Sunshine

Basking in the sunshine my day was going ok for a while and then the treadmill issue came up again. The afternoon quickly became mired in intrigue and rumors of identity theft of an unnamed person. The meditation session did not go too well either. Man, I can’t wait for warm weather – I think cabin fever is striking everyone.

I ate at the Pita Place again tonight. Again, the price exceeded $10 so I guess I cannot eat there many times. Back to Braun’s and Russ’ . The hotel decided to raise their rates as well so I checked around for prices. I can get a better place for the same price as I will have to pay next week. I told the manager today I was going to have to leave. He said he did not want to loose me as I have been there for 4 years. He said he would see what he could do. It had better be less than $39 or I am out for better digs.

I need a few changes that is for sure!

Tuesday Blues

There was continuous snow over the area for the past two days.  It is sort of pretty.  I did not sleep too much last night for the most idiotic reason I had ever heard and believe me I have heard most everything over the last 25 years.  However, the real culprit must go unnamed.

On Monday, I sold the treadmill that had been collecting dust for the past 13 years.  I wanted $200 but settled for $150 when it was found the plastic base was cracked and the distance measurement would not show correct numbers.  I can tell you though it will probably be the last time I use craigslist.com.

 I am getting pretty fed up with the whole darn scene and don’t have that many years to enjoy life so I better get started.  How is it that when you think think things are pretty stable and you have things figured out that the rug is pulled out from under you leaving no support or anything to believe in? 

I guess it is the 1 in 10 theory.  Only about 1 in 10 people will do anything about their situation.  The other 9 just moan and when the 1 moves they get pounced upon saying they did not do it right.  Oh well, at least you get to see what a person is really made of.

Websites Galore

Well it looks like I will be doing two more websites.  Too bad they are non-paying jobs – one church and one relative.  Oh well, it is amateur stuff anyway so if it helps what the hey.  Two more for godaddy!

What’s Happening?

This winter has been characterized by lots of snow and periodic warm spells that melt the snow and flooding rivers.  The whole are from Grand Rapids to Detroit to Indianapolis are in the Water Triangle.  It would be fun to get out and kayak- more specifically I would like to get over to Barry’s and get in one of his kayaks and paddle up river towards Orland.  I might not make it but at least the trip back would be a breeze.  Maybe next weekend.  I am really keen on trying some different types of kayaks.

Tomorrow we have planned a trip to Saugatuck to look at the boat.  The batteries have to be charged, I want to remove the valve lifter shutoff cable and take one of the seacocks apart to see what king of shape they are in.  I suspect that all of them should be cleaned and re-lapped for a tight fit.  At least I want to identify the ones that are frozen in place.  They may not be but I know I have not shut off some of the valves since I have owned the boat.  As a matter of fact I think there are some that I do not know where they even are.  With two of us there and a wire to bang the thru hull I might be able to find them all.  At least I know where 6 of them are.  That leaves 3 in unidentified positions.

Assuming we get up early enough and get going by 0900 we should have sufficient time to  do all that needs to be done.  Here is hoping.

More Snow!

This winter in Grand Rapids has seen the most snow since I joined the company 4 years ago.  Today we received nearly a foot and tonight promises 4 more “.  Tomorrow afternoon I will be on my way back to Indiana. 

 Friday I will spend at the home office if there is work and if not I will try to get Barry H to go kayaking on the Fawn River.  Barry has a dry suit and I have no suit so I hope not to tip over as it would be long trip home soaking wet.  Hypothermia would be a certainty in any case.  I tried to purchase a drysuit but the guy just wanted too much for it – $850.  True he had some of the under suit clothes and gloves and booties but still.  If it were $750 I would do it.

We have to get up to the boat to do some work that needs to be done.  We will try to get there this weekend.  I want to take one of the seacocks apart to see how hard it is to repair.  I need to do all 9 of them but I want to do the easiest one first.  How much energy do I have?

Monday, Monday

Stayed home this AM due to ice and raining and snow but drove to GR in the afternoon.  It was very foggy and it strained my eyes and must have taken a toll as the meditation session was great and I did not fall asleep but stayed in the “center”.  It has been a few days since that has happened.

Called Barry this AM to discuss corn fueled stoves of which he has one.  Also discussed Kayaks since his stream is open we might go Friday as I will probably be LWOP.  I have enjoyed his company since we were child hood friends and into our teens before girls, and cars and other things got in the way.  We were on a haying team for a year or two – I still like baling hay.

After lunch I did a bunch of things and headed for GR.  It is still raining but not so cold and I will sleep with the window open and listen to the diesel truck they leave running all night.  Went to B&N and pulled 4 of the best kayaking books from the shelf and went  through them again.

Looks like I have about 30 hours of work for this week.  It might pay my travel and hotel plus food for a while.

Another Storm

Another storm was supposed to dump 5 – ” on us today but it looks like it will miss NE Indiana.  There is about 3 ” in the driveway and drifts of 12″ here and there.  After work today I will go out an blow the snow off.

I have been trying to sell charleswmoore.com & .net to another charleswmoore but so far we have not had much success in the transfer.  I have done my part but both godaddy and the other company cannot come together and get the transfer done.  Once Godaddy gets their hooks into a url they mean to keep it even if the owner wants to sell it.

Back to work I go.

Sailing Grace

I had dinner tonight at Steak n Shake – 5 way chili.  Then I wen to B&N to check out the books and have a cookie and a cup of coffee.  I found a book that looked like a new one in the Nautical section and started reading.  It is about a guy here in Grand Rapids that had severe heart disease – a plugged LAD and this grew into much more serious complications.  I got half way through the book.  I finish it some time later.

The weather people were right!  Last night I looked out the window at 10:00  and it was raining plus warm and then again at 10:30 and it was snowing real hard.  The winds picked up soon after and raged throughout the day today.  Somehow I did not get the weather outlook blogline posted so I published it tonight.

I am in the process of learning  a new software program that does microwave path analysis, loss budget and many other wonderful things relating to designing microwave systems.  My first analysis was for a shot in Wisconsin – for confidentiality reasons more details cannot be revealed.  It was fun and I compared the results to my own freeware program and they were nearly the same.

I sold the urls charleswmoore.com & .net to another Charles W Moore.  I kept the .org and .us urls for myself.  It is all part of cutting back for the impending retirement.  Marc let me use space on his server for my most important sites like this one.  With the fall of the stock market I will have to be very careful about spending as SAM’s medical insurance has take a drastic turn for the worse.  There will not be a lot of extra money.

For Tonight We Will Receive?

.WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM

7 PM THIS EVENING TO 12 PM EST WEDNESDAY...

PLUMMETING TEMPERATURES AND SNOW WILL ICE OVER

 THE ROADS THIS EVENING. WINDS GUSTING TO

50 MPH WILL RESULT IN NEAR BLIZZARD CONDITIONS.

 EXPECT UP TO 6 INCHES OF SNOW ALONG

WITH THE HIGH WINDS...AND HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS

 TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING.

SCATTERED POWER OUTAGES ARE ALSO POSSIBLE TONIGHT

 AND WEDNESDAY MORNING DUE TO THE HIGH WINDS.

A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF

SNOW ARE EXPECTED ALONG WITH STRONG

WINDS...MAKING TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS OR IMPOSSIBLE.

AVOID TRAVEL TONIGHT IF AT ALL POSSIBLE.

No time, No time

Boy, it does not seem like I have much time to write and yet so much has happened.

My boss asked me into the conference room 1 Central (also known as the fishbowl) to ask my retirement intentions.  I basically told him I would like to stay full time until April when the work runs out and then go half time.  In Lieu of that I guess I am finished whenever.  We just purchased a $8K software package to allow us to perform path analysis for microwave.  This has been my specialty for several years and I like to do this work.  So this kind of leaves me in never land.

My daughter in Germany came over with her husband and my new Grandchild Alex.  It was nice to see them and even though it was a late Christmas (they missed their Christmas flight due to new and tougher USA laws on International visitors). 

 SAM’s company blessed us with a new healthcare plan that at this point appears to really suck.  We have had excellent insurance for a number of years and now have to join the ranks of people who will have to do without a doctors care due to the much higher costs.  Maybe we can go on the road together if the insurance gets so bad that it won’t pay to stay with the company.

I am reading a book on Wild Trees (Richard Preston).  It is about the people who are mapping and climbing the tallest of the worlds trees.  These would be in the 300+ feet category.  Redwoods, Douglas Fir and Eucalyptus’s are the tallest.  Nobody really knows what the tallest tree really was but it would probably be the Redwood or Douglas Fir.  It is a great book about trees and their environment and with a real human aspect and narrative.  These guys are scientists and keep the locations secret but with Google Earth it is just a matter of time before recreational climbers find and start destroying hundreds of decades of upper canopy development.  I wish I were young enough to climb one of those baby’s.

My mind says do all these things but the body is aged.  Still, maybe…….