September 2006

Friday 01- did my stretches- I am taking a day off from doing that stucco and just going to kick back. I worked so hard yesterday that I felt like a Salmon after it spawned- Stoney came by to look at the job I did on the stucco and we yapped for a while about some graffiti defaming a Board Member on the sidewalk of the Community Center, Lee used a high pressure spray to remove the paint but ended up etching it into the concrete- worked on website for weekend update and added “FIVE YEARS AGO THIS WEEK” in the hope that some folks could remember how we used to be- called and talked to Mac about this and that and other stuff that we usually talk about when we have nothing to say- took my evening walk- called Roger T. and talked computers- too dang cloudy tonight so I won’t be taken the scope out and will do some computer work.
Saturday 02- did my exercises- worked on the west wall putting up some shelves and getting it ready for stuccoing. Was going to do some finishing work on the east wall but it rained- Jeff R. came by for a jaw and to look at my stucco work- went for my walk and took my camera this time, because on yesterdays walk I came across a rock in a wash with debris of twigs around it that look like a smiley face with hair. I didn’t write about it yesterday cause I had no proof. So here is a picture of it to the left. What do ya think?
Sunday 03- did my stretches- was going to hang up some more chicken wire and thought to myself, nah, I am going to go and visit some of my friends- went over to Frank and Mary’s and they had the in-laws and a bunch of family over for the weekend. Except for the kids outside riding dirt bikes, they were all sitting around in the living room, where it was cool, watching videos of their vacation to Shaver Lake in Northern California and laughing; at first I thought they were watching America’s Funniest Videos. Jerry and Barb showed up there too and that saved me a trip over to their house- dropped in on Mac and family for a visit- went on over to Chuck’s and yapped for a while and we tried to fix the gear shifter lever on Joseph’s quad that had gotten stripped- got home and did a little stucco and chicken wire. I’ll be so dang happy when this project is over- went for my evening walk- Stoney called and invited me over for dinner but I had just started stuccoing and asked for a rain check- later that evening I dropped by John M’s to clear a few malicious programs off his computer- took out the telescope for a few and trained it on the Moon- I forgot to post this yesterday but my friend Dale from Landers called and we traded insults and try to one-up each other; we do this all the time. I said to him that I must have drank two gallons of water today, and he told me that it was so dang hot that he drank four gallons of water and it cleaned all the impurities out of his system, I told him if that were true he wouldn’t be talking to me right now cause he would have dissolved. He came back with; that he had used Odor Eaters once and lost his feet. I know it is sick humor but we have fun- Mike from Hermosa Beach called really late for a chat.
Monday 04- did my exercises- spent the day finishing the chicken wire on the west side of the house. Just a few more things I need to do and then it will be ready for the stucco- Ron D. called and told me that he and Linda went up to Pipes Canyon to look at the damage that the Sawtooth fire of July had caused. Ron said all the burnt ruins and destruction overwhelmed him. They talked to a woman in her eighties who lives there and lost her home and now lives out of her vehicle- Andrew came by and looked at my stucco job- Jeff R. came by on his way to checkout some antiques- went for my evening walk- had the scope out and was looking at the Moon when I realized the surface looks like the stucco I put on my walls.
Tuesday 05- did my stretches and lifted weights- Linda S. called for me to come on by and with my camera and take some pictures of the fabric she had painted to be worn by her friend of many years. They were so large we had to hang them on the clothesline for the shoot- continued to do the stucco of the west wall- called AAA and got my car insurance from them and dropped Geico- Ron D. called and asked if I wanted to go down to the Beatnik Café to watch some movies, I would have went but too dang tired, I changed my mind later after I had a nap and called them, but they had already left- Moon is coming to full and it washes out the sky of stars. So I just sat outside without the scope gazing at the sky and pondered what it’s all about- wrote my column and sent it to the newspaper- Mike from Hermosa Beach called to say howdy- Andrew called to ask for a favor.
Wednesday 06- did my stretches and lifted weights; just too dang muggy today and yesterday to ride my bike and jog- did some more stucco; almost done, just a few more days- did that favor for Andrew- Ron D. called to say hi- had lunch (ham sandwiches and Gator Aid) with an appraiser who has been in the U.S.A for four years now. He came from Romania and likes the freedoms we have. He told me in our country everything that’s over 200 years is ancient history- went for my evening walk- a storm came our way around 7pm first a thick fog and I thought it was really going to pour down buckets, then it made lots of noise with big gusts of wind, and then some lightning and thunder, but we only got a few drops of rain- watched “Bones” on TV- bought some more minutes for my T-Mobile To Go phone.
Thursday 07- really nice day so I did all my exercises- more work on the west wall and more stucco- Joel dropped by with burritos and a dolly (the two wheeled kind for moving heavy stuff) I wanted from Wal-Mart- Ron D. called and said he played guitar at the Beatnik Café last night- ants in the kitchen! They came up through my gray water outlet and were crawling all over my sink. Killed them all and then went for my evening walk- Andrew came by for a chat- I took out my telescope and trained it on the Moon, which is full and at perigee (means closest to the Earth) and is 12% larger and brighter than any full Moon of 2006! A little more searching and I found that this years Harvest Moon will be on October 7 because it falls closest to the Autumnal Equinox that is on September 23.
Friday 08- did my stretches and got right to work on the west wall and finished the first coat of stucco- Joel came by with my mail and some peach turnovers, YUMM- Ron D. came by and we chatted for a while about forgetting things when you get old; preparing his car for the next day’s journey, he had left the dome light on all night and drained the battery so it wouldn’t start. Before leaving, I gave him the program he had asked me to download for him, and then promptly left without his hat- Stoney came by to yap. He said that he was real proud of my stucco job, made me feel really good. Then Andrew came over and we all sat and jawed (we do a lot of jawing around here) about the Community Board meeting tomorrow and the fate of a certain board member and how you have to have integrity before you can ask for folks to vouch for it. After Stoney left we worked on some computer matters, and when that was all done Andrew and I went for an evening walk and I showed him the rock that looks like a smiley face with hair - called Linda D. and told her that Ron’s hat was at my house and yapped for a while- did the weekend update for the website- to windy for the telescope tonight.
Saturday 09- did my exercises, but didn’t ride the bike- went right to work on the second coat of stucco and will finish it tomorrow- called Stoney and jawed for a bit about the Community board meeting- Jeff called and asked about a surveyor who was driving around my location. I had no idea what they were surveying but it was to the north- quiet day and watched two TV programs on PBS: Rosemary and Thyme, and "Edward R. Murrow: This Reporter"
Sunday 10- did my stretches- finished doing the stucco on the outside of the house! I have one wall on the south to do but that is inside and will do that in a few weeks as planned. Now I have to paint the outsides with white paint- Ron D. called and needs me to bring over a battery charger, while there he gave me a present of five gallons of white paint! What a friend! Now I can start painting in the next few days- on my way back from Ron’s I stopped in on my new neighbors who had bought Scott’s place just down the street from me. Ivan and his family are very kind and graceful folks and Jeff R. showed up we sat around eating chicken tacos and jawed with him and his dad who was the Chile pepper champ years ago on the TV program “That’s Incredible” by eating 67 peppers- called my Dad and Aki to just touch base- Jeff R. called and we yapped for a while- watched Mystery “Inspector Lynley” (I like the female detective on it) on PBS- took the telescope out and trained it on Vega while I talked to Mike from Hermosa Beach about computer and email Phishing.
Monday 11- did my exercises- had five gallons of white paint. Had a paintbrush and a roller. Started painting the house. When the day was done I had painted a whole two walls- Ron D. called to tell me how his day went. He spent most of the day trying to get some mechanical work done on his two cars that was probably done by rats- called and talked to Roger T. about computer stuff- took out the scope and viewed Mizar and Alcor.
Tuesday 12- did my stretches- Jeff R. dropped by with some donuts and we chatted- Kula called to say hi while she was on the freeway headed to the City of Commerce- finished my first coat of paint on the walls that I stuccoed- watched the sunset like I been doing everyday for the pass year in remembrance of Kern: Thought for the week: On the twelfth of this month one year ago a good friend and neighbor Kern Watson passed away. That day after receiving the news from his Wife I went outside to watch the sunset. While observing that sunset I made a promise to myself and to my departed friend I would watch every sunset for a whole year, and I have kept that promise. So to those of my friends who had wondered why I left abruptly in the middle of a conversation to go outside; now ya know.
Wednesday 13- got up at the ungodly hour of 7:30 am to be at the court house by 8 to help a friend fight a lien that was put on his home unfairly- after the trial and since I was down that way I stopped in the health food store in JT to get some things I needed- while doing touchup on my paint job on the walls Lee H. stopped by and then John M. to checkout the stucco I did- Dale from Landers called to give me pain, Mac called, Ron D. called, Mike from Hermosa called, and Melonee called. Seems like everyone was calling me today and that's all right with me- missed my evening walk but I did do my stretches today- Watched "Bones" on TV.
Thursday 14- did my exercises- windy today and got a few drops of rain around 11am- Ron D. called and said he found out what was wrong with his truck. I dropped by his house and brought him to my home so he may have a look see at my stucco job. I guess I’m getting pretty desperate when I got to pick up folks and bring them by to show them my stucco- did some more touchup on the paint- Andrew came by with a disk from Joseph that had his homework on it and needed it printed- John M. dropped off a gallon of paint for the trimming of my house; he said as payment for getting his computer running again- went for my evening walk- called and jawed with Stoney about when he was over in the Philippines in WWII and how he almost missed the boat home. He went that morning to open the Motor Pool he was in charge of and a Warrant Officer drove up and asked, “Stoney what the hell are ya doing here? You’re supposed to be going home on a boat that leaves at 10am.” So Stoney raced over to the barracks, threw all his stuff that would fit in a duffle bag, and on the way pass the main gate he yell to them that they can find this Jeep down at the harbor some wheres. He was one of the last soldiers on that ship, which would take them pass Japan, up to the Aleutian Islands, over to San Francisco, where he was processed out of the Army, and then on a bus home to LA- Joel came by to say hi and gave me a cup of ice cream- still to windy so I’ll just catch up on my reading (I got that Biology book to read) instead of taking the scope out tonight- called my friend Billie Sanders over the internet and yapped with her for a long while.
Friday 15- did my exercises- worked on the website and got it ready for the weekend update- Stoney came by for a visit- talked to Dale while doing more touchup on the walls- went for my evening walk- called and jawed with Jerry and Barb for a while. Jerry was telling me about an old 29 Palms diner he used to frequent, but I forget the name. It fell in ill repute after the owner’s son took over and had babies behind the counter where diapers would be changed! Jerry really wants to get started exploring the desert this fall when the weather gets cooler so he has been doing a few small test outings to build up his stamina- another windy night so I’ll not be taking the telescope out.
Saturday 16- did my exercises- messed around the house doing some tidying up after a lot of neglect from 3 weeks of stuccoing- Linda D. called to say she is bringing back the battery charger Ron barrowed and to take a look at my stucco job. She brought the dog so I had to hide the cat- Roger T. called and said to come on over and pick up an old septic tank that he has sitting in his yard. I took him an old monitor that he wants. Roger has done a mighty great job with his property getting it setup just like he wants it- went for my evening walk- watched TV program on PBS: Rosemary and Thyme- the wind has stopped, yea! So I took out the scope and went for the southern sky around the Tea Pot in Sagittarius. Spent less then an hour observing cause it got mighty cold, around 65 degrees, and I ain’t used to that yet.
Sunday 17- did my stretches- did 3 loads of laundry- went for 2 miles on my evening walk - watched Mystery “Inspector Lynley” on PBS- nice quiet day.
Monday 18- did stretches an lifted weights- dug a hole for an out building and other productive stuff around the house- Stoney came by with some groceries and told me a story on how he used to play a practical joke on his friends with a cigar box with an old Ford ignition coil in it. He’d wrap it up like a present and then he would offer it to folks and they’d grab it and git shocked. Well, Stoney had this friend who wouldn’t wakeup for no one. You could shake, and holler at him, but he would only wake up when it was time to go to work. Stoney brought his box over and told the guy’s wife that he’ll get him up and placed the box between the guy’s knees and zapped him a good one. From then on the guy would wake right up when he heard Stoney’s voice. I am glad I didn’t know Stoney back then- went for my evening walk- did some reading in that biology book- took out the scope and trained it on the star Fomalhaut in the constellation Piscis Austrinus, and then swung it around to view M31 the Andromeda galaxy that is 2.5 million light years away and that means that it left 2.5 million years ago, around the Lower Paleolithic era, for the light to hit my lens on my telescope!
Tuesday 19- did my exercises- went to Bar Lumber and picked up 2 bags of stucco and more chicken wire to finish that one last wall in the utility shed and then went to Stater Bros. for supplies- talked to neighbor Biker Ron who was down for a visit- Mike from Hermosa called, still having problems with his Mac- dropped by Joel’s place for a visit- watered my friend’s trees- called and talked to Linda D. about photography and cameras- Roger T. called and we yapped for a while- wrote column for the newspaper and sent it in- too dang windy tonight for the scope so it’s back to that biology book.
Wednesday 20- did my exercises- started moving stuff out of the utility room so I can start putting chicken wire and stucco on it. Tore apart an old couch that was an eyesore and put it in the trash- Linda D. came by to pick up a CD I burned for her- visited Stoney- went for my evening walk- watched “Bones” on TV.
Thursday 21- did my stretches- continued working on the utility room- Dale called to say hi- Mike from Hermosa called to say he thinks he has finally tracked down the problem he had with the Mac- went for my evening walk and started taking my camera along- Stoney called and needs help getting connected to an ISP, I will help him tomorrow- watched CSI on TV- Linda D. called, has friend named Katherine with a computer problem, told her to bring it over and Kath shows up later and it needs a new modem and a few system renovations.
Friday 22- did my stretches- worked on the website and did the weekend update-did some work on the utility room- worked on Kath’s computer and got the modem to work but not on AOL. Also: installed Sygate firewall, installed CCleaner and cleaned the registry, installed Spybot and removed adware, and did a disk cleanup, then defragged the hard drive- went over to Stoney’s and set him up with an ISP- Mike called and while we were talking I lost the connection and no dial tone, that was at 6:20 and it is still out when I went to bed- went for my evening walk- watched “Numbers” on TV.
Saturday 23- still no dial tone on the phone, thank goodness I did my website updates yesterday- did my stretches- Andrew came by and we fooled around with computers and cleaned out a trailer to use for our computers. He went with me on my evening walk-called Mike from Hermosa and Billie on my cell to let them know that my dialup phone isn't working- watched TV program on PBS: Rosemary and Thyme.
Sunday 24- reading my email late last night I got some bad news from Mary Lou's niece Vanessa's husband that Mary Lou had passed on a little after 6pm Friday, I called some of her friends today to report the sad news- did my stretches- still no dial tone so I called Verizon and they’ll repair it sometime this week- on my cell phone I called: my friend Kula and sung Happy Birthday to her, and then Marcie to wish her a Happy Birthday- went to work on the utility- Andrew came by for a visit- watered my friend's trees- dropped by John M's house and brought him some food I had leftover- went for my evening walk- watched “Nature” and then “Mystery” on PBS.
Monday 25- did my stretches- worked on the utility room all day and finished the chicken wire and tomorrow I hope to start stuccoing the wall- Ron d. was over for a visit and wanted to hear the song I’ve been writing- went for my evening walk- Kath brought me the new modem for her computer, also Win XP upgrade. I installed the modem and XP and a new anti-virus program because the one she had was corrupt. I called her on my cell phone to come and pick it up- saw the crescent Moon tonight- still no dial tone and no phone here.
Tuesday 26- did my exercises- still no phone- started stuccoing- Andrew came by for a while- went for my evening walk- watched “Nova” on PBS- wrote column and sent it to the newspaper- lots of coyotes out tonight, can hear them yapping, playing, and sounds like they’re have a fun time. Kind of makes me want to go out and join them.
Wednesday 27- did my stretches- finished the first coat of stucco on the utility room- RJ from Verizon came to fix the phone problem. Seems that the circuit switch at the main hub that I was connected to had blown out and I was the only one affected. RJ seems like a really skilled professional. He told me that when he drives our dirt roads he slows down especially near homes to keep the dust down- Joel came by to jaw a bit- went for my evening walk- worked on an old Tasco telescope that was sitting in my neighbors backyard for a number of years; I’ve found part of an old newspaper from 1968 wedged in it. The mirror isn’t to bad, just a few minor blemishes, but the main tube needs a lot of work and repainted. It is missing the diagonal mirror and the finder scope- watched my favorite program “Bones” and then messed around with the computer- Kath called to say that her computer is down again and will bring it over tomorrow evening.
Thursday 28- did my exercises- worked on the website getting it prepared for the weekend update- Dale from Landers came by for a visit- Andrew came by for a while and then we went to his house and moved some stuff from his garage to a storeroom on his property- went for my evening walk- Joel came by with dinner- watched "CSI"- expecting a call from Kath and got tired of waiting and called her. She is too tired from driving and won’t be bringing her computer over tonight but after Saturday she said- did more work on the website.
Friday 29- did my stretches- found a pair of new work gloves in my mail box, don’t know who could have left them there for me, but Thanks, I’ll put them to good use- started the second coat of stucco on the utility room- Stoney called and invited me over for lunch- Scott and Dion came by and barrowed a shovel to dig out a electric pole- Andrew came by for a visit- watched “Numbers” on TV- took care of a few things online- hazy out to night so I didn’t take out the telescope- Mike called.
Saturday 30- did my stretches- went right to work on that second coat of stucco and finished it all around 1pm. Now I just have to wait a few days for it to dry and then paint it- worked on one of the 3 IBM PCs and loaded up Win98 after doing an fdisk and format on the hard drive. Had to reset to BIOS before it would even load a floppy; it wanted to load from a network server (which I don’t have setup)- went for my evening walk- saw Frank and Mary on their way back from the center and chatted a bit- Stoney drove by with some chili beans and gave me a pint of them- watched TV program on PBS: Rosemary and Thyme- goodbye September!