May 2012

Welcome to the month of May! - It was a fairly nice day, a little hazy, with a stiff breeze piping up in the early evening. I did my stretches and ran three miles. I went to Kelly’s and we buried her kitty that had died recently.

  Wednesday 02 – The weather was hotter than the last few days with not much of a breeze to cool things off. I got up early to pick Kelly up and take her down to the Department of Social Services so she could talk to the VA Rep and get her paper work straightened out. This time the Rep showed up and, there being a backlog of cases from the Rep not coming in last Wednesday, it took over three hours of waiting for Kelly to see her. While we waited, we went over across the street to get coffee at Santana’s Mexican restaurant, something we’ll never do again. First there was no sugar. We asked the cashier for sugar and he said there was none. I held out my receipt and asked for my money back. He miraculously found some under the counter. Then there wasn’t any cream. I asked him and he said he was out. I then again held out my receipt and he asked if milk would do. I said yes it would do. The coffee was lukewarm and tasted like it was watered down. We decided to settle for that and took the cups back with us instead of sitting in the restaurant. We went to Burger King and had a Whopper with fries, shopped at Stater Bros. and went home.

  Thursday 03- it’s another pleasant day. I did my stretches and ran three miles. I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter. I went over and checked on a friend’s property while they’re away for a spell.

 




Friday 04- it was windy last night but stopped by morning then the temps rose into the 90s. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I heard a horrible squealing coming from outside underneath the desert willow tree. I ran out to see what it was about. There stood a prairie dog watching its mate being eaten by a snake. The little prairie dog was intent on trying to help its mate and looked me square in the eyes pleading for help. I was too late on the scene, its mate little body already crushed by those mighty muscles of the snake's. The prairie dog stayed with its mate until the end, knowing there was nothing to be done. It's the way of the desert, but it still made me sad. Mac came by with his laptop that we messed around with and kept us occupied for several hours. 


Saturday 05- the day started off windy but settled down to a nice cool day into the mid 80s. I went for a morning walk. I checked on Kelly’s mail I visited Mac and we jawed for a spell. I went outside and walked up the hill with my camera about sunset. I took a bunch of pictures of the SuperMoon; the closest approach of the Moon to the Earth this year until June of next. 


Sunday 06- ditto. I went for a morning walk- called friends and family. 

Monday 07- it’s been kinda windy all day I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. Linda Sibo called to ask if I wouldn’t mind coming over to help Blake move her giant brain onto a platform. Stacy from the Hi-Desert Star was coming over to take pictures of the Brain and interview Linda. The Brain is an approximately four foot round by three feet high paper mache applied to chicken wire brain shaped object that must have weighed over fifty pounds. We had to lift it and seat it upon four foot high stilts; we figured it out after a few attempts. Stacy came and took a bunch of pics and I went home to rest my poor body after all that work… 


Tuesday 08- it’s still a bit windy which is keeping the heat down. I did my stretches and ran one and a half miles. I videoed me playing a song that I wrote called “I See Your Smile” and posted it on Youtube. I went to pick up Kelly’s mail on my scooter. 


Wednesday 09- very nice day! I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I picked Kelly up at 5:30pm and went to WalMart for what I thought was a fast go in and grab what we need and make a quick getaway- we didn’t get home until 11:30pm. We went to Staters Bros to get fried chicken and ate it at Del Taco where we discovered they had WIFI and played with our cell phone browsers. We finally got to her house and sat outside under the stars and yapped until we realized it was 2am!


Thursday 10- it’s getting hotter! I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half. Friday 12- it’s nice and hot, but with a little breeze. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter. 


Saturday 11- the temps are climbing to the high 90s. I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half. Cleaning up the yard and cutting up old cardboard boxes were on my list to do today. 

Sunday 12- the temps have now surpassed the century mark at 105 degrees! I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half. I visited my neighbor Mark for a short spell so he could get some work down before he has to leave. I jumped on the Harley and took it for a spin down to Joshua Tree and back, collecting my and Kelly’s mail along the way.



Monday 14- hot!
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand.
I went to the Neighborhood Watch and Community board meetings.

 Tuesday 15- hot!
 I took Kelly to Palm Springs to see her doctor- went to Sizzler for lunch/dinner.
I stayed up until 5am for no other reason than I couldn’t sleep.

 Wednesday 16- hot!
I woke up really late in the day and didn’t do anything much.

 Thursday 17- hot and windy!
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand.
John Massey took me to Home Depot in his truck so I could pick up some lumber to build a few projects I’ve been planning.
I went for a night run.

 Friday 18- not too hot but really windy!
I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half.
I went for an evening walk. About time I got to doing this again.
 I went outside to do a little stargazing- Saturn is still in Virgo, Mars is still in Leo, and Venus is hanging lower in the western horizon. I saw three satellites cross the starry darkness. I also saw a globular cluster that might have been M3.
I'm watching the first commercial launch of SpaceX Falcon9/Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station... history being made :) ‎ Well dang, it didn't launch tonight: "Launch aborted: slightly high combustion chamber pressure on engine 5. Will adjust limits for countdown in a few days." - But it did something I've never seen, it had already fired main engines and then they shut them down at plus 10 seconds. They'll try again on the May 22nd.

Saturday 19- hot!
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
I went for an evening walk.
I went for a night run.

 Sunday 20- the temps got into the double digits.
I went for a morning walk.
I called a few friends and family early in the day because I’ll be gone at 2pm to watch the eclipse.
 I arrived at the Joshua Tree National Park Visitor’s Center in Twentynine Palms a little after 3PM. There were around twenty folks and a few Park Rangers setting up and preparing for the eclipse that wouldn’t begin until 5:24PM.

One Ranger was using a paper hole-punch to make viewing devices out of thin cardboard stock. The lady Ranger told me she had 200 special eyeglasses for viewing the eclipse and she was hoping it would be enough for those who came to the event.
Two Astronomy volunteers were in the last stages of setting up their telescopes and people began to lineup to observe the Sun and its sunspots; the eclipse was still hours away.
There were folks from all over the world here to see the annular eclipse. I got into a conversation with a visitor from New York State. He came all the way out here to take pictures of the eclipse with his Cannon 7D and this humongous zoom lens stuck to the front.
 Around 4:15PM folks started showing up. The Rangers were showing the kids how to work the pinhole cardboard device, which we discovered later, had too big of hole from the punch and had to be redone by poking a new hole with a nail the Rangers supplied.
 By 4:45PM there were, by my best guess, upwards towards 400 parents with their kids standing in line to get those 200 special viewing glasses. Clearly there wouldn’t be enough. The Ranger asked that only one pair be handed out per family. I decided to wait so those who never seen an eclipse before would get a pair.
One Astronomer volunteers had connected his scope to a projector for viewing the eclipse on a large movie screen. And at 5:24PM the eclipse was beginning and by 5:30 could clearly be seen on that screen. There upon the table by the projector were a few pairs of glasses left and I made off with one. I held it up to the lens of my camera and started taking pictures of the eclipse. I don’t know if I was the first to try this, I didn’t see anyone doing this before I tried it, but now everyone was taking pictures through them using their cell phones and whatever that could go click.
I went here and there taking pictures and videos, listening to folks laughing, oohing and aahing, wearing those funny looking glasses that made it look like they were watching a 3D movie.
 It was mighty fine to see all these folks interested in astronomy. I listened in on one father explaining to his young son about the eclipse; this touched my heart.

At 6:38PM came totality or as close to it as we were going to get from where we were and it being an annular eclipse. You could really notice the dimming of the Sun. I lent my glasses to a young couple from Belgian. They were traveling America and were really excited to be here in our beautiful desert viewing this marvelous feat of nature. I took some fair pictures, but none as good as the ones I took as the Sun and Moon started to set together into the western horizon. I didn’t even need those glasses covering my lens. I just clicked away until the last little speck of light vanished; ending what was a wonderful day.

 The Park had a night program that started at 8PM. The Rangers setup two telescopes to view the night sky. Now I was in my element!







 Monday 21- hot 109!

I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand.
A new dove nest has appeared on the side of my house. One egg in it so far.
I stayed up late to watch the SpaceX launch. The first attempt on the 19th was aborted just as the main engines fired up, so last night as the countdown reached t minus 0 seconds, me and thousands of like minded folks around the world were willing this rocket off the launch pad and into space! This is history in the making. This is the first commercial spacecraft to visit the ISS. This company is going to open up space big time and make it affordable, too! It cost $63 Million a seat aboard the Russian spacecraft. Wikipedia "At a 18 May 2012 NASA news conference, Space X confirmed that their target launch price for the crewed flights is $140,000,000 or $20,000,000 per seat if the maximum crew of 7 is aboard. This compares with the current Soyuz cost of $63,000,000 per seat."

 Tuesday 22- temp high of 102
I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half. I am making a garage out of the workshop so my car can share it with my tools. I did a rookie move trying to drive into the garage; I hit the side post and broke off my right hand mirror. I fixed it with Liquid Nails and it has held so far.
I went for an evening walk. About time I got to doing this again.

 Wednesday 23- it is very windy, too dang windy to do my run or walk.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, and punched the heavy bag.

 Thursday 24- a little windy, but cooler outside.
I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half.
I worked on the garage that I’m going to call a Carport for now on. I began reading Edgar Rice Burroughs “A Princess of Mars”.

 Friday 25- it got very windy around noon just as I completed my exercises.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched the heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.

 Saturday 26- it’s still a little windy, but nice and cool outside. I ran a mile and a half. I rode the Harley to mailbox and visited with my neighbors who are up for the weekend.

 Potluck was a pleasant surprise with over twenty-five folks showing up on a Memorial Day weekend. Marcie Hines came with her son Paul and cooked up some Spanish rice for us to enjoy. Cal Myers brought a large fruit dish. Chris Jonas made his fabulous macaroni salad. Rose Matich simmered some corn to perfection. Ruth Malton concocted a very delicate mush mellow color bowl jella that was mighty tasty. Marie Morrison got creative with her gooey chocolate brownies. Not to be outdone, Dorothy Jacobsen spent hours making up a sweet potato casserole, a Mexican casserole, and fig bars. Dyan Carrol’s seafood pasta salad and sugar lemon cookies were to die for, but being the polite folk that we are, we just shared them. Board member Tim Atzei brought beverages. Mary Koval cooked up a storm bringing Chicken Tetrazzini Florentine and wacky cake, while her daughter Chris amazed us all with a mixed bean and ham soup and cupcakes. Of course I brought my usual fare. We had a mighty fine time! Took some potluck over to Kelly's for her to fest on.

 Sunday 27- it was a very nice day! Worked on the carport.

Monday 28- a very pleasant day.
I did my stretches, core trainer, lifted weights, and punched the heavy bag.
I worked very hard on the Carport; worked my butt off getting it done. Now I am able to park the Cougar underneath in the shade.
I read a chapter of Edgar Rice Burroughs “A Princess of Mars”.

Tuesday 29- a little hotter today.
I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half.
I topped off my batteries with distilled water and checked all the solar panel connections.
I did my laundry over at Stoney’s and looked at the work Roger is doing on the stopped up tub drain. Many years ago the drain had stopped up and me and Stoney discovered that it was the roots of the creosote bush that had clogged it up. After cutting down the bush, I had to get down there with a shovel and dig out all the roots. Then Stoney put poison on the plant. I hope it hasn’t grown back.
Kelly and I went to the post office, Rite Aid, Berger King where we had a great time, and Stater Bros. where we picked up supplies.
I read a chapter of Edgar Rice Burroughs “A Princess of Mars”.

Wednesday 30- temps into the high 90s.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched the heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand.
I watered the plants; they were mighty thirsty.
I cleaned out the Cougar and put Armor All on all the interior plastic and leather. I cleaned and wiped down the Honda with Armor All, too.
I went for an evening walk. While I was walking I stopped off at John Massey’s to see how he be. I decided to see if I could get the lager SSD to work in the HP Mini Note. I took out the 8Gig and put the 32Gig in and did a fresh install of Win XP- still doing all the update.
I read two chapters of Edgar Rice Burroughs “A Princess of Mars”. I almost got caught up with my astronomy reading. I went for a night run and played the guitar when I got back.

Thursday 31- temps are 114 degrees or more!
I did my stretches and ran a mile and a half.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.
I read a chapter of Edgar Rice Burroughs “A Princess of Mars”.
The Windows updates for the HP Mini Note are now done. All I need to do is install a word processor.
The red racer snake ate the dove eggs. I went to check on the nest today and the two eggs were gone. I saw the snake yesterday and shooed it off. That sucker is 8 feet or longer!
UPS came with some books I ordered from Amazon: “The Universe in a Nutshell” and “Grand Design” both by Steven Hawking and the last co-authored by Leonard Mlodinow. “Sky & Telescope’s Pocket Sky Atlas” by Roger W. Sinnott.
I finally got caught up with my astronomy reading. I was three months behind on “365 Starry Nights” that I’ve been reading for a bunch of years now and the pages are worn and a few are falling out. There is a paragraph or more everyday about some particular part of the night sky. Chet Raymo is the author.
I did a night run, and played the guitar a bit.
I started reading “Grand Design”.
Goodbye to May! You've been a fun month with all the astronomy I got to do and the people I got to meet :)

April 2012

Welcome to the month of April!- Spent the day packing and getting ready for my trip to the Southbay!

Monday 02- It is still windy as all get go, but I’m headed to Redondo Beach to stay at my friend’s condo on the beach.
It was a nice drive and the Cougar ran just fine using little gas. I stopped off at Carl’s Jr. on PCH and 190th and got me a Big Burger. Called Kula and Tom, they’ll be waiting outside to open the security gate.
They got me settled in, gave me the nickel tour of their beach condo. Then Kula and I went for a short walk down on the bike path.
Kula cooked up some fantastic chicken and rice we had for dinner.
I went for another walk along the beach at night.



Tuesday 03- Beautiful day outside.
A woman from France came to pick up a table that Kula had listed on Craig’s List. Tom and I carried it down to her car and put it in her SUV. Her husband worked on the Harry Potter movie filming. She also said her family is going to JT and I suggested she try Joshua Tree Lakes Resort to see if they could get a better price than the $600 for three days she was telling me about.
Tom helped me get my cheap Chinese bike I bought at WalMart ready to ride the strand. I really need to get a better bike, especially after seeing Tom's nice bike. He does a lot of riding up to PV and back. I don't need anything like his, but I do need a proper bike.
I went for a walk to the pier.
I went for an evening walk.


Wednesday 04- Tom and Kula woke me up at the ungodly hour of 5:45AM so I can drive them to the LAX airport so they could catch a plane going to Iowa. I got back to the condo and went back to sleep.
I rode my bike to Hermosa Pier stopping along the way to take a lot of pictures of the marina where I lived so many years.
I went for an evening walk along the strand.


Thursday 05- Very nice day.
I drove over to visit Tom and Aki in Torrance. They are doing fine and appear to be in good health. Had a nice chat with them about old times and places we’ve been.
I then went to the Fashion Mall in Torrance. I visited a huge Barns and Noble store there and talked to the tech guy there about their EBook readers. I bought a pair of running shoes because the pair I brought are hurting my feet and I forgot to throw my running shoes in the car before I left Joshua Tree. I got a good pair of New Balance for $39, so I didn’t feel that ripped off.
I think I ate my last Super Star at Carl’s Jr. I need to start eating healthier.
I then walked across the parking lot to Albertsons to get some supplies. I saw a woman I recognized, but couldn’t place her. Her name was Fatima or something close to that. She has been working there for 30 years and I used to shop there all the time, so that’s probably where I’ve seen her; she agreed.
I got back to the condo around about 6PM. I tried to help two women put a large table into their car that was parked in the underground garage, but it wouldn’t fit.


Friday 06- Smiley day!
I went to visit Aunt Audrey. I could have spent another 6hrs with her but we both were tired after the first 6 :)
She has so much history. Her service in WWII, her stay in Flim Flon Canada working at a trading post, and her work here in California as a blind man's assistant for a children's charity. One funny thing happened is when Aunt Audrey had called someone and handed the phone to me and said it was Kelly and Kelly started talking to me saying this and that about her family, and I'm going ah huh, ah, huh, while I was trying to figure out how she was related to me. I only found out after finishing the call and hanging up the phone and asked Aunt Audrey who I was talking to. Kelly is my second cousin, my Uncle Frank's granddaughter. Audrey had probably mentioned Kelly before, but there are too many relatives for me to keep track of. Aunt Audrey told me all about the Gooseberry bush out back in her yard in England in the 1920s.


Saturday 07- Another Smiley day!
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.
Then I went for a long walk down to Torrance beach taking pictures all along the way. Once I got there, my objective was the old steep ramp we had to use in the olden days before the city made less steep ones to the north. I use to climb that ramp struggling to get to the top when I was 8-10 carrying all kinds of beach paraphernalia like chairs, buckets, balls, while wearing flip-flops sandals. Later I would carry my surfboard up and down without any problem. I rode my skateboard down a few times flying out onto the sand for many yards.



Sunday 08- I drove home.

Monday 09- a little overcast here and there, but still nice. I cleaned and mopped the bathroom. I watered the plants. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. Mailed Condo key to Kula. Neighborhood Watch meeting, then Board Meeting.


Tuesday 10- a little overcast and not as warm as yesterday. I did my stretches and ran a mile. I went over to Stoney’s to check on the roof, run the suburban for a spell, took a plunger to tub and tried to unstop it; Roger said it was slow to drain. I talked to Jimmy later in the evening and he said it was okay to use Drano or whatever to free it. I did my laundry while I was there.


Wednesday 11- the wind was blowing really hard. I did my stretches and lifted weights. Kelly called to tell me she saw a big UFO


Thursday 12- the wind is blowing harder and clouds are moving in. I did my stretches and ran a mile. I went to town to get Kelly her meds.


Friday 13- there was bad weather today; wind and rain all day. I did my stretches, core trainer, yoga, lifted dumbbells, rode the bike, lifted weights, punched the heavy bag, and ran up and down the hill carrying 5lbs dumbbells in each hand. I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.

Saturday 14- the weather is still a little nippy at 59 degrees and mostly cloudy. I did my stretches. I was on my way to the Honda dealership in Yucca Valley to buy a Honda Metropolitan 49cc scooter when John Massey dropped by to hit the heavy bag. He also wanted to check them out because he ain’t getting much fuel efficiency. We spent most of the day at the Honda shop jawing and swapping bike stories with Rocky and Chris who work there. The mechanic got the scooter all ready and I had John drive my car back home while I took the scooter. On my way back home I took the side streets to stay off hwy 62 and passed through different neighborhoods were children would wave and tell me what a cool bike I had. I never got that response on my Harley, from anybody! The little Honda drove very well and I was surprised at the power it had- not that I’d win any races, but it did climb up a long hill at an average speed of 30-35mph. At 114MPG it will be very useful on driving short distances here and there. And besides I ain’t in no hurry to get anywhere.


Sunday 15- A fine day outside; just right for visiting neighbors. I heard hammering across and down the street. I knew it was my new neighbors that came out to do some work on their cabin. Watered all the plants. I rode the new scooter around later in the day. I was being chased by dogs and stopped by the house to have a talk with their owner. He seemed not to care, but I was polite to him anyways.


Monday 16- just a beautiful day. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I took the scooter over to visit Mac. He says he likes the little bike. I did a night run.


Tuesday 17- the weather is getting kinda warm out there! I did my stretches and ran a mile. I messed around the house fixing and cleaning this and that. I did a night run. I played the guitar. I need to get back into playing it more.


Wednesday 18- the weather is nice with temps about 85 degrees. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I took Kelly to Rite Aid, state disability, post office, McDonalds for some hamburgers and fries, back to Rite Aid to pick up her meds, then to Stater Bros to do her shopping. I got home around 9:30PM.


Thursday 19- the temps are now into the 90s! I did my stretches and ran a mile. I drove to Yucca with John Massey. I had to deposit a check at BofA and then shopped at Home Depot- needed sandbags to hold down heavy bag, and a few other things to hookup another solar panel. Around 4PM Kelly got a hold of me to fix her air-conditioning unit- turned out a nut was loose on the fan motor which I tightened and that fixed the problem with the loud noise. We went down to her mailbox and painted her name and address on it. We got back to her house where I dug a hole for her kitten that had passed on earlier in the month. Got back to my house and washed the Cougar. I’m feelin mighty tired…
I went for a night run at 11:30pm.


Friday 20- temps are in the mid 90s on a cloudless day. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand.




Saturday 21- temps got a bit over a hundred! I did my stretches. I am rearranging my exercise schedule a little bit where I do the heavy stuff on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Tuesdays and Thursdays will be my running days. Saturdays and Sundays are my days off. I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa website and sent out the Newsletter. John Massey came over in the evening after dark and we sat and jawed about astronomy and science while watching the Lyrid meteor shower. John has practically no night vision. I’d be pointing right at a big one that shot across the sky and he wouldn’t even see it. Most of them were dim and if the Moon would’ve been out we wouldn’t see them at all, but there were others that came in hot and their tails smoking. John left around midnight while I stayed out till almost 3AM- I always feel as one with the universe when I gaze into this dark starry vastness. It was well worth it!


Sunday 22- temps are still over a hundred and no wind. It’s Earth Day and I put up a new solar panel to run a small 12volt DC Igloo cooler to keep a few food items that I don’t want frozen by my freezer.


Monday 23- a little bit windy, but still hot with a few clouds rolling by. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I didn’t do much of anything except mess around some on FaceBook. I’ve been doing too much of that these last few months… I went for a night run.


Tuesday 24- the weather was a little cooler with a few clouds rolling in later in the afternoon and evening. I did my exercises and went for a mile run. I rode the little Honda to fetch my mail and then drove it to Landers. Mac came over and we set him up with an online account and he bought himself a laptop on eBay.


Wednesday 25- it was very nice outside today. I got up early to take Kelly down to Social Services to see VA Rep. We got there a little after 9AM and found out the Rep called to say she wouldn’t be in, dang we’ll have to try next Wednesday. We went to Denny’s and ate breakfast. The wait for food was long, but the food and the service were okay. After Denny’s we made our way to the Social Security office in Yucca Valley so Kelly could get duplicates of her stuff. I checked out when I should apply. They said no until three months before my 62 birthday; I’ll be 62 in one year and three months on August 8th…. We stopped off at WalMart and Stater Bros before going back home.


Thursday 26- it actually got a little hot today. I did my stretches and ran two miles. My neighbor Mark Delgado came by with his son Mark Jr. to see my solar panel setup. They are out for the weekend to do some work on their cabin across the street and down a ways from me.


Friday 27- it was nice and cool. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I heard hammering across the way. It was my neighbor Mark Delgato, his son Mark Jr., and brother-in-law Royal working on their cabin. I went on over for a visit. Later in the afternoon I took Kelly to the post office to pick up her new cell phone. We then went to a Chinese restaurant and got stuffed on sweet and sour pork. We sat outside at her house drinking cokes and jawing.

Saturday 28- it was nice and cool again. I did my stretches. I went to potluck were about twenty happy but hungry desert folk showed up. Chris Jonas made his Fabulous Macaroni Salad. Folks were asking Dorothy Jacobsen for her recipe for her macaroni and cheese corn casserole; her fig bars were tasty too. Dyan Carroll provided a wonderful shrimp and crab seafood lasagna along with Sunday truffle that was mighty fattening. Ruthie Malton brought a Bundt cake that disappeared quickly. Mary Koval and her daughter Chris cooked up a feast of Cowboy Casserole, miniature date nut muffins, and chocolate strawberry cupcakes. Marie Morrison’s Au Gratin potatoes vanished quickly from the table. David Royer spent hours concocting a scrumptious pasta tuna salad for our gastronomical pleasure. Rose Matich steamed up some carrots and peas. Pretty Marybeth Rubin cooked us up some vegetarian chili with cheese bread that I really liked. I noticed sadly nobody had any of the rice I brought. I thought that Marybeth’s chili would go good on my rice and I must have said it out load because most everybody came back to put it in with their chili. The rice and the chili were gone in a flash. I stopped off at Kelly’s to drop off some leftovers and we drank a few cokes outside again.

Sunday 29- it was a little breezy and hazy outside. I did my stretches. I called a few friends and family. I dropped over to Linda and Blake’s for a bit of tea and to chat about thermonuclear devices. 

I started writing a new book after seeing a drawing of Bonnie Young’s. Name of the book is “Girl in the Cellar”… I still need to edit my first two books :(



Monday 30- it is getting hotter, into the 90s, and so hazy you can’t see the mountains to the west. I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, punched heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back carrying 5lbs in each hand. I planted some tomatoes and dell peppers, so I guess I’m finally starting my garden… Goodbye to April- seems like I packed a whole lot of living in ya!

March 2012

Welcome to the Month of March- The wind has settled down a bit from yesterday, but there is still a stiff breeze and the temps never got above 60 degrees.
I lifted weights and did light stretching because of my hip sprain which is feeling better, but I’ll stay the course and favor it for a good week and not do any running and definitely no bicycling where I believe I got the sprain when I powered up the hill like I’ve never done before, outside my house.
I spent most of the day writing a response to an article in the local newspaper about the City of Yucca Valley town council voting to take all the Block Grants themselves and not sharing it with their rural neighbors; which Copper Mountain Mesa, where I live, is one. Got me pretty darn upset!

Friday 02- Ah, a nice day outside!
I did my stretches, lifted weights, core trainer, and punched the heavy bag.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.
I was almost done doing the above when my neighbor John Massey came by to punch the heavy bag. He said he really needed boxing gloves because it was hurting his hands which he had broken many times before, he said. I’ve been thinking of getting some gloves myself and called up Big 5 in Yucca and they did have boxing gloves. They did. So we took his truck to Yucca and did some minute shopping at WalMart and Staters Bros and then headed over to Big 5 and I purchased the gloves.
I went for a short walk that evening. Then I settled down to watch a new episode of “Castle” and “Endgame” before going on FaceBook.


Saturday 03- It was another nice day with temps up to 70 degrees.
John Massey came over and we both beat the hell out of the heavy bag using the new boxing gloves.


Sunday 04- Okay, the weather is wonderful outside, what gives?
I went over to Linda and Blake’s house.
I watched “Fringe”.


Monday 05- It is a beautiful day. The sky was overcast for most of the day, but still it was pleasant.
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
I did my studies outside.
I went for a walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #11 by Joshua Bloom.


Tuesday 06- It is mighty windy but not too cold. The winds must be gusting up to 60mph!
It’s too windy to do a run, but I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, core trainer, punched the heavy bag, and lifted weights.
Jimmy called to tell me his renter said that some of the roofing is coming off Stoney’s. I called John Demers but he already knew about it.
I watched “Endgame”. I subscribed to Netflix for a free month and watched “Unlimited”.

Wednesday 07- Another windy day and cold too!
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, core trainer, punched the heavy bag, and lifted weights.
I did my studies.
I’ve been watching a lot of episodes of “Monk” on Netflix.

Thursday 08- Still a lot of wind.
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
Kelly and I drove to 29 to do a little shopping. We ate chicken from Stater Bros at her house.


Friday 09- The wind has died down and it’s a beautiful day.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, core trainer, punched the heavy bag, and lifted weights.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the newsletter.
I did my studies.

Saturday 10- A little breezy today, but nice.
I did my stretches and ran a mile.


Sunday 11- A very nice day!
I did my stretches.
I called Family and Friends. I might have talked too long to one of them…
I watched “Serenity” (2005) on Netflix.

Monday 12- Another very nice day with temps into the high 70s.
I did my stretches, yoga, lifted dumbbells, rode my bike, core trainer, lifted weights, punched the heavy bag, and ran with weights.
I did my studies.
I went for a walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #12 by Joshua Bloom, about: Change of state of the electron in Neutral Hydrogen, in clouds, creates radiation at 21cm or 1420Mhz.
I watched lecture 22 on the Berkeley biology course about: Viruses, Bacteria, Plasmids, and Transposons.
I went to the Neighborhood Watch meeting at 5:30 and stayed for the community board meeting that started at 7pm. Got back home a little after 8pm. Both meeting went well. At the NHW meeting, we’re still getting our rules and procedures in order. At the board meeting, we discussed ways of getting more members and volunteers, also discussed Yucca Valley taking all the Block Grant monies.
I spent a good hour out in the yard doing a little stargazing. Mars was at oppositions on the 3rd and is shining brightly about 60 degrees above the eastern sky. Venus and Jupiter are almost in conjunction (March 14th), hanging together in the western sky. Venus is the brighter of the two.



Tuesday 13- A few clouds but otherwise it was rather pleasant.
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
I went for a walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #13 by Joshua Bloom.
I watched lecture 23 on the Berkeley biology course about: More about hydrogen, dust, and the creation of stars from that dust.
I took another picture of the Venus and Jupiter conjunction.


Wednesday 14- The weather started out nice but grew cold and windy as the day progressed.
I did my stretches.
I was suppose to take Kelly but couldn’t get a hold of her yesterday or today, so I thought I ought to go over to check to make sure she was okay. She had slept for the better part of the time and I stayed for a long spell yapping with her.


Thursday 15- A very nice day outside.
I picked up Kelly and we went into Yucca Valley to do some shopping. We had lunch at the Sizzler and our server was a guy called Matt.


Friday 16- Hazy skies outside today.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, yoga, core trainer, ran a mile, lifted weights, rode my bike halfway up the hill, and punched the hell out of the heavy bag.
I did my studies- need to get caught up on them.
John Massey came by with his friend Richard to get the papers for the Jeep I was trying to sell for him on Crag’s List. I didn’t think I had them because I don’t keep stuff like that for other folks, but searching later I found them and called John I had them.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the newsletter.
I went for a walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #14 by Joshua Bloom about the Milky Way.
I watched lecture 24 on the Berkeley biology course about:


Saturday 17- Very windy with some rain.
It’s Kelly’s birthday today. We went to Stater Bros. where I bought cake and ice cream. She cooked up a great dinner of top sirloin and gravy with potatoes. We watched a move “Season of the Witch” (2011) on Netflix with my iPad.


Sunday 18- It snowed! Temps in the low 30s.
I’m sick and slept most of the day.


Monday 19- The weather is still cold and windy, but there are clear skies overhead.
I’m still sick. So I just stayed in bed mostly watching a few science videos on YouTube.


Okay, the rest of the month I’ve was still sick and when I’m sick, especially with a headache, I don’t feel like doing anying. I even turn off the ringer to my telephone. I mostly watched “Monk” and a few movies everyday. I spent too much, way too much time on FaceBook; that will have to stop! So don’t expect much to read here…

Tuesday 20- I’m sick.

Wednesday 21- I’m still sick.
I had to go to the post office to pick up a package.

Thursday 22- I’m feeling’ sicker.

Friday 23- Just wanted to stay in bed today.
I took Kelly and her cat Calypso to the veterinarian, post office, and onto a sandwich shop in 29 that served falafels; never had one, tasted mighty fine.

Saturday 24- Mostly sunny till mid afternoon when high clouds started forming overhead.
Sick I’m still.
Updated the Copper Mountain Mesa website and sent out the Newsletter.

Sunday 25- The wind blew fiercely and almost rained.

Monday 26- The weather cleared and I felt a little better so I did some light exercises; stretches, yoga, dumbbells, core trainer, punched heavy bag, went for a walk, and rode the bike partway up the hill.

Tuesday 27- I’m still ain’t feelin’ well…
The weather was great so I drove to WalMart for some 12hr nose-spray, then on to Stater Bros to get some supplies.

Wednesday 28- aarrhhgg… laid in bed mostly.

Thursday 29- I did a few light exercises.

Friday 30- I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the newsletter.


Saturday 31- Very windy today.
Annelies sent out an email titled “Tragic News from Copper Mountain Mesa… Bill and Elizabeth Treas lost their youngest son David, in a tragic accident last Wednesday morning... The Treas are holding a Memorial/Celebration of Life get-together at their Home in Landers, tomorrow Saturday March 31st, from 12noon.” I remembered I had some pictures of 2yr old David I had taken at a couple of our Potlucks; Bill had once asked me for a copy a year ago or so. I needed to rush, it was already 11:30AM. I spent the next hour searching through my picture files until I came upon about twenty of them. I burned them to CD and called Annelies for directions; she wasn’t home, dang. I had a hunch and went to the Hi-Desert Star website where I found an article that contained the approximant address and then look it up in Google Maps. All I had to do was drive to that block in Landers and hunt around for about 15mins before I found the place; there were many, many people there. Annelies, Patrick, Chris Jonas, Marcie and her son were there. I gave the CD to Bill and told him how sorry I felt for his family. Before I left I told Chris I wasn’t going to Potluck today because I’ve been sick; he said he’d drop me off some leftovers, which he did a little after 5pm. All in all, I spent about a half hour there and was glad to get back home and covered up in bed.
Kelly’s wonderful cat Calypso has passed on and Kelly is mighty upset right now. At birth Kelly had to breathe life into the stillborn baby kitten, and held that same cat 12 years later in her arms as Calypso gave her last breath.
Clint, my nephew and a Marine, is coming back from Afghanistan tonight around 11pm. Audrey and John drove from Tucson to San Diego to see him.
Goodbye to March! I hope I get over this cold or whatever it is in April!!!

February 2012

Welcome to the month of February! - Clear skies and a light breeze which built up to high winds later in the evening. The temps are still on the cool side.
I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, rode my bike, lifted weights, core trainer, punched at the heavy bag, rode my bike, and ran with weights.
I did my studies.
I went on my evening walk listening to Astro 7B, lecture 1 about: parallax.
I watched lesson 17 on the Berkeley biology course.
I watched a movie that I borrowed from a friend called “Cowboys and Aliens”, a mighty fine Sci-Fi!!!!

Thursday 02- The sky was a clear bright blue, but the temps didn’t get over 65 degrees.
I did my stretches, core trainer, and ran a mile.
I went on my evening walk listening to Astro 7B, lecture 2.
I watched lesson 18 on the Berkeley biology course.
I watched the movie “Apollo 18” (2011). It was really wasn’t that great except for the special effects made up for it; made you feel like they were really on the Moon.

Friday 03- I had to go into town to do some necessary errands and bought a car.
I did my studies.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the newsletter.

Saturday 04- I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, rode my bike, lifted weights, core trainer, punched at the heavy bag, rode my bike, and ran with weights.
I did my studies.

Sunday 05- The weather was sunny but a bit windy.
I did my stretches and just mellowed out all day; no Superbowl for me.

Monday 06- It appeared to be a nice day, what I seen of it from the inside of a car or store.
I woke up very early to do my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, rode my bike, lifted weights, core trainer, and punched at the heavy bag.
I did my studies.
I left the house at 9:30am to spend the rest of the day taking Kelly to her doctor's and shopping. We got back really late. I'm not a shopper- I just go in and get what I want/need. Women can spend long hours picking through this, sorting through that while shopping. I am glad the day is over! Tomorrow, maybe, I'll go pick up my car if it's ready. Otherwise it'll be Wednesday.


Tuesday 07- The weather was cold and cloudy all day long; looking like if could rain any minute.
I did my stretches.
I did my studies.

Wednesday 08- The weather was pleasant.
I did my stretches.
I got a call from Linda and Blake that they took John Massey to the ER this morning. I went to John’s trying to find his cell phone or some contact info for Linda so she could inform his family. I found a journal with names and such and Linda was successful getting hold of his son.
Blake was kind enough to give me a ride to pick up my Cougar in 29 Palms.
I paid for it and got to the DMV just before it closed and got it registered. I stopped off on the way home at Kelly’s to show it off.
I did my studies.
I went on my evening walk listening to Astro 7B, lecture 3 about: relativistic Doppler beaming from a standard frame.


Thursday 09- The weather was again pleasant.
I did my stretches, lifted weights and dumbbells, core trainer, and punched the heavy bag.
John Massey came over to ask if I could take him to his doctor tomorrow- I said I would and it wouldn’t be a problem.
I did my studies.
I washed my car. I didn’t think of it until now that I haven’t had a car since the early 80s when I sold my Porsche 914. Oh, I’ve had trucks and motorcycles, but no cars. It’s a nice change and I’m ready to travel. The Harley is cool and I’m going to keep it, but I’m getting too old to ride it any vast distances… then again maybe not.


Friday 10- Temps into the mid 70s!
I took John to his doctor in Palm Desert to get the stitches taken out. That took most of the day. When I got back Kelly’s cat was dying and I went over to help and support her and just be a friend.


Saturday 11- The weather started out really nice and all, but then it got mighty windy and cold, clouds started moving in!

I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, rode my bike, lifted weights, core trainer, punched at the heavy bag, rode my bike, and ran a mile.
Kelly’s cat died this morning; he was my favorite out of all her cats.

I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the newsletter.
I went on my evening walk listening to Astro 7B, lecture 4 about: relativistic energy and momentum.

I posted this on FaceBook:
I think we should try to put forth the effort to love one another! I love all my friends, all my antagonists, all the different religions and people who believe in them or not, all citizens of all nations of diverse political beliefs, and all the people I’ll ever come to know or never get to know. I hope we can spread that kind of love around and share it with the world and all its inhabitants! Okay, that sounds kinda 60ish, but I believe, truly believe that is something we lost over those decades between the 60s and now... LOVE and PEACE Let’s bring them back. Spread the word… I LOVE YOU!


Sunday 12- The weather mighty windy and cold!
I’m sick….
I did my stretches.
I did my studies.

Monday 13- Cold and windy!
I did my stretches.
I’m still sick….
I did my studies.
Kelly and I went to the store and ate Chinese.


Tuesday 14- Cold, cloudy, and windy.
Sick
I did my stretches.
I did my studies.
Chris called needing help restoring his computer from a bad virus- was able to talk him through the process over the phone- backing up all his files and docs- then we did a clean install of Win XP.
I watched a new episode of “Castle” and “EndGame”.


Wednesday 15- The weather was clear with sunshine. Until around 1PM when clouds came and flooded the sky and blocked out the Sun. Then it grew very dark and rained the rest of the day and into the night, flooding the ground.
I did my stretches, lifted weights, core trainer, ran a mile, and punched the heavy bag a little. I didn’t push myself any, just a light workout.
I did my studies. Had a few days to catch up on because being sick I didn’t feel like doing anything.
I finished reading “The Further Adventures of Robinson Crusoe” by Daniel Defoe. A wonderful adventure book written in 1719.
I watched lesson 17 on the Berkeley biology course about: Genes are made of DNA.


Thursday 16- It was a cold and blistery day!
I did my stretches and lifted dumbbells.
The people from Dhamma Dena brought Ruth’s hard drive from her laptop she gave away without taking her documents off. They retrieved it from a computer store after it was replaced by a new drive and thrown away. I spent four hours on it trying almost everything I could think of to get my computers to recognize the drive, but I kinda knew when I first hooked it up and heard the noise it made that it was a brick. I have one more trick to try tomorrow and if that doesn’t work I’ll have to give up.
The UPS guy delivered my new T-Mobile Samsung Dart Android Prepaid Phone. The reason I bought the phone was that I could use to make calls on their prepaid network or on free WIFI (like at home, McDonalds, or at Starbucks) without any charges. But T-Mobile isn’t very clear about that and the wording is misleading. It’s like what if I’m surfing the web or making a call on my home WIFI and find out I’m using my prepaid minutes- that wouldn’t be so good. So until I find out I’m not putting the SIM card in and just using Skype for now. It’s a neat little phone and for $99 at T-Mobile I couldn’t pass that up.


Friday 17- Nice weather today.
I did my stretches, yoga, lifted dumbbells, ran with weights, core trainer, lifted weights, rode the bike, and punched at heavy bag.
UPS dropped my new scanner off this afternoon- it has an automatic feeder- I’m going all digital and get rid of most of the dang papers I’ve been storing.


Saturday 18- Another nice but cool day with a bit of a breeze.
I helped cleaned Kelly’s house most of the day. She made dinner for us and it was mighty good!


Sunday 19- The weather was cold and there are high wind warnings for our area.
I got a call from Denny telling me he got a call from Roger saying that part of the roof was coming off and if I would call the guy who I recommended to fix it to go and repair his handy work. I called my friend and he needed help so I told him to come pick me up. We fixed roof in about an hour.
I get back home and there is a message on the phone- John Massey got his truck stuck in the dirt by the sand dunes out where we were searching for gold. It took me a half an hour to find him, he had dug his truck down to where the undercarriage was buried and there was a lot of digging to be done to clear that away, and another two hours to get him unstuck and on his way.
I stopped at Kelly’s to pick up 6 bags of trash to throw away and ended up staying there and resting for a spell.


Monday 20- Presidents day- I just mellowed out and got caught up on some reading.


Tuesday 21- It was overcast with a low into the 60s.
I did my stretches, core trainer, heavy bag, and ran a mile.
I went for a walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #7 by Joshua Bloom.
I stopped by Kelly’s to dig a grave for her kitty that passed on recently.


Wednesday 22- The weather is mighty nice with temps into the mid 70s with clear skies and a light breeze.
I did my stretches, yoga, lifted dumbbells, ran with weights, core trainer, lifted weights, rode my bike, and punched the heavy bag.
Kelly wasn’t feeling well so I went over to her house and sat with her for a long spell.


Thursday 23- Beautiful weather, temps in the high 70s!
I did my stretches, yoga, lifted dumbbells, ran with weights, core trainer, lifted weights, rode my bike, and punched the heavy bag. Dang it, I forgot that I did all this yesterday. I’m supposed to have a one day break in between and take the weekend off.
I went to WalMart and Stater Bros. to get supplies and pick up mail. Gas is at $4.08 a gallon!
I did my studies.
I watered the plants around the house, and fed the doves (I feed them almost every day).
I went for a walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #8 by Joshua Bloom.
I watched lecture 18 and 19 on the Berkeley biology course about: Gene Expression 1- DNA is transcribed into RNA, and Gene Expression 2- RNA is transcribed into Protein.


Friday 24- The weather was fabulous- I ate breakfast and did my studies outside.
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
I sweep and mopped the bedroom and living room floors.
Linda S. brought back a gallon of gas I lent to her. I keep a couple of gallons on hand for my friends who run low and need it to get to town. They always bring it back filled.
The Cougar needed a little cleaning inside.
I went for a walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #9 by Joshua Bloom.
I watched lecture 20 on the Berkeley biology course about: Regulation of Gene Expression.
I watched a new episode of “Castle” and “Endgame”.


Saturday 25- It’s another beautiful day in the neighborhood. It got a bit windy later on in the evening.
I did my stretches, yoga, core trainer, punched at the heavy bag, and ran a mile.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.
I setup the new scanner to the Toshiba Laptop and now will scan everything into it and go paperless, well as paperless as I can.

Potluck was special this month because it’s Chris Jonas’s birthday. Around thirty of us stood up and sang Happy Birthday to this wonderful, dynamic man!
Mary Koval and her daughter Chris made a poor man’s lasagna, dinner rolls, and baked up some peanut butter cheesecake brownies.
Chris Jonas and family went all out cooking up some mighty tasty meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy. The chicken tortilla casserole that Dorothy Jacobsen brought was undeniably a show stopper. Ruth Malton whipped up her Waldo-jello salad. Rose Matich steamed some peas and dragged Joe, her husband, to the center. Dyan Carroll spent the last couple of days slaving over a hot stove preparing us a magnificent meal of lasagna with a side dish of cauliflower covered in a special melted cheddar cheese sauce, yummy. Marie Morrison brought candied yams. David Royer concocted a ham and pasta salad for our enjoyment. I brought my regular stuff which paled in comparison to these others.


Sunday 26- Today started out with a little wind, but settled down by noon.
I did my stretches.
I cleaned the terminals on the batteries and topped them off with water.
I backed up all the community picture files onto two hard drives.
I watched the new episode of “Fringe”.
I messed around on FaceBook for most of the night…


Monday 27- Dang, windy today with dark clouds coming in over us.
I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, core trainer, lifted weights, rode my bike, punched the heavy bag, and ran up the hill and back with weights.
I did my studies.
I went for an evening walk listening to Astro 7B lecture #10 by Joshua Bloom.
It got cold and the wind was really howling, so I lit up a fire and settled in for the night.
I found out that I sprained my hip muscles and it hurts like the dickens to put any weight on it when I walk, now I’m stuck hobbling around the place.
I watched lecture 21 on the Berkeley biology course about: Regulation of Gene Expression.
I got caught up on my astronomy readings.


Tuesday 28- A very nice day out but unfortunately I sprained my right hip muscle riding my bike full blast up that dang hill that runs by my house, yesterday. So now I have to stay off it for a few days. I mostly messed around on FaceBook and read.


Wednesday 29- A very blustery day it was with winds blowing a hard gust out of the NW at 50MPH.
I’m still resting up my sprained hip muscle. I did do a few light reps on my weights.
Kelly and I did drive to Staters Bros. at 8pm to get some munchies and bring them to her house. We had all her critters after the chicken we bought. We buried Solomon her cat that died a spell ago. I had dug the grave a few days ago, so it didn't bother my hip.

January 2012

Happy New Year- I can’t believe the wonderful weather we’ve been having- temps in the mid 70s!
I did my stretches, dumbbells, core trainer, and lifted weights.
I hung around the house just being mellow calling friends and family to say Happy New Year.
I decided that I’m going to spend fifteen minutes a day drawing something, even if it is just stick figures. Today I drew my radio while I sat outside in the sunshine. I also did my Latin lesson sitting there. I started reading “365 Starry Nights” by Chet Raymo as I have been doing every year for the past so many years.
I drew up a sign that says CREATE using a black ink marker and hung it over my bedroom door; I’ll make a better one later.

Monday 02- again another perfect day; the ants are even coming out of their holes.
I did my stretches, yoga, and went for a mile run.
I washed my clothes and shoes in a bucket using an old plunger type thingy that works pretty dang well for the small stuff. While I was at it I watered the plants.
I did my studies; today I drew a cactus and did a Latin lesson. I haven’t found anything to add to my studies. Completing reading aloud from the textbook “Astronomy Today” left kind of a hole. John said he’d help me with my math, so I’ll be doing that, but I think there’s something else I want to add, just don’t know what yet.
I do have to start editing my two books and continue to write the third which I have but one chapter completed.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: Gamma-ray Bursts.
I read a bit from the book “Robinson Crusoe”.
I practiced my guitar.

Tuesday 03- the weather is perfect!
I did my stretches, dumbbells, ran a mile with weights, core trainer, and lifted weights.
Sherry came by and dropped off a bunch of firewood for me! She is so sweet!
I did my studies outside again. I found an old study book whose pages are faded by age that I must have bought in the 80s. It is called “1100 Words you Need to Know” (1983). Seems like I did the first week’s lessons of the book way back when and then quit. I will continue on with it now.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: Galaxies- types, how they were formed, and dark matter.
I watched two UC Berkeley videos of Biology 1A lectures 1 and 2; review of chemistry and course outline.
I went outside at 11:00 for an hour or so waiting to see the Quadrantid Meteor Shower, but they were a no show here on the west coast (not a one!). I heard on the Atlantic side there were many.
I read a chapter from “Robinson Crusoe”.

Wednesday 04- the weather is still pleasant with temps into the high 70s.
I did my stretches, yoga, and ran a mile
I sat outside and did my studies.
I watched Biology lecture 3; it was basically about the difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, microscopy and electron microscopes- regular and scanning.
I did my stretches and went for a night run.
I read a chapter from “Robinson Crusoe”.
I found my old Palm M125 that hidden away in storage. It was broken and I had taken apart ten years or so ago. I tinkered with it, fixed it, and put it all back together in working order.

Thursday 05- the weather is a little bit breezy, but still nice with temps hanging around 70.
I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, core trainer, ran with weights, pounded on the heavy bag, and lifted weights.
I did my studies outside.
I watched Biology lecture 4; cell structure microtubules, microfilaments, and intermediate filaments.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: active galaxies- quasars and such.
I did my stretches and went for a night run.
I read a chapter from “Robinson Crusoe”.

Friday 06- the weather was in the 70s again; I ain’t complaining.
I did my stretches and then left to pick up Kelly and go to town.
We went Rite Aid to drop off a prescription and then to the post office where we picked up our packages and Kelly got a money order to pay her rent. Got back to Rite Aid to pick up meds and then went on to Yucca Valley. We had lunch at the Sizzler- our waitress was Jackie- we ate like little pigs. WalMart was our next stop. At the checkout stand Kelly had forgot her wallet in the car and had to run out to retrieve it. She came limping back in saying she slipped on some sand and twisted her foot, but was okay. There’s a pet store over by Vons called Pet Plus I think and the ladies who work there were might nice and helpful. We shopped at Vons where she limped around as we shopped. She got a $10 coupon on her Vons card, and in lots of pain, limped back into the store to spend it because it would be expired by the time we came this way again next month; I told her she was crazy to do this. It wasn’t until we went to Starbucks to get coffee and to use the internet on her new Kindle that she started really feeling the pain in her left foot; I could tell it was really bad by the tears in her eyes. In fact it was so bad that I decided that we should leave and not stop at Staters to get fried chicken and a few other items like we had planned. On the way home she was in so much pain that we both decided it best if we went to the ER to see if it was broken. I waited in the waiting room for two hours after they took her in the back for x-rays and whatever. I sat there with nothing to do but watch folks as they walked by me with butt cracks peeking out from their pants; I mean what’s that all about? Is it some kinda fad or something? So I learned that most folks who come into the ER on Friday nights are overweight and have butt cracks exposed. One big guy (no butt crack) was brought in by his wife or girlfriend (butt crack). He looked very sick or mentally disturbed and I was afraid that he might pass out right there or start fighting with everybody. I wasn’t alone in my thinking as the guy (butt crack) sitting across from me had the same thoughts I learned later after they took the big guy into the back room and he felt it safe to talk. Kelly (no butt crack) finally came out on crutches; she had broken some small bones in her foot. We had to go get some new meds for this and went back to Rite Aid in 29 Palms. There, while we sat waiting for the prescription to be filled, was a man who told us about how people from other planets wouldn’t live here because of our bad government (overweight and butt crack); we gave him a wide berth and let him ramble on. After we left there I stopped at Staters and got the rest of what we both needed as Kelly sat in the car. Then I took her home and brought in all her groceries. I’m going to start calling her by the nickname Lucky, I told her.

Saturday 07- the weather was a bit breezy with the temps into the high 60s.
Because of last night’s episode at the hospital’s ER room and checking in on Kelly through Skype, I was up until 4:30AM or there abouts and woke up after noon sometime. So I decided to just do my stretches and use Sunday (my day off from exercises) to catch up.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.
I spent the day calling and yakking to friends and family. Kelly seems to be okay for now resting in bed with a cast up to her knee on her left leg.


Sunday 08- still windy (8 to 20MPH) but the Sun is out shining down upon our little community.
I did my stretches, yoga, core trainer, and dumbbells, ran a mile with weights, punched the heavy bag, and lifted weights.
I read a few chapters of “Robinson Crusoe”.


Monday 09- the weather was pleasant.
I did my stretches, but that’s all I did before John Massey came over to pick me up and go hunt for gold at this abandoned mine he found in the hills south of where we live.
I went to the Neighborhood Watch meeting. I wasn’t feeling very well and didn’t stay for the CMM board meeting.
I cooked up some chicken in a pot with potatoes and carrots, but somehow I didn’t do it right, a miscarriage of chicken soup; it tasted awful. I ended up throwing it away outside in the vacant land across the street. I went out there the next day and some poor hungry critter had eaten it all up.


Tuesday 10- another nice day but I wasn’t feeling too well to enjoy it. I did do my stretches, completed all my studies, and listened to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: the Hubble Constant.
FedEx delivered another Palm M105 that I ordered for $6 on eBay.
I read a few chapters of “Robinson Crusoe”.


Wednesday 11- the weather was a little overcast and temps got up to about 65 degrees.
I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, core trainer, lifted weights, ran a mile, punched the heavy bag, and rode my bike; I felt better today!
I did all my studies; Latin lesson, drew something, and did a lesson in the 1100 Word workbook.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: the discovery of dark matter.
I watched lesson 5 on the Berkeley biology course about: the laws of thermodynamics and how it relates to the metabolism of the cell. ATP (adenosine triphosphate) and how energy is derived from losing a phosphate atom through a hydrogen bond or some such to form ADP (adenosine diphosphate) with a helping enzyme is able to create more energy; I now understand the process but find it hard pulling it from memory and putting it into words right now. There’ll be more in the next lecture.
I watched “Castle” and an old favorite I used to watch as a kid “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea” on Hulu.com.
I read a chapter of “Robinson Crusoe”.


Thursday 12- the weather got nice again, but temps still in the 60s and a little breezy.
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
I did my studies.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: more on dark matter.
I watched lesson 6 on the Berkeley biology course about: enzyme structure.
I watched an episode of “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea” and the first episode of “Sea Hunt” starring Lloyd Bridges.
I read a chapter in “Robinson Crusoe”. I woke up very early and read another chapter and then went back to sleep.


Friday 13- the weather was nice into the mid 60s and little breeze.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, yoga, core trainer, lifted weights, ran a mile, punched the heavy bag, and rode my bike.
I did my studies: Latin, drawing, 1100 Words workbook.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: CMB and very large structures in the universe.
I watched lesson 7 on the Berkeley biology course about: cell membrane, structure and metabolism.
I read a chapter in “Robinson Crusoe”.

Saturday 14- overcast and dang cold outside!
I did my stretches.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.
I finished reading “Robin Crusoe”.


Sunday 15- dang windy today!


Monday 16- the weather is a little breezy and not too cold.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, yoga, core trainer, lifted weights, ran a mile, punched the heavy bag, and rode my bike.
I spent the better part of the day building some shelves in my computer room for food storage. I will paint them tomorrow when it's not windy.
Verizon Phone Company finally got my phone working again around 2pm; it has been out since Thursday or there abouts. It seems like other folk’s phones were out in our area because I seen four Verizon trucks drive by my house today.
I did all my studies, Listened to an astronomy lecture on the expansion of the universe, and watched Berkeley biology lecture 8 about: Regulation of enzymatic activity.


Tuesday 17- The weather was a little bit on the cold side today but not that bad.
I did my stretches.
I painted the shelves. I didn’t have enough wood for the very bottom shelve but I did find a small piece to fit there temporarily.
Roger called to drive and drop off the Stoneymobile at the mechanic’s.
I updated my camera’s firmware.
I did my studies.


Wednesday 18- the weather was nice today with temps around 64 and a very slight breeze.
I did my stretches, dumbbells, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, rode my bike, punched the heavy bag, and ran with weights.
I sat outside and had breakfast and did my studies.
I finished the shelves today by painting the metal parts white. Once they dry I can mount the wood onto them.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: expansion of the universe.


Thursday 19- the weather was cooler and cloudy today.
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
I did my studies.
Roger called to drive and pick up the Stoneymobile at the mechanic’s.


Friday 20- The weather started out very nice but grew ominous later in the evening.
I did my stretches, dumbbells, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, and punched the heavy bag.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: multi-universes.
I watched lesson 8 on the Berkeley biology course.


Saturday 21- The wind was blowing very hard and fast- picking up small coarse gravel and peppering my face as I moved around outside to secure my things from being blown to Texas. It was really that bad.
Chris came by to pick up my old Honda motorcycle that I gave to him that’s been sitting since 2004.
I updated the Copper Mountain Mesa Website and sent out the Newsletter.
The electric power went out in our area for 5 or 6 hours.


Sunday 22- The weather cleared up midmorning and stayed nice throughout the day.
Darlene from Dhamma Dena brought Ruth Denison’s two computers over for me to fix. I formatted the hard drive on the Dell desktop and installed Win7 and all the critical updates along with Microsoft Security Essentials. I’ll work on her laptop tomorrow.
John Massey came by and we jawed for a spell about astronomy and other realms of science.


Monday 23- Rain and wind!
I did my stretches, dumbbells, core trainer, yoga, lifted weights, and punched the heavy bag.
John came over for a few hours and used my computer to do some research.
I did my studies.
Darlene came to pick up the desktop and laptop I fixed for Ruth Denison.



Tuesday 24- The weather was clear skies mostly with some wind thrown in.
I did my stretches.
I went to town to get some special cat food for Kelly’s cat and picked a few things up.
I saw a car for sale in a parking lot of an auto shop and stopped to enquire about it. I took it for a test drive where it immediately ran out of gas and I was able to coast into a gas station. I put three bucks into the tank and drove it back. I asked them a few more questions about the car, but the girl there said she’d have to get back to me on it.
Then I went to Kelly’s house to give her the cat food and we buried her cat Elvis who passed on a wee bit ago.
I did my studies.
I watched lesson 9 on the Berkeley biology course.


Wednesday 25- The weather was a bit breezy with a few clouds. Temps were around 64 degrees.
I did my stretches, lifted dumbbells, yoga, and core trainer, punched the heavy bag, lifted weights, rode the bike, and ran with weights.
I did my studies.
I went for a walk listening to an astronomy lecture by Alex Filippenko about: the last lecture about the Drake equation.
I watched lessons 10 and 11 on the Berkeley biology course: Cellular energy production, anaerobic and aerobic.


Thursday 26- Beautiful day with temps of 76 degrees and clear skies!
I did my stretches and ran a mile.
I did my studies. I put a whole bunch of new words from the book “1100 Words You Need to Know” into my flash card program. I also put a few new Latin words into the program, and then did a review of both.
I went for a walk listening to an Astro 7B lecture by Joshua Bloom about: cosmology.
John Massey came over around 5pm for dinner and to do a little stargazing when it got dark. Lots of fun for me to have someone over and doing a little astronomy!
I went online to find that my package containing a power unit for my NEC MobilePro 900 is in my mailbox and made a mad dash down there to pick it up and get back to plug it in to charge it up!
I watched lesson 12 on the Berkeley biology course: Photosynthesis- the light reactions.


Friday 27- The weather was mostly cloudy and overcast with temp into the mid 60s.
I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, rode my bike, lifted weights, core trainer, punched at the heavy bag, and ran with weights.
I did all my studies.
I went for a walk listening to an Astro 7B lecture by Joshua Bloom about: different types of possible universes.
I watched lesson 13 on the Berkeley biology course: Photosynthesis- CO2 fixation and related processes.

I received an email from a friend of George's saying that George had passed away in his Wonder Valley trailer this past Monday, January 23rd.
George was a really neat guy with some wild and crazy ideas and it was great receiving those emails of his. He would come by my house in that old van of his complaining about the thieves who worked post office losing his mail, the VA messing with him, or them there criminals out yonder in Wonder Valley. He was real happy when he got that 'new' truck recently.
Such sad news :(
If any of you are in contact with his family, would you please forward their information to me to that I can notify them.
Sorry to hear that you left us George. Give them as much hell as you gave them here wherever you end up :)



Saturday 28- The weather was cool and a little hazy.
I did my stretches, core trainer and ran a mile.
I called family and friends to bother them if they were so unfortunate to answer their phone.
I headed down to our Potluck with some turkey stuffing and rice I cooked up. There, almost thirty of our community’s finest showed up- Tim Atzei cooked up a concoction he called Mac and something. Elaine brought her family; husband Kevin, and two sons Timothy and Matthew (their first time at the community center). Karry Kearns provided us all with beverages. Dave Royer baked up a fancy French (I thought he wrote trench) lemon tart pie thingy. Marybeth Rubin made some curry bites that were delicious. Marybeth and husband Alan had property here for thirty years and have just moved in permanently six months ago. Chris Jonas made his famous world renowned macaroni salad. Rose Matich brought along her husband Joe and steamed up her peas and corn for us to enjoy. Mary and Chris Koval created a lemon pumpkin dump cake (Mighty fine), and chicken mushroom mac casserole. Ruth Malton surprised us with red jello. Marie Morrison whipped up a German Chocolate Cake! There was plenty of fun in the Treasure Room especially when young Cody was clowning around with a woman’s wig and a bra- the girls got a kick out of that.
I watched two new episodes of “Fringe”.


Sunday 29- It is beautiful outside today!
I did my stretches, hopped on the Harley and took it out for a little ride and collected my mail along the way.
I spent the rest of the day doing whatever I wanted, and later in the evening I watched an episode of “Castle” and one of “EndGame” because I felt like it :)


Monday 30- It was a little overcast today with altocumulus clouds peppering the sky, I think we got your clouds Ginger :) with temps in the mid 60s.
I did my stretches, yoga, dumbbells, rode my bike, lifted weights, core trainer, punched at the heavy bag, rode my bike, and ran with weights.
I did my studies. I’ve been slacking off the Latin for a bit because I need to get caught up with the audio portion before I feel I can continue on the written portion.
I went for a walk listening to an Astro 7B lecture by Joshua Bloom about: the cosmological constant and Hubble’s law.
I watched lesson 14 on the Berkeley biology course about: Somatic cells- mitosis- and gametes (meiosis) inherit genomes… Yikes! I should just stick with astronomy :) Nah, I really need someone I can discuss and go over this with…



Tuesday 31- The sky was a clear bright blue, but the temps didn’t get over 65 degrees.
I did my stretches, core trainer, and ran a mile.
I had some pretty strange dreams last night and the night before, but mostly last night. I feel I have some arranging of my life to get in order and set my priorities straight in my mind.
Also, today I finally came to the realization that most people don’t want or need to know the truth. I believe that they are so used to being lied to that they don’t expect to hear the truth, but expect to be lied to instead. And if you are the messenger of the truth it will somehow end up being your fault which you’ll need to defend. I find this strange, but interesting.
So today I was kinda down in the dumps. I did manage to do my studies.
I went for a walk listening to Latin lectures.
I spent the rest of the night in deep thought; at least for me it seemed deep :)
Goodbye to January!