Yesterday my buddy Joe made a suggestion after reading about the attempt for someone to open a credit card under my name. The actions I took put a flag on my account with the credit bureaus that SHOULD make banks take extra steps if anyone else would try to open credit in my name, however it is not guaranteed. In addition, this flag only exists for 3 months. Joe said he had a similar problem and instead placed a “freeze” on his account with the three credit bureaus.
A freeze is like putting a padlock on your credit. Nobody is allowed to extend credit in your name, period. The only way anything can happen is if I temporarily unfreeze it if I was applying for a loan or credit card. After that it goes back to being frozen. To be honest, with all of the ID theft in the world I am not sure why this is not the default status for all credit, frozen.
Depending on the state you live in, placing a freeze can be absolutely free. In some states, like Florida, it costs $10 per agency to enact the freeze. I am not sure why that varies state to state. So anyway, if you want to place a nice, high, Trump style wall around your personal credit I would recommend doing the same. I will include the links to freeze with each agency below.
So I watched Doug Pederson’s press conference following the Eagles dreadful loss to the Bengals. I have mentioned before that I really like the way Doug handles the press, even in obviously bad situations like this weekend. He does not stone wall reporters, he will try to answer honestly, even if that answer reflects somewhat negatively on himself or a player. He doesn’t try to be a big fluffy pillow like Andy Reid did who took blame for every aspect of the game, even if the Gatorade was mixed poorly. He isn’t the cocky, arrogant bastard that Chip Kelly was, accepting no blame as the house around him was burning to the ground, primarily because of his personnel decisions.
Doug is just a straight shooter. Despite what I think about the way the team has gone downhill recently and his role in all of that, I respect a guy that is not afraid to talk about the good and the bad, even if it is self deprecating. I think he is a good man and I hope somehow that translates into future success with the team. I just don’t think it is going to happen this year.
Ali’s trip got extended another day due to a flight delay meaning we get to keep Sadie an extra day. Elsa certainly won’t complain, she LOVES having Sadie around. I love watching them interact and play. Last night I was sitting on the love seat with Sadie next to me. Elsa decided she wanted to join the party. She jumped up and promptly laid on top of Sadie. It was very, very funny.
I have been burning up the online shopping highway recently, trying to get ALL of my shopping done in a very compressed period of time. At this point I should only have a couple people to buy for. I like it.
I have been thinking for awhile about splitting my YouTube channel up a bit, specifically spinning off all of the electric unicycle videos into their own all EUC all the time home. Yesterday I started that process creating a YouTube “brand page” named EUC Army, a title I came up with for a video a few weeks ago. I am in the process of getting the 50 + EUC videos uploaded, labeled and tagged to the channel as I type.
Although I plan to have nothing but EUC themed videos on the channel, that doesn’t mean they also will not be on my main channel that has 1.3 million views and counting. Having a video on multiple channels is one way to help build YT revenue streams faster which is my ultimate goal. If you would like to help me get a head start on building the channel go here and take two seconds to subscribe!
So last night I got more sleep but still not as much as I would prefer. Sadie started making noise between 4-5 AM. Cindy was nice enough to get up and let her out but I couldn’t fall back asleep. The congestion in my head just made it impossible.
Sadie has had a weight problem for a long time, easily weighing 20 pounds more than what would be a healthy weight. I have noticed that recently she appears to be on a pretty noticeable upward climb in her proportions. Of course the same reason human beings gain weight apply to her as well, too many calories and not enough exercise. Unfortunately ever since Sadie became a part time resident of the house she doesn’t have the same opportunities to exercise as she did before.
Of course the weight is unhealthy for her. With the addition of the neighbors puppy Shadow and Elsa the weight results in injury as Sadie often comes up limping when she tries to sprint around wildly with all of that extra weight on her frame. We are going to try to do whatever we can while we have her to help her drop a few pounds. We discovered these freeze dried liver treats that dogs love but are very low calorie. Inserting those into the equation instead of processed, traditional dog treats which are basically McDonalds for dogs, is a good step forward.
This weekend I have mostly small things to attend to around the house. It would be nice if I got a head start on some Xmas shopping, I always feel better getting that done sooner rather than later. Hopefully my illness does not progress further during the next two days.
So now after having Elsa in the house for around two weeks we have both been getting more used to each other. She is just extremely cute and seems very happy in her new home. However neither Cindy or I have been able to figure out why she is so skittish in some situations. We wonder if there was something about her old living situation that created this fear or if it’s just the way she is. Anyway, we will keep just smothering her with love and hope it eases whatever worries she has.
So I stayed up to watch the Eagles game although I flipped it off with about six minutes left, knowing the team was going nowhere. It was a very frustrating game to watch. The defense appeared to have no answers for Aaron Rodgers, he picked them apart masterfully. The Packers converted something ridiculous like 10 of 12 third down conversions. The few times the Eagles did actually stop them they committed stupid penalties to let the Packers move the chains anyway.
The front four of the Eagles just did not get the job done. Fletcher Cox who for some reason was deemed worthy of being awarded the highest non-QB contract in the off season has been the biggest disappointment of all. He has 4 sacks this season, the last one coming during the loss at Detroit. Yes, that was SEVEN games ago. You never hear his name called for making a play. The only time I heard his name last night was when he allowed the Packers to extend another drive with a 3rd down roughing the passer call. He is a rancid, stinking example of a player getting the big money and then laying an egg. His play has been very disappointing.
Carson Wentz had another sub-par game. Of course it is not entirely his fault. The Eagles wide receiving crew, which was already poor was short handed because Agoholor (another huge bust), didn’t dress because he has hurt feelioma or something along those lines. They could cut every WR on this team and replace them with waiver pick ups and not lose a step. The interception Wentz threw was a bad one. He has repeatedly exhibited a tendency to have balls “sail” on him during his rookie year. Last night’s example landed square in the chest of a Packer defensive back. I just don’t get how a team that looked so balanced and disciplined for the first three games of the season has unraveled to what we have seen the last couple months. At least the 2-6 record after the 3-0 start has put in focus what areas of the team are just not good enough.
During the game they flashed a stat that surprised me. The last 17 times the Eagles have been behind entering the 4th quarter behind on the scoreboard, they have lost. Wow talk about a lack of resiliency.
It’s hard to imagine a dog being much cuter than Elsa has been since we began “fostering” her. Although she still can be timid in certain situations she is becoming more trusting of us all the time. Yesterday Cindy had her out with the chickens without the leash, using dog treats as a supplemental leash. Food trumps all in Elsa’s mind. The chickens seem to tolerate Elsa’s presence as well with only minimal fussing. Hopefully we can continue to build that mutual disinterest.
She is hilarious in bed, she just gets so comfortable. Last night she decided she wanted to snuggle up to me and rest her head in my armpit. We managed to avoid any housebreaking incidents yesterday although Cindy and I are in a constant mild paranoia. We try to make sure Elsa is in our line of sight at all times. She also started a new thing last night where she kept going under my desk to hang out. I assume the box like dimensions remind her of a crate.
So at this point I have sold or given away almost all of my race timing equipment. It feels good to clear up the space in the house the equipment used to occupy. I have a handful of other things to get rid of but the vast majority of it is out of there. It’s funny when I think about how this day in the calendar used to be for me for the previous six or seven years. I had a mountain of responsibility with the behemoth Thanksgiving race I was timing every year. Fittingly, last year was the biggest quagmire event yet where I was still entering participants 45 minutes after the race had started. It was awful. To have no such burden on my shoulders this year feels odd yet fantastic.
So on my way home from work last night I picked up Sadie. It was a big night as it would be her first time meeting Elsa. I had Cindy take Elsa outside before we got there. I figured it would be better if they met outside instead of inside the house Sadie has called home for so long.
We had a very brief moment of concern when Elsa backed up and growled menacingly at Sadie at first. Sadie sort of ignored her and was more interested in smelling the grass. I unloaded the truck and went inside briefly. By the time I went back out in the backyard the tension seemed to have evaporated and they were running around together. It was the first time I had seen Elsa running free. Despite her rather small dimensions, she is fast, really fast. She could literally run circles around Sadie. It brought a big smile to my face to see the two of them playing together.
The rest of the night was very entertaining between watching them play and establish some ground rules. Elsa is not good at being patient when it comes to handed out treats. Her environment she grew up in having to contest for food with double digit dogs makes her aggressive when food is around. She tried to steal a treat Cindy was handing to Sadie. I would think that over time this behavior would relax as she realizes she doesn’t need to fight for food.
The other unknown was how bedtime would go. Sadie normally at least starts the night in the bed with us although she normally will head into the walk in closet later. Thankfully this seemed to be a non-issue, both of them were content to share the bed and Sadie eventually jumped down and into the closet again. Once again last night Elsa was quiet and still, not causing any noticeable sleep disruptions although I once again woke up without an alarm somewhere around 5:30.
Before I left this morning Cindy had them out in the yard again. They were sprinting around wildly and having so much fun. It was awesome. When they came back inside they were still wound up. Elsa skidded across the tile before changing directions and vaulting herself on the couch. I would say she is pretty happy with her new living arrangements.
Today will be the first time Cindy has to run out while leaving Elsa at home which will be interesting. Supposedly Elsa is crate trained but I have not seen anything so far that makes me think she likes going in a crate. Of course our goal would be to be able to eventually be able to trust her enough to not be crated when we are gone but that will take some time.
I have a feeling this weekend will be very dog-centric although chores and PTV riding will be on the agenda as well.
So Cindy made the drive up to Punta Gorda to pick up Elsa yesterday. The trip went well except for the part where some tire shrapnel from a tractor trailer hit the Prius. Elsa slept most of the way. I got reports and pictures during the day of how she was doing. Cindy said Elsa was very nervous when she first got in the house which is not surprising, everything is brand new.
Of course I was anxious to get home and see the new addition. She greeted me cautiously, you could tell she was timid. Despite her apprehension she spent most of the night mostly following Cindy around. You can tell that she is used to having to contend for food since the shelter she was at had 17 other dogs in the mix. Everytime either of us were doing things in the kitchen Elsa was right there hoping it meant food for her.
Cindy had her out in the yard on a leash to see how she would do with the chickens. She seemed a bit scared of the birds and the chickens didn’t seem to really care about her. Elsa also got to play with the neighbors new puppy Shadow. It seems like they will really have fun being play buddies. Cindy said they had a blast.
Katie stopped over to meet Elsa last night as well. There are some definite similarities to one of her dogs, Tank. She thought Elsa was adorable as well. As the night went on I could tell Elsa was feeling a bit more at ease. It was almost like she couldn’t believe that all this stuff was hers. Of course Cindy was all smiles. Having a 9 month old dog in the house will certainly make her days more interesting and fun.
So when it came time for bed Cindy had planned to have Elsa sleep in the crate that she bought in the bedroom. She was told at the shelter Elsa was used to being crated. I was in bed first, feeling exhausted (more on that later). When Elsa came into the bedroom and saw me in bed she wasted little time before she vaulted herself over me and staked out her own spot in the middle. She looked so cute and content that Cindy quickly scrapped the plan to put her in the crate.
Cindy’s biggest issue with a dog in the bed is it causing her to wake up. When Sadie is in the bed she is quite disruptive with her heavy breathing and moving around. Well Elsa was the opposite. I hardly noticed she was in bed, she just laid there quietly. This morning Cindy reported the same thing, she really had no disruptions from the dog all night which is cool. Tonight things get more interesting since I am picking up Sadie to stay through the weekend. I think they will get along well but Sadie does insist on being number one in the attention scale, something I am sure she will let Elsa know in short order.
Anyway, for the first day I think Elsa did great and I don’t see any glaring red flags so far that would be big issues down the road. She is a little sweetheart.
So I have yet another annoying sleep issue going on. For close to two weeks I have been automatically waking up between 5 and 6 am without an alarm. It doesn’t matter how late I am up the night before or how exhausted I am, something in my head is firing off during that 60 minute window. It feels like it is contributing to my overall sense of being worn down. Yesterday at the gym I basically tapped out in the middle of my workout, I just felt like shit.
Just like most things nowadays, I attribute most of it to just another wonderful side effect of growing older. I recall quite clearly the issues my mom had with sleep and assume I will be battling some of those same challenges as I progress further into old fartdom. It’s no fun getting old.
So yesterday Cindy was working on making the arrangements for us to foster Elsa for a week. The plan is for Cindy to pick her up tomorrow which unfortunately requires a drive up to Punta Gorda. I am then picking up Sadie on Thursday after work. We will have her through the weekend which will give the dogs a good chance to get acclimated. I don’t really expect any issue with Sadie, my bigger concern is how Elsa acts around the chickens and how behaved she is in the house. Of course I have anxiety about the idea of introducing a new dog to my everyday existence. We are fortunate that Cindy is able to be around during the day to try to make that acclimation process as smooth as possible. This will be an interesting week for sure.
So I am now on the last day of my 7 day staycation. The weekend was similar to most other days on the last week outside of the tortuous Tuesday when I stripped the garage floor. Instead the weekend had a mix of work and fun which felt pretty in balance. On Saturday I went around the property spraying something called Wet and Forget. It is supposed to break down mildew and algae over time and supposedly does not require scrubbing or rinsing, hence it’s name. I hit a variety of surfaces including the gutters, driveway, pool cage, castle stones and even the fence posts, most of which have black mildew. The catch is the stuff works slowly, it can take months for stuff to completely disappear, supposedly. I will report back at Christmas if I see a difference. I tended to a number of other chores around the house Saturday but don’t recall all of the specifics.
We did our normal errand run in the afternoon, taking Sadie to Rural King and Home Depot, something she has come to love. She just loves exploring the aisles.
Saturday evening we watched another Netflix rental, Money Monster starring George Clooney and Julia Roberts. The plot lost touch with reality towards the end in such a way that it drug the rating of the film to just a B in my book. Sure rent it, it’s ok.
Sunday morning Cindy joined me for an early run at the track. It was the first outdoor running Cindy has done in quite awhile. I cautioned her to take it easy but of course she wound up almost running the same four miles I did. ( She did 3.75) I felt decent during the run, tired but not obliterated.
We cleaned up and took Sadie to the Naples Greenway. I had my Ninebot One but Cindy stayed on foot with Sadie. It was getting quite hot so we didn’t stay very long. Sadie’s black fur gets her overheated very quickly in direct sun. I rode about four miles, spending some of it with them and the rest on my own.
When we got home there were a few things to do but I mostly chilled out playing some of my longest WoW Legion sessions to date. I am enjoying the new expansion a lot although it feels like I have mountains of virtual tasks to complete. The Eagles game came on at 4:30. I was not really sure what to expect but the general consensus was the Steelers are a significantly better team than the up and coming Eagles. Well that script got flipped in a big way. Instead the Eagles stepped on the Steelers and didn’t relent at all, crushing them 34-3. It was such a blowout that I didn’t get to see the last quarter when the local CBS affiliate flipped to another game.
I am really amazed at just how well the team has done so far. They have continued the formula of a balanced attack on offense with a punishing defense. I absolutely LOVE that when the team was up three scores the defense continued to be aggressive instead of deploying the hated prevent defense that I have ranted about for decades. This is the best I have felt about the team in more than decade. If you asked me a month ago I was in “this is a rebuilding year” mode. Now, it seems clear this team has the capability to do some real damage in the NFC this year. As ho hum as I felt about Doug Pederson as the head coach, somehow, someway it’s working.
For my last day off I plan to follow much the same formula as the past week. I was already outside hooking up a new pond pump. I’ll be tending to more to do’s as I mix in one last dose of fun and play.
RIP Arnold Palmer. Although I have never been more than a casual golfer, I appreciate the legend he has been in the game. He has always struck me as just being a good man, something we could use more of nowadays.
Our property had been nice and dry for a few days. When I got home last night that was no longer the case, a massive deluge had brought the annoying temporary ponds to various spots in the yard. The timing of the rain was not ideal as a tropical system in the Gulf of Mexico is supposed to be spinning up , poised to dump massive amounts of rain in our area the next few days. I can hardly wait for dry season to begin.
I spent a good portion of last night doing prep for hosting the fantasy football draft party tonight at the house. I have a new TV and a new operating system on the laptop I normally use to connect remote owners to the draft. Getting the two things working together took a little bit of patience. As usual I will be leaving work early to rearrange the furniture in the great room to be able to support having 10 or more people in there. I’m sure it will all work out fine.
Cindy loves doing party prep, unfortunately she won’t be getting home till later as she signed up to be an election worker, a noble cause. She had to leave the house before 6AM this morning to get ready for the long 7AM-7PM work day. She was anxious about doing it but I am sure she will do great. Her personality will make the voting experience better for anyone that walks in the door.
Since Cindy had to leave so early and was going to be gone all day I was pressed into early chicken coop cleaning duty. The chickens looked at me with confused expressions when I opened the doors before the sun had even peeked out from behind the horizon. I was in my full work clothes with my rubber work boots to perform the cleaning, not ideal but we have things optimized enough that I can avoid fecal matter contact, even in nice clothes.
As I cleaned, Kristen, our current broody chicken, was in one of the nesting boxes making noises and fluffing her feathers to make her look double her size. When I got done with the clean up I picked her up and carried her out in the yard even though I had no doubt she would find her way back into the coop shortly after I left.
I was slightly nervous cleaning the coop that early as I still have the sting of Cocoa getting killed by the coyote around 7:15 in the morning a couple months ago. Before I left I did a thorough scan of the back yard to make sure there were no potential predators hanging around. The chickens normally hang closer to the house which mostly hides them from the view of a backyard set of eyes.
This was a very heavy Ninebot One riding weekend. It started off at lunch on Friday when I rode from Naples Medical Center after picking up the DVD of my brain MRI results. I rode all over the coastal Naples area. It was definitely more challenging having to keep a close eye on so many potential obstacles. All in all I did a good job and logged 6-7 miles in the process.
I took some time and looked briefly at my MRI brain images but it didn’t take long until I lost interest. To be honest it sort of grosses me out seeing slices of my skull/brain and everything contained within. I didn’t see any huge obvious flaws so I guess that is a good thing.
On Saturday morning I was out in the yard early weeding and tending to the property. It was incredibly warm and humid. I can hardly wait for winter to arrive so I can work outside without such a misery tariff. We took Sadie out for a DD and Rural King ride which she of course found very exciting. She slides so easily into Cindy and my daily existence. Just having her around makes both of us feel better.
Later in the day we headed over to Cindy’s daughters place. Cindy was tending to her two dogs for the weekend. Of course we brought Sadie with. Sadie was already very familiar with Tank, whom we dog sitted for around two weeks. She had not met Bowser, who is a much bigger, high energy dog. Sadie had to set Bowser straight with a ferocious sounding snarl when he tried to mount her from behind. Once that was over all three dogs had fun. It was the first time I saw Sadie running around and playing with other dogs since my dad and step mom were at the house with their dogs a couple years ago.
Later in the afternoon Saturday the skies were looking ominous but I was getting the urge to go out on the Ninebot One. I told Cindy I was heading out although I wasn’t quite sure what my destination was going to be. I headed out onto Immokalee Road and decided I would make a right and head toward Bird Rookery Swamp. At first I thought I would just go part of the way down the road to the point where it turns to limestone. Then I decided to just go to the entrance of the swamp. When it was all said and done I went onto the boardwalk to the end.
The ride had a lot of challenges. I never rode on limestone road, compressed stone parking lot, grass path or boardwalk before. I had some shaky moments but stayed upright. The Ninebot One is remarkably good at handling off road conditions. I was surprised to see a notice at the end of the boardwalk that the actual trail was closed to the public. The sign said something like it was due to wildlife concerns. I was curious how long it had been closed. I did notice the water levels at the swamp were VERY high.
So once I turned around it started to rain. When I got off the boardwalk I texted Cindy that I was at the swamp and it might be a good idea she came and picked me up. By the time I got onto the limestone road it was a downpour. I knew the Ninebot was pretty water resistant so I kept trucking along, hoping to meet Cindy coming down the road to pick me up. Once I hit the asphalt part of the road the rain had pretty much stopped. I heard texts coming in on my phone but I didn’t feel like stopping to answer them, I just wanted to get back at that point. It turns out that Cindy did not get the text saying I was at the swamp. She only got the one asking for a pick up. She assumed I was at the school so she drove there. When I got back to Immokalee Road I stopped and texted her again where I was but that I was just going to ride back as I was almost home. I cut across Immokalee Road and was less than a mile from the house.
So the EUC was very wet from riding through a rain storm. I never had ridden it while it was this wet before. In the video you will notice I mention something about how the pedals felt extra slippery when wet. So after I got on the right side of the road the Ninebot started beeping which is an indicator it wants you to slow down, either due to a low battery condition or excessive speed. The wheel also has a “safety” feature which will start tilting the pedals backward to force you to slow down. This tilt normally is subtle at first but I have had previous rides where it became quite severe very quickly, causing me to have to lean forward awkwardly to stay on it.
Well shortly after crossing I heard a few beeps followed almost immediately with sudden, severe tilt back. Due to the slippery pedals I was not able to stay on. My feet slipped off and I went barrel rolling onto the road shoulder at somewhere around 13 mph. I just happened to be filming with my GoPro when it happened. The last thing you hear is the sound of my boots sliding off the pedals before I accidentally turned the camera off when I fell.
Of course my first reaction was anger. The Ninebot went rolling down the grassy ditch, ejecting one of it’s LED rings in the process. I did a brief survey and saw my right knee was bloody. For whatever reason I decided to not wear knee pads for the first time in a month. Of course they would have prevented the road rash. The EUC appeared to be fine which was a close second in concern to my own injuries. A couple minutes after my fall Cindy pulled up. She was freaking out that she didn’t know where I was. I told her I just fell so I just wanted to get home.
When we got back we did a more extensive examination of my injuries. In addition to my dirty and bloody knee I had banged up my right shoulder, hip and even my face which had a bloody scratch and a feeling like I was punched in the jaw. Of course this all freaked out Cindy further. I assured I was ok and the only reason I fell was because I never rode in wet conditions before. It was definitely a good lesson.
I had already made up my mind before the crash Saturday that I was going to run on Sunday. Having a battered and bruised right side created a hurdle to that goal but I still pulled myself out of bed and went to the track solo. I knew it was not going to be fun. It took nearly a mile until I was running without a mild limp. I decided to cut myself a small break and only ran a little more than 5K in distance instead of the four miles I logged last weekend.
Somehow my overall pace was around 15 seconds per mile faster than the week before which seemed ridiculous. When I tried to analyze why the only thing I could come up with was my stride was shorter because of the injury but my foot cadence was faster. Maybe that is the way to go. I always assumed using a longer, slower stride was more efficient overall but maybe that isn’t the case. The sprinklers at the track were on again giving me moving wet obstacles to steer around.
When I got back I changed my shirt and hopped in the truck with Cindy to go back to her daughters place to check on the dogs. Sadie was excited to have another play session with her buddies. Having three dogs is fun to experience in short bursts. Dealing with it day in and day out would be a real chore.
When we got back I had another Ninebot One goal in mind, despite my bloody crash the day before. I wanted to ride it all the way to Dunkin Donuts, some 10 miles away. The plan was for me to leave on the wheel and then have Cindy leave about 45 minutes later which in theory should have us arriving at DD at around the same time. At first we talked about then riding the Minipros around DD but Cindy said she didn’t feel up to riding. I pushed off for what I knew was going to be a long, potentially boring and somewhat painful ride. Being on an EUC for that amount of time and distance is rough on your lower body. Doing it with a banged up right side makes it even more so.
I was about three miles into the ride, approaching Wilson Blvd when I heard the Prius beeping. Cindy had left already and was trying to flag me down. I wasn’t sure why she would be coming already and was worried something was wrong at first although I heard nothing from my phone prior that would indicate there was a problem. I pulled over, confused, as she spun around to my side of the road. She said she changed her mind and had the Minipros in the back of the car.
I didn’t react well to the abrupt change of heart. I had my mind in goal accomplishment mode, I wanted to conquer the ride on the EUC. I felt like I was getting pulled from the game and put on the bench. In retrospect it was less of a big deal than I made it. I threw the wheel in the Prius and we drove to DD. After we picked up coffee we came up with the idea of me riding back to the house which would actually be an even further ride since I already logged three miles.
As I soon as I headed east on Immokalee I realized I might not be able to complete the ride back due to serious head wind I was now traveling into. It was pushing against my body continually, making the bot work hard to keep me moving at 10+ mph. So despite the wind, things were going ok. My biggest issue was foot discomfort which I would address by stopping periodically to shift my weight around a bit.
About 5 miles from the house I started getting my first warning beeps and mild tilt back of the pedals, something that happens increasingly more often as the battery gets depleted. When I felt the tilt I would immediately lean back to drop some speed. Well about a half mile from Wilson Blvd I heard a few beeps and then almost immediately got thrown into sudden, severe tilt back, much like what happened the day before. Despite the pedals being dry, it once again was severe enough that I fell off the back of the bot, sending me and bot rolling down the grass embankment. I just happened to have the camera on again when it happened and this time it kept rolling, capturing the crash in it’s entirety.
Beside getting dirty, I didn’t have any additional injury from this spill. The Ninebot escaped unharmed as well, simply rolling down the hill. I was pissed. This “safety” feature is treacherous, it should not go zero to 60 in the span of a couple seconds. I got back on the bot and continued forward at a greatly reduced speed. Despite this, the low battery level caused a couple more bad tilt backs that had me hop off. Once I had to wildly scramble to grab the wheel as it headed toward the road.
I realized there was no way I was going to make it all the way back to the house. I texted Cindy and had her meet me at Orange Tree, some two and a half miles from the house. By the time I got to her I was only able to putter along at maybe 6 mph. I learned my second valuable EUC lesson of the weekend. The Ninebot One is not designed to be taken for double digit mile rides when most of it is into a stiff headwind. Riding it in low battery conditions was annoying and downright dangerous. I now have just under 80 miles on the Ninebot One odometer which seems sort of crazy considering how things started out.
We decided to make unusual plans to do a Sunday dinner out at Carrabas. We hadn’t been there for a while. I was shocked just how empty it was, about 2/3 of the tables were unoccupied. We were not impressed with the cleanliness of the place. Despite being slow, we were at first directed to table that hadn’t been cleaned. When we went to another high top table the area around it was sort of a mess as well.
The waiter reminded us it was happy hour meaning 2-1 drinks. There was one problem, they had no draft beer which is what qualifies for the special. WTF? I wound up drinking two Miller Lite bottles at $5 a pop, lame. The food itself was good and our waiter was green but nice so it wasn’t a total negative experience. It certainly did not give either of us an urge to repeat our patronage soon.
So the internet is up in arms about Colin Kapernick making a conscious decision to not stand during the playing of the national anthem before the 49ers preseason game this weekend. Colin said it was his way of protesting the way black people are treated in our country. To me it was Colin’s way of showing he isn’t the brightest bulb in the pack.
Of course I feel it is disrespectful to not observe the anthem. Despite your social views, somehow your team was stupid enough to throw a 100 million dollar plus contract in your lap. It’s going to be hard to garner much sympathy for your oppression when you live in such “difficult” conditions which is something he should have given thought to prior to creating this circus.
Sure this is America and you have the freedom to not acknowledge the anthem, just like others have the freedom to think you are a huge a-hole for choosing to do so. It was just a poor decision by him. I think there are much more effective ways to make a point without alienating yourself from the populace. I do have to admit that I sort of enjoy this being Chip Kelly’s mess to deal with. It is certainly laying the groundwork for this to be a disastrous first year in 49er coaching career.
Ali’s trip got extended another day due to a flight delay meaning we get to keep Sadie an extra day. Elsa certainly won’t complain, she LOVES having Sadie around. I love watching them interact and play. Last night I was sitting on the love seat with Sadie next to me. Elsa decided she wanted to join the party. She jumped up and promptly laid on top of Sadie. It was very, very funny.
