.  My pace was a little quicker and I could tell my dad was getting sleepy after the big breakfast.  During one pit stop we saw a guy pull up in a beautiful restored 1964 blue GMC pickup.  The owner said he spent around four years restoring it, doing almost everything himself except the paint job.  It was awesome.

We had an odd moment at a Dunkin Donuts in Utica NY.  We wanted coffee but we also wanted to use their bathrooms.  When we went to the bathrooms they were both locked with a sign saying you have to ask for a key.  The women’s bathroom also had the occupied flag flipped so we assumed someone was in there.

So I asked the guy if we could have the key.  At first he said he was going to look for it.  Then he said only one bathroom was open, the women’s that had the occupied flag flipped.  Um ok.  So we got our coffee and waited another 5 minutes and nobody emerged from the women’s bathroom.  At this point we didn’t know what the hell was going on but our mutual feeling was if someone has been in a bathroom for 10-15 minutes, you probably don’t want to go in there.  The entire situation was weird, so we walked out.

The final push to Camp Waldheim was long.  My dad had said the mapped the drive out as roughly 265 miles.  It turned out to be just under 300 miles.  The tail end of it was on mostly rural roads with slower speed limits, making things drag out a bit more.  We wound up arriving between 4 and 4:30, a long day of driving.  About 30 minutes from our destination my phone lost signal competely, meaning I was completely unplugged, which I will talk about more later.

We met up with my sister Meghan, her husband Paul and their two adorable kids Cadence and Kennedy.  From the second we saw them they were on fire wanting to show us around their cabin and then engaging us in all sorts of funny interactions.  They are so cute and I had not seen them for over two years.  Kennedy is now 3 and Cadence is 6.

We then went to our cabin and unpacked.  Our unit was older and not as nice as Meghan and Paul’s but was in a better location.  Meg and the gang came over to our cabin before dinner to hang out a bit.  The girls played this funny game where they were “selling” us things.  The money was leaves and mini-pinecones, the items being sold were bigger pine cones.

A little after 6 we went to the dining hall.  All meals are prepared and included with the fee for staying.  I neglected to mention my brother Patrick wound up not coming because he caught covid down in Florida while traveling for work.  I was disappointed to hear this as I looked forward spending time with Pat and his girlfriend.

So anyway, dinner was good with the the girls providing most of the entertainment.  They are so funny without even trying to be.  They were both very happy to see my dad.  Cadence stuck to him like glue.  After we finished up Meg, Paul and the girls headed to their cabin.  I went to the library which is the sole source of connectivity in this place.  They have a small wifi network set up which can be used by guests.

I checked in with Ali and Gladys while there but it felt disorienting to not be able to use the internet on demand for both personal and work scenarios.  Not being able to be contacted if some sort of emergency comes up at the house or from work is not ideal so I will be trying to get plugged in a few times a day to just stay updated. For some people it may be nice to just totally yank the cord and be offline during the entire trip but that just isn’t a reality for me with what I do.

I was freezing walking back to our cabin.  I was glad to see my dad started a fire as the temps may dip all the way into the 40’s tonight.  The single size bed could prove to be another challenge as well.  Typically my feet will hang off a bed of that dimension.  I am punching out this entry on the sofa in front of the fireplace.  My dad and stepmom have already gone to bed for the night.

It feels a bit strange and isolating to be here but that was to be expected.  I know it’s good to put yourself into situations where you are immersed in something foreign.  To me it serves two purposes. You get to experience something new and beautiful.  This area is so different than what I am used to and I appreciate both the uniqueness of this place along with the opportunity to spend extended time with my family, which is a rarity.  The other purpose is to deepen the appreciation I have for certain things in my normal everyday life that I am seperated from, even if only for a short while.  I’m looking forward to seeing how this time will enrich my experiences going forward.

The window installers on Wednesday showed up at 8:30AM Wednesday as promised to knock out the remaining five windows in the house.  They efficiently worked their way around the structure, first doing the hobby room window which was in the worst shape of all of them.  That side of the house took the most pressure during Hurricane Irma and that window has been a mess ever since with broken hardware and leaking.  It leaked so much that I had duct tape over certain spots.  Igor and his assistant worked diligently, finishing up right around 3:30 as the skies were ready to unleash.  I continued to be amazed at how surgical the replacements were with minimal impact to the area around it.

Everything was not perfect.  The screens for all of the smaller windows were the wrong size which will have to be remedied.  Also there were a few things left lying around that I cleaned up after the fact that I mentioned in the video I did but overall I was very pleased with the quality of the work.  During the day one of the job managers stopped by and reiterated how inclusive the lifetime window warranty is.  He said he has a customer that has a dog that chewed some of the window hardware and they are still replacing the window for free.  The new windows feel much more substantial than the builder grade windows they replaced.

During my lunch hour I decided to get out and mow instead of waiting until later. I’m glad I did as thunderstorms did roll through later in the day.  I vacuumed and steam cleaned the floor surfaces of the house which had a small amount of window replacement debris around them.  I put back the window treatments I wanted to keep, several of them went straight into the trash can as I didn’t need/want them any more.  It felt good to have the house back in order.

So a few things have to happen for the window project to be complete.  A final inspection needs to be done by the county which someone needs to be home for.  Since I will be gone next week I’m not sure when that will occur.  Once inspection is done the window company comes back to “cap” the windows, remove the stickers, touch up anything else I ask them to and clean the windows.  Of course I also need the correct screens for the smaller windows as well.  I am curious if the company will push for final payment before all of these things are completed.  Although I am not worried about them not following through, the final payment is the leverage I have so I plan to use it.  If pushed I would be willing to pay a portion of the remaining bill but until everything is 100% done, my final payment will be in limbo.

Tonight I will be running around tending to everything related to my heading out of town for a week.  I should have written a physical list but I am going off the swirling to do’s in my head which can have unpredictable results.  Ali and I have a well coordinated transportation dance tomorrow where I am going to pick her up at her job which is relatively close to the airport, drive to the airport where I will head out while she takes the Tesla back to work.  It saves me from leaving the Tesla at the airport all week and allows her to use it to commute.  Today I also have a huge TV coming for Ali for their new house that they ordered via my Costco account.

I will try to blog as I go during the trip as connectivity, time, and motivation allows.  I am looking forward to a disconnected few days with genuine sweatshirt weather at night accompanied by a lot of quiet, peaceful moments.  It will be good for me.

I just realized I had not talked about how my 4th of July evening went.  As planned I loaded up Elsa right around dusk in the Tesla and headed east towards Ave Maria.  Explosions had already started in earnest all around us as we drove.  Instead of driving into Ave Maria I instead pulled off into the entrance of some agricultural area, it seemed very remote and immune to fireworks displays. Elsa was confused as to what we were doing.  I assured her everything was fine.  If you look closely at this picture you can see her head poking out behind the drivers seat.

I fired up Netflix and starting watching season 3 of Umbrella Academy, which streamed seamlessly, even in the middle of nowhere.  I watched two entire episodes which brought me to about 10:30PM.  I figured that should be enough time for the fireworks to subside. I was wrong.

As I returned to civilization I once again saw and heard backyard fireworks firing off.  I decided to keep driving, this time in towards Naples as I figured there would be less going on in the more densely populated areas.  Again, I was wrong.  I inadvertently drove right past some big bangs that of course terrified Elsa.  I had to repeatedly restrain her from jumping in the front seat.  We didn’t wind up getting home until well after 11, luckily it was finally quiet when we pulled in.

The window installers were supposed to show up around 8:30 on Tuesday so I got up and moving early, making sure I was dialed into the office and ready to go since I was working remotely.  When it got to be 9:30 and nobody was there yet my annoyance meter forced a call to find out what is going on.  Evidently there was a delay when the installer was loading up the windows.  The guy I talked to said they were en route. They pulled up to the house around 10AM.

I was originally told there was a possibility that the entire project could be completed in a day.  The late start made me assume that would not be the case.  That feeling was solidified when I saw it was only two guys doing the work, for some reason I assumed it would be 4-6 people.  So not only were the installers late, Igor, the lead guy said they could only work until around 3PM as they had to go get the the 8th window which for some reason was not ready to go earlier.

None of this was great news to me.  Although I had already allocated two days at home I am a much bigger fan of getting the lion share of the work done on day one just in case some issues pop up.  Igor however was a nice man and it didn’t take me long to realize that he actually cared about the quality of his work, along with the younger guy that was helping him.  I had no idea how destructive/invasive the process would be.  To me removing a window would be a very violent act with a lot of collateral damage to the area surrounding it.  Instead Igor was like a surgeon, removing the old windows with minimal impact.  Once the three new windows were installed I was amazed at how clean it was.  I thought all sorts of touch up/patching work would be required but everything was surprisingly clean.

Most of the removal/installation work occurs from outside the structure.  They covered/taped off the window from the inside, minimizing the debris/mess that actually gets into the house.  It was very impressive.  The got all the windows in the front of the house completed before wrapping up by 3.  They assured me they would be back right at 8:30 on Wednesday to get the other 5 windows done. (they were)

Once Igor and his buddy left I did some minor clean up.  Since I was still on the clock for work I had to make sure I hung around inside although I did do a quick Century workout in the back yard, breaking the 5 minute mark for the first time since I started this version.

It was weird, I had a bunch of stuff I had swirling around my head that needed to be done prior to leaving for the trip but most of it was time sensitive, meaning I couldn’t do it yet.  The end result was me just chilling for a short while which felt like cheating or being lazy.

So during the day the next door neighbor sent me an unexpected message that her son was doing their fireworks thing Tuesday night.  I assumed they already did this on the 4th.  They invited me over for the cook out and stuff which was nice but I told them that I would be taking Elsa on a road trip (again) to avoid the noise.  Of course the info didn’t make me happy but at least I had a heads up.

So again we hit the road, this time I went west as I did not expect prevalent fireworks.  Technically it is illegal to fire them outside of three days of the year so I expected smooth sailing.  For the most part it was although there were a few blasts I could hear from where I was parked.  I first decided to fire up an impromptu live stream from my car, using my phone, a trick I never tried before.  It worked surprisingly well.  I talked for close to an hour about mostly non-PEV topics.

I then decided to watch episode three of Umbrella Academy just to make sure things were clear.  Evidently I should have watched another episode as things were still being shot off when I pulled into the driveway some two and half hours later.

I am hoping things go smoothly today with the window install as there really is no window for error (pun intended), doing five windows in a day with two people.  My plans include also mowing the yard so it is in decent shape while Ali is here.  Tomorrow is really going to be when the crunch hits, all ducks must be lined up, all T’s crossed and I’s dotted.

The entire weekend felt like I was in prep mode.  Instead of riding my road bike Friday night I decided to go in the yard to get the weeding done, clearing time to get more stuff done over the rest of the weekend.  Somehow on Saturday morning I still got back to the house at a similar time after running errands, despite cutting out the 60 minutes normally consumed by weeding.

After eating lunch I started pressure washing, a task I mentally committed to on Friday.  I wanted to pressure wash both sheds and a quick speed wash of the lanai.  The timeline got delayed when I recalled I needed to get up on the roof and see what was going on with the gutters.  During hard rain I had been seeing water spill out the side of the gutter instead of the spout.  When I got up there I was not pleased with what I saw.

The “super gutter” along the pool deck had a log jam at least 20 feet long of oak tree leaves.  I have no clue how that many leaves could wind up there as the oak tree is in the front yard.  In the past I have used the pressure washer exclusively to clear this type of mess but I decided to use a two stage approach this time, first using the leaf blower to get most of the debris out followed up by using the pressure washer.  I walked the entire roof having to clear leaves at several other spots as well.  Once I started using the pressure washer things got seriously dangerous.  A metal roof becomes ice slippery when wet, when combined with wet leaves scattered around it was crazy.  I had to be sure about every footstep using the screw heads for traction.  One moment of carelessness could have lead to a very bad outcome.  In total I bet a spent close to an hour on the gutters before I got to work on the big shed.

To save time I decided to not blast the roof of the shed.  Although it gets dirty the only ones that really see it are the birds.  As I was finishing up a nasty storm was blowing in.  I pulled all of the equipment over to the other shed but retreated inside once the rain started.  Luckily it only rained for maybe a half hour.  I decided to give my body a break by mixing things up and doing the weed whacking next.  My plan was to do the weed whacking now and then mow later in the week so the property isn’t terrible while I am away.  About 3/4 of the way through the task the weed whacker started running like shit.  My quick troubleshooting steps couldn’t fix it so I just grabbed the Dewalt electric trimmer to finish up, I was feeling aggravated.  It was getting too late and I was getting too tired to finish the pressure washing so I decided to finish that on Sunday.

Saturday night I shot and edited a video regarding the cancellation of my KingSong S22 order, going over the history and why I finally said enough is enough.

Sunday morning I made arrangements to meet Ali and Shugs to go check out their house which is now supposed to be complete in less than a month.  I also used it as an opportunity to familiarize Ali with how the Tesla works since she will be using it while house sitting for me next week.  She enjoyed the experience.  There has been a lot of progress on their house since I saw it a couple weeks ago.  The pool is done, the counters are in, the appliances and AC are in place.  Things are really coming together.  That being said there are still a lot of smaller things that need to be nailed down but they can definitely see the finish line.

When I got home I resumed pressure washing, getting the small shed done which was particularly gross.  I then gave the pool deck a quick blasting just so it looked decent for Ali.  I was tired of course but later in the evening got motivated to get the windows ready for replacement which I originally planned to do Monday.

I removed any window treatments, making a mental note that I didn’t like some of them so they would not be put up again.  I also carefully removed the window sensors for the security system that is ancient and pretty worthless.  I regretted taking the time to do so when I realized later it was pointless as the wires would be cut anyway when the window is pulled out. Most rooms it was pretty easy to clear out the areas but the hobby room and the office were particularly labor intensive since there is the most stuff in those two rooms.  I think I have given them enough space to get the job done.  I plan to try to document the window replacement process for my own curiosity.

My Fourth of July has been unlike any of the last two decades since it hasn’t involved any friends or family.  During the morning Elsa and I ran to Tractor Supply, Pinch A Penny and DD.  After lunch I shot a video regarding a new helmet I was sent for review.  It is the best skater style helmet I have ever seen.

I had my version of a 4th of July meal with a Beyond burger and tater tots.  The oddball 4th will conclude with my loading up Elsa in the Tesla, driving somewhere quiet and watching the new season of Umbrella Academy on Netflix in the car.  If I said I didn’t feel some twinges of sadness today I would be lying.  The difference is allowing myself only to take a brief shower in those feelings instead of a long soaking in a tub of futility.

Last night I had a video call from Gladys, Monique and their mom who are down on the island visiting.  It was extremely entertaining for me as everyone had already consumed a few drinks.  Monique who is normally pretty reserved was laughing and silly which was good to see.  I talked with all three of them for awhile. It seems like so far everyone is having a really good time which I was glad to see and hear.  It feels a little surreal knowing I will be at the same place in not so long.

So with the unexpected call about the window install moving up to next Tuesday my weekend gets a little busier.  I need to remove anything around the windows that could impede with the installation.  The spot that could be the most annoying is the office since I have two computer desks flanking either side of the window there.  Of course any window treatments need to be moved and I have to see if I can remove the window sensors from the old security system that only barely functions at this point.  I also have a seed planted in my mind to pressure wash the two sheds over the weekend, we will see if that idea takes root or not.

Also because of the window install I suddenly have a very odd arrangement of 5 days off, one day in the office and then off again for the trip to NY.  I will be working from home Tuesday and Wednesday technically but still, it’s going to be a weird week.  I’m still planning on taking Elsa on a ride to a quiet place the night of July 4th regardless.

Wow, I feel like I have a myriad of events/expenses that are converging in on me in a very expedited timeline, let me explain.

I have been waiting for the shoe to drop on the medical expenses associated with my cardiologist and skin cancer procedures in May.  I had not received a co-pay bill yet, until yesterday.  It looks like my out of pocket for just the skin cancer stuff will be four digits.  I am hoping I won’t be seeing additional bills from the cardiologist as well since they have that unwelcome practice of “estimating” and collecting your portion of the bill up front.  That practice quickly exhausted the funds I had set aside in my medical flex spending account for the entire year.

As told earlier, I went for the consult with the surgeon regarding the small protrusion in my lower abdomen.  In about 10 seconds he told me with 100% certainity I had a hernia.  My two options were to fix it now or fix it later as over time it will worsen, the variable is how fast which depends on the individual and the circumstances they are in.  Because high effort activities are pretty ingrained into my DNA I told him I would rather get it done sooner rather than later.

He recommended a mesh repair.  Hernia mesh has a horrible reputation due to two companies that were selling defective product years back.  There are several class action law suits about it.  I told him that was my biggest concern of course, long term complications.  He assured me the mesh he uses is great.  In 13 years of doing hernia surgeries he said he has never had one of these meshes fail.  The other advantage to going this route is it is an outpatient procedure requiring only three small holes in my stomach.  The recovery timeline is far better as well.  A friend of mine who teaches karate had a mesh repair done several years ago and echoed these results, minimal impact and quick recovery.

So I got the ball rolling on this for two reasons.  I am the type of person that when faced with something shitty to do I always would prefer to get it over with sooner rather than later.  The earlier this is done, the less opportunity it has to get more problematic.  Secondly, since I already have far exceeded my medical deductible this year, I figured I may as well do this now where less money will come out of my pocket.  I made sure to push the procedure into mid-August after I am back from my two trips.

In other expensive news, the installation timeline for my window replacement just got yanked forward.  As recently as last week I got a call stating the install should take place some time in August.  Today I got a call saying “hey, your windows are built, can we come next Tuesday?”  That timeline is somewhat problematic but again my yearning to get things done sooner rather than later kicked in.  I told them it was ok to come, meaning I will be working from home to babysit the process Tuesday and Wednesday.

Of course this also means the remaining payment for the windows will be coming due much sooner than expected, the biggest home expense I have had since putting the metal roof on the house.  I could throw it onto the home equity line of credit but I would like to pay that off sooner rather than later so I am just going to pay for this all at once out of pocket, a massive expense.

I also have been putting the wheel in motion (pun  intended) to get a new electric unicycle, a very expensive one.  I plan to offset that expense substantially by selling at least one if not two of my other PEVs, but still, it will be a chunk of change.  I actually have had another wheel reserved since last August.  I told the dealer to cancel the order today, partially because I am sick of waiting partially because of the call about the windows install moving up. Finally, I have the two trips coming up within the next month.  I don’t expect either one to have massive expenses associated with them but traveling is never exactly cheap. I nearly forgot I have a $3000 Tesla repair within the next month as well.

So anyway the logistical and financial demands on me over the next 45-60 days are going to be steep.  I’m more than capable of navigating my way through to calmer waters, it’s just a matter of keeping my head up and brain engaged.

Last night on the way home from work I called my brother as it was his 52nd birthday. (man that sounds weird)  I hadn’t talked to Todd in awhile so we caught up on the latest and greatest in his world, which always seems very, very busy. Of course when I think about it, whose life does not seem busy when it is spoken out loud?  I told him I was going to NY next week which he did not know about.  Because of his busy schedule, among other things, my dad already knew that Todd’s family would not be down going to the middle of nowhere in upstate NY with very limited connectivity to the outside world. During that conversation Todd also shared some information that sent a wave of anger through me.

As I have talked about here a number of times, I have had a lot of struggles over the last year, both physically and mentally.  For a long time my reaction to these things was to just swim around in them, being angry, sad, seeking to blame, or justify.  The end result of which was walking around most days feeling shitty.  Through efforts by both myself and conversations with others I have been making real efforts to break that chain of useless negative thinking.  Dwelling on things that have happened in the past that are unchangeable serves no tangible purpose in the present.

Although the anger will always be there, allowing it to pass through like water under a bridge instead of taking a bath in it is always the better choice if quality of life and happiness are your ultimate goals.  All I can hope for is a happy outcome for both myself and others, whatever that definition is for the individual.

I have neglected to say anything about the SCOTUS ruling on Roe vs Wade a few days ago, reversing the federal stance on abortion after something like 50 years.  As most that know me would assume, I do not think it is ok to dissolve a woman’s right to chose what decisions she makes with her body.  If somehow men were able to get pregnant there would have never ever been the need for such a ruling as men would never entertain government directing their medical choices.

Let’s be clear, supporting someone’s right to have an abortion is not the same as supporting abortion as a personal choice for oneself.  The vast majority of pro-choice individuals likely would not chose to have an abortion in their own lives yet do not feel justified applying their personal morals onto others.  The hypocrisy I really dislike is religious individuals using the Bible as their core reason for this stance.  The cherry picking of certain aspects of the Bible while completely ignoring other tenants in there that are not convenient to these same individuals is frustrating. For example here are 7 things the Bible clearly directs you to do, that no sane individual would entertain.

The other hypocritical reality is many of the people that are pro-life zealots care very little about what happens to children that are born into situations where they are basically unwanted or uncared for, needing assistance from government agencies. Many of these same individuals will complain about or outright oppose any sort of government funded assistance programs.  Make sure all babies are born, regardless of circumstance, just don’t ask us for any help after it happens.  It’s dumb.

It’s ironic to me that news media was acting like they didn’t know this was coming, it was already leaked close to a month ago. I guess acting like it came out of left field is better for the ratings. To me it’s just another example of the acidic nature of modern society.  Instead of moving society forward as a whole we have a segment that is dead set on throwing down an anchor and then pulling backwards, regardless of the cost.

Today I have my surgical consult regarding my potential hernia.  I am hoping for some direction on whether the bump is minor enough that I can just let it ride for now or if doing so has a significant impact going forward.

I came home last night to a transformed property where large areas of ground were now underwater thanks to torrential amounts of rain.  Of course Elsa was terrified, I found her in the master bathroom tub.  I had to physically remove her from the tub to get her to come outside to go to the bathroom.   The storm subsided shortly before sunset, revealing yet another beautiful contrast of color and shape.

I spent time last time editing a video for Gladys.  She has a lot of cool footage she has collected so I have been helping her get some of it published.  Most of the videos are short so it doesn’t take much time. You can check it out here.

I am now getting close enough to my NY trip that my mental checklist of what needs to happen before departure is being formed and prioritized.  It’s a huge help knowing Ali and Shugs will be watching the house, a luxury I may or may not have when the Roatan trip comes around.

So although we are a little less than a week away from the 4th of July I already have been planning on what I can do to make Elsa’s most hated holiday, better.  Elsa is absolutely terrified of loud noises.  Hell she is scared of noise, period.  She has always been this way but instead of getting better over time it’s gotten worse.  Even the sound of light rain on the roof is enough to send her scurrying to some corner to hide.  I wish there was something I could do to take her fear away.

4th of July and New Year’s are the pinnacle of terror for her.  The sound of nearby fireworks going off have her jumping in the tub, trembling in fear.  I actually have some hemp calming treats that seem to take a little bit of the edge off for her but it’s still really bad.  So what my hope this year is to totally remove her from the situation.

On Monday night right as it is getting dark I plan to load her up in the Tesla.  I then am going to drive out towards Ave Maria.  I am hoping the tightly packed houses would make backyard firework displays a non-issue, but I could be wrong.  If I am, Elsa and I will continue driving.  Hell I will park on Alligator Alley if I have to.  I then can fire up Netflix or YouTube on the Tesla and just chill out with her until the explosions subside.  Yes it’s a lot of effort to try to ease her fear but she’s worth it.

Yesterday I made plans to head down to Roatan where Gladys lives most of the time to visit.  It is a beautiful place.  I have only visited a handful of other countries as most of my travel has been the road trip variety.  I have been in Mexico and the Bahamas courtesy of a cruise, Canada, and Ireland during the big family trip with my dad.  I think that is the extent of my international travel.  Luckily my passport was renewed back in 2019 so I should be good to go.

Gladys and I talk a lot, which is an extremely uncommon thing for me. Just ask most anyone else that knows me.  Generally speaking I hate talking on the phone for long periods of time but with a very small handful of people it no longer feels like the chore it normally is.  Because it is so rare for me to find human beings that I actually don’t mind talking at length with, when I do, I take notice.

Anyway the next 5-6 weeks for me are going to be extremely jam packed with the trip to upstate NY with my family and then reversing direction into the Caribbean a few weeks later.  My path has become much less straight than it used to be.

On Friday night I traded my bike seat for a tractor seat.  I wanted to get the main yard around the house mowed to clear up some time on the weekend as well as avoid complications from precipitation potentially.  I went at a rapid pace, getting off the tractor in less than two hours.  I then went in and had my Friday pizza a little later than normal, it still tasted good.  While I enjoyed it I watched the final of Obi Wan on Disney+.  It was FANTASTIC.  I have loved every Star Wars series they have done on Disney+ so far.

On Saturday morning I had a long errands run with Elsa, I did not return to the house until after 1PM, spending over three hours out and about.  I unpacked and set up some new solar torch style lights around the pool.  They are from the same company that I got the other lights from, meaning I can change their color to any one of 8 or 9 possibilities.  I like the way they look.

I spent my Saturday evening with Gladys’s sister Monique, we made plans to go out to Ave Maria.  On the way there we stopped at the house so Monique could meet Elsa and Kathy.  I walked her around the house and property, both of which she liked.  As normal Elsa was hesitant about Monique at first but let her pet her a bit towards the end of the visit.

We headed out to Ave Maria with very ominous clouds in the sky.  The rain luckily held off while we walked the town square.  The big thing I wanted to show Monique was the church.  She had never gotten to check it out and was very interested in doing so.

We walked in the front door and saw there were people inside for a service.  The service evidently just started and the usher assumed we were there for it so he opened the door for us and we went in.  I could hardly believe it but we just happened to walk into a spanish service, I did not know they had them there.

For Monique this was perfect as spanish is her native language and she got to take in the beauty of the church interior.  My understanding of spanish is very basic, I can make out maybe a few words out of every sentence but I didn’t care, I told Monique I was fine staying as long as she wanted because I knew she was really enjoying it.  After maybe 15 minutes or so she said she was ok to head out. I commented several times how coincidental the timing was of the service with our arrival.

We walked around a little more before eating dinner at a local restaurant, one of only two that I saw open Saturday night.  We both got the stir fry dish, me with shrimp and her with salmon.  We had a good meal.  It became easier to talk once the live steel drum musician closed out his set.  By the time I drove her all the way back into Naples it was after 9:30.  Once again we had a nice time.  Monique is leaving this week to go visit Gladys and have an extended visit in Honduras with her mom.  She will basically be gone all of July.  I guess I will be going back to lone wolf mode for awhile.

My Sunday started sort of slow.  When I did the chicken chores I strapped my GoPro to my head.  The reason was to record what I normally do for Ali and Shugs so they have a visual reference.  It’s almost a real time depiction meaning in total they should only have to spend 20-30 minutes a day doing what I normally do.

During the afternoon I wanted to get out on the Gyroor hoverboard to get some more practice in.  About 10 minutes into riding the board acted weird.  I stepped off, turned it off to reset it and then hit the button to turn it back on.  It was dead somehow.  I captured my disappointment on video.  I tried various tactics to troubleshoot the issue, none of them worked.  I sent an email to the company rep sharing the problems and telling him they can have their board back.  They sent me a return label but want to send me another board that is hopefully 100% functional.

Sunday afternoon I FINALLY got my Prusa MK3S printing again after being out of order for close to a couple months.  I have had to order 3 rounds of parts to get it going again after the blob from hell destroyed the old hot end assembly.  I need to do some additional test prints to make sure everything is good to go but my initial 6 hour print completed successfully.

Sunday night I decided to do a live stream.  Sunday evening is not a good time to do this normally as I have a 5:30 alarm waiting for me on most Monday mornings.  Because of this the stream was shorter than most, clocking in at right around two hours.  By the time I shut it down my eyelids were getting heavy.