July 2018

**************** July 2018 ****************

If I didn’t write it I take my Cassie for a walk everyday. I been really working on editing my book throughout the month of July; it’s over one hundred thousand words now :)

Sunday 01- Clear 102° | 71°
I did my stretches.

Called a few friends and family just to check in.

Monday 02- Clear 102° | 72°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile and a half.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/bdbXj6n6WFajEFEJ7 

Tuesday 03- Clear 102° | 75°
I did my stretches.

Wednesday 04-  102° | 70°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile and a half.

I could barely see the fireworks going off in the surrounding area to the south from my property. 

Thursday 05- Clear 104° | 31°
I did my stretches and jogged a mile and a half.

I went to my appointment at the Hi Desert Physical Therapy.
Game Night Every Thursday Night 6-9PM
Had lots of fun yammering away telling stories and playing pool

Friday 06- Cloudy 109° | 93°

I did my stretches.
I took Kelly to the drug store in JT. 

Me and Cassie went over to Kjtel’s to watch another episode of the documentary about New York.

Saturday 07- Thunderstorms 109° | 90°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile and a half.

Sunday 08- Thunderstorms 105° | 84°
I did my stretches.

I didn’t go to the Poetry reading this month because I feared the dirt roads would be washed out because of the storms.

Monday 09- Thunderstorms 107° | 84°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile and a half.

Tuesday 10- Cloudy 97° | 77°
I did my stretches and jogged a mile.

Cassie and I went to Katel’s for dinner and a movie... watched several episodes of Game of Thrones.

Wednesday 11- Lots of heavy rain! Thunderstorms 97° | 72°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile and a half.

I got back from my jog just as the rain started to fall, and fall it did all day long. Winters Road was flooded and cars were having trouble getting across the two feet of muddy water that we up here call Lake Lucille. During the height of the downpour Kjtel had to hurry outside in her pajamas with a shovel in tow to redirect the flood of water coming into her home.

I had to cancel my appointment with Hi Desert Physical Therapy because of the roads being washed out.

Thursday 12- Thunderstorms 96° | 82°
I did my stretches.

Stevie my neighbor called and we yapped for an hour catching up on stuff, and then she told me why she called; her computer was down. I got on my bike and rode on over only falling once in the slick mud at the bottom of the hill. I fixed her computer and was back home in 30 minutes.

Friday 13- Cloudy 100° | 80°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile.

Road maintenance came to repair our roads this afternoon...

Saturday 14- Cloudy 107° | 84°
I did my stretches.

Sunday 15- Cloudy 105° | 82°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile.

I went outside this evening to watch the MOON-VENUS CONJUNCTION.

Monday 16- Cloudy 102° | 71°

I did my stretches and jogged a mile.

Tuesday 17- Humid 105° | 87°
I did my stretches.

Wednesday 18- Thunderstorm 102° | 80°
I did my stretches and jogged a mile.

I drove to Twentynine to Hi Desert Physical Therapy. I stopped off at the post office and then Staters to get some supplies.

Thursday 19- Very humid 102° | 81°
I did my stretches.

Friday 20- much more humid 104° | 82°
I did my stretches.

Saturday 21- Bone sucking humid 97° | 81°
I did my stretches. Just too humid to do anything else.

Sunday 22- Still humid. Mostly sunny 105° | 80°
I did my stretches.

Monday 23- Mostly sunny 109° | 86°
I did my stretches, yoga and jogged a mile.
Cassie and me went over to Kjtel’s house to visit her and her dog Bodhi. 

Tuesday 24- Mostly sunny 114° | 88°
I did my stretches.

Cassie and me went to Kjtel’s to watch a few episodes of Game of Thrones.

Wednesday 25- Mostly sunny 113° | 89°

I did my stretches, yoga and jogged a mile.

I went to Twentynine Palms for my Hi Desert Physical Therapy session. I made a stop at Subway and Staters Bros.

Thursday 26- Mostly sunny 114° | 84°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile.
Smoke from the fire in Idyllwild hit our area this evening. I heard the authorities caught the idiot who set the fires. If he is found guilty I can only hope he gets life in prison for all the damage and suffering he has caused... I can only imagine what the critters went through and the folks who live up there losing everything... up here it’s folks with breathing problems who are having trouble.
I went to Game Night at our Community and yakked my dang fool head off with others doing the same. Mac won pot at the end of the poker game with a devil of a hand. Folks were playing pool and pinball. Hot dogs, popcorn, and coffee were on hand to provide us what nourishment our bodies required.

Friday 27- Very bad smoke from the fires. Mostly sunny 111° | 87°
I did my stretches and exercised with the 10 and 20 pound dumbbells.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/eNmWt1nkKehqynpA7

Saturday 28- Smoke 109° | 81°
I got up at the ungodly hour of 7:00AM and did my stretches.

I went down to take a CERT test to get my certification card: Introduction to ICS and NIMMS (IS100/IS700) DSW Certification class. I had a wonderful time. The instructor was magnificent and knowledgeable in her presentation. Seeing my friends Carl and Steve there brought back a flood of memories of the Lake Fire; manning Station 38, all the wonderful Firefighters, Cert personnel, and towns people who brought tons of food and other supplies. To me the memories of those 11 days I will cherish. What little part I played I am honored I was given the opportunity to have served together with other CERT members to make a difference.

After I successfully finished the test I drove to our community center for PotLuck!!!
We had a delightful potluck last Saturday. During the summer months we usually don’t get the big crowds of the other months. Folks are off on vacation or just staying home out of the heat. But a few diehards show up like family at Christmas. Pretty Patti baked a peanut butter pie that stuck to the roof of your mouth. Mack tossed up a salad. Kip slid in with chips and guacamole. Kim from China spooned out her sweet potato soup. Cal Mayers offered up his fruit plate. Jeff simmered a casserole. Chris created a barbecue beef with beans dish. Dyan Carroll was mighty happy to share with us her ham and cheese rollups and Coca Cola cake and I was mighty happy to eat it all!

Sunday 29- Smoke 105° | 82°
Dang, too much some to exercise, but I did my stretches.

I’ve been staying in the house most of the time messing around with my computers, cleaning or working on my book. This month has been very hard on my exercise routine because of the heat and humidity, and now the smoke from the fires in Idyllwild.

Monday 30- Smoke 108° | 86°
I did my stretches and lifted weights.

Me and Cassie went to Kjtel’s to watch more of Game of Thrones.

Tuesday 31- Smoke  and thunderstorms 107° | 86°
I did my stretches.

I drove to Yucca Valley for my appointment with Dr. Salhotra. I got gas, stopped at LabCorp to drop off a sample, I went to Subway and Staters, and then to see the Doc.
I found out I lost two of my childhood friends this month. I guess we lose more as we get older.

**************** Stuff I wrote this month ****************

I see lightning in skies, I see the stars riding the Moon above, I can see forever at a glance, and I stand here pondering how majestic and magical it all is to be alive
~RD

A photo of a young girl, an image from my past, a flood of memories awakens a distant time, from a different era. Falling like pitter patter of gentle rain to sprinkle patterns upon my brain. Friends appear from long ago, a reminisce of restless youth, casting rays of sunshine on my soul. I dwell, I ponder, and try to capture, the essence of what once was and finally meant to be, before these flee my aging memory.
Rest easy now lovely lass, pass your days in fields of rolling grass, high on yonder hill blowing dandelion seeds into the wind, free now to fly, set fire the lofty sky, with brilliant hues of blues, reds and greens.
This photo is how I will always remember you; young, vibrant with a whole future of possibilities ahead.
Be at peace my friend.
~RD

Yeah I know... I live in my imagination sometimes :)
Time ticks-tocks away second by second day by day and who's to say where it goes or why it doesn’t stay. Living in the moment, not living in the past, think about the future, all these things will pass. To seek a higher order, to lie upon the grass; smell the flowers, hear the birds sing with joy as we try to ponder with understanding a new reality yet to be revealed. We will come to the end of this journey and rest in peace we shall. But before we leave this Earth of ours and travel into the unknown, may we leave a little bit of ourselves behind, to say to those who follow, Hey I was here and stayed a while and left without any trouble.
~RD


I have friends who are either staunch Democrats or Republicans. Both argue about petty and trivial matters feeling only their way is right and no other missing the grander scope of the world.
I have devout religious friends of different faiths who bicker over dogma and which religion or God gets them into heaven while missing what faith is really all about.
These two groups I have mentioned have trouble finding common ground... some even hate each other with a passion I find very disturbing.
But I love each and every one of them. I believe many of you feel the same as I.Someday I hope there will arise an understanding, a consciousness, an awaking that we are all one, entangled together on this tiny beautiful planet along with other living creatures and that life is the most precious of all in this immense vacant universe.

~RD

******************************************************

June 2018

June 2018

Friday 01- Clear 93° | 62°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile.

Saturday 02 and Sunday 03 was kinda melancholy for me missing Barney.

Monday 04- Clear 105° | 75°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged one mile.

I listened to two podcast episodes of Astronomy Cast: 474 predictions for 2018, and 475 fast radio bursts.

Tuesday 05- Scattered Clouds 100° | 71°

I did my stretches and jogged a mile and a half.

I asked my publisher/friend to delete “Upon Ashen Road” from Amazon. There didn’t seem to be any activity going on with paperback online. So, instead of letting it languish a slow death, I asked him to delete it and send me the latest .doc edit update he had. I told him I appreciated his past efforts on the book, but I felt it best if I continue on alone and leave him free to work on the many other projects he has; he agreed. I am going to retitle and rewrite the book in my free time. I received an email back from him along with the document for the book and a promise to delete it from Amazon. All is good.
Now I can rename “Upon Ashen Roads”, re-edit, and add on another 50 some thousand words to the book; kind of a do over.

I listened to one podcast episodes of Astronomy Cast: 476 the overview effect.

I finished cleaning out the dog pen. I fixed my front flat tire on the electric fat bike. While I was at it I put Slime in both tires and also fitted each with Mr Tuffy 4XL Fat Bike Tire Liner Tube Protector. I was outside the gate with the bike when Cassie whined at me wanted to go with. She jumped all over me with joy as I went back in to get her leash. She had a good run and the bike tested out okay.

I took the large binoculars out tonight to take in the magnificent canopy of stars overhead. I looked and found my favorite asteism: the coat hanger in Cygnus.

Wednesday 06- Clear 97° | 69°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile.
I drove the scooter to my mailbox to send out Cassie's dog license papers and my friend Tom’s birthday card only to came back home to find the card sitting on the kitchen table; I had mailed out an empty envelope!

Thursday 07- Clear 97° | 66°

I did my stretches, yoga, and ran a mile and a half.

I did the laundry. The dang hose broke sending a spray of water all over the place when I accidently knocked it with a box of canned dog food. I had no way to fix the fitting that burst, and so I had to use another hose I had laying around. That took two hours out of my day.

Friday 08- winds in the evening Clear 100° | 71°

I did my stretches.

I went through most of my books looking for ones to donate or give away. I need to clear out some not needed stuff. It is very hard to give up some of my favorite books though...

Took Cassie for another bike run, gosh how she likes to run. After Barney passed I’ve been spending more time with her because she seems to be moping around looking for him.

Saturday 09- windy Clear 100° | 73°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile with Cassie.

I continued to work on cleaning out the junk I’ve collected throughout my life.

Sunday 10- Clear 95° | 66°

I did my stretched.

I went to the poetry reading at Space Cowboy Books and read a few poems in front of everyone there. I brought a bunch of books I cleaning out of my library that I’ll never be reading again and donated them.

Monday 11- Clear 102° | 69°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile with Cassie.

Tuesday 12- Scattered Clouds 106° | 75°

I did my stretches and jogged a mile.

I continued to work on cleaning out the junk I’ve collected throughout my life.

Wednesday 13- Scattered Clouds 105° | 73°

I did my stretches.

I drove to the Physical Therapy place in Twentynine Palms to have my left shoulder/neck looked at... been bugging me for over a year with a slight pain.

Thursday 14- windy Scattered Clouds 104° | 70°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile and a half.

I listened to three podcast episodes of Astronomy Cast: 477, 478, and 479 .

Friday 15- windy Scattered Clouds 99° | 73°

I did my stretches.

Cassie and I went over to Kjtel’s house to watch a movie and eat blueberry pie.

Saturday 16- windy Clear 93° | 70°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile with Cassie.

Went into Yucca Valley with Kjtel for a massage and then we eat at this wonderful restaurant called Cali Greens Cafe just around the back of Starbucks.

Sunday 17- Clear 91° | 62°

I did my stretches.

I continued to work on cleaning out the junk I’ve collected throughout my life.

Monday 18- Clear 91° | 62°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile and a half.

Tuesday 19- Clear 100° | 69°

I did my stretches and took Cassie for a long walk before it got too hot.

I continued to rummage through my stuff to see what I should keep, give away, sell, or toss in the trash.

Wednesday 20- Clear 107° | 75°

I did my stretches.

I went for another physical therapy session for my neck muscle that’s been bothering me for a few years. I believe it happened in the Army when a steel beam fell and gave me a glancing blow on between the neck and the shoulder on my right side. Dang Army!

Thursday 21- Clear 109° | 75°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile and a half. I jumped in the pool afterwards to cool down.

Friday 22- Clear 109° | 80°  

I did my stretches and went for a mile jog.

My car has been warning me that its left rear tire was low. I had filled up all tires when I went for the poetry reading, but that left rear tire kept going low; imagine a car that tells you its tires are Low. I went into Joshua Tree and pulled into Garry's Tires to get the tire patched so my car would stop nagging at me. Chris was the only one there and working on this big old motorhome replacing all the old tires with new. I asked the lady there how long it’d be before Chris could get to my. She said about two hours. I said I have nothing else to do so I’ll just wait until he’s done. I guess Chris overheard and told me to back it up into the bay. It took him about ten minutes to fix the tire and remount it. I gave him a nice tip, paid the cashier twenty bucks and I was on my way to WalMart to pick up a few things.

Saturday 23- Windy Clear 106° | 80°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile and a half. I jumped in the pool afterwards to cool down.

I also listened to 2 Astronomy Cast podcasts: 480 and 481: Rockets parts 1&2.

I read in my history book part of chapter 27: New economy and expansion of Europe.

I worked on a laptop my trailer guest spilled water on and wouldn’t power on. I fixed her ChromeBook and it's running just fine now.

I took Cassie for a long evening walk.

Cassie and I went for a night run up the hill and back.

Sunday 24- Clear 102° | 72°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile and a half. Just like yesterday I again jumped in the pool afterwards to cool down. That ten foot pool only cost me $44 and was well worth the cost.

I finished reading chapter 27: A new economy and the expansion of Europe... in my history book.
I listened to Astronomy Cast Ep. 485: docking and refueling.

I took Cassie for a long evening walk.

After 3 weeks of editing and adding to Part One of my book “Ashen Roads” I merged Part Two that I had written last November. The book is now around one hundred thousand words or more.
Cassie and I went for a night run up the hill and back.

Monday 25- Clear 105° | 75°

I did my stretches and jogged a mile jog.

I read chapter 28: the Renaissance in Italy... in my history book.

I listened to Astronomy Cast Ep. 486: particle physics update, and Ep. 487: Dark Matter.

Cassie and I were invited over to Kjtel’s house for dinner and Episode 5 of the New York Documentary. We also took the dogs for a nice long walk at sunset; the sky colors were magnificent.

Tuesday 26- Clear 107° | 78°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile and a half.

I read chapter 29: the Renaissance in Northern Europe... in my history book.

I listened to Astronomy Cast Ep. 488: Dark Energy, Ep. 489: Black Hole Update, Ep. 490: What’s New with Supernovas,  Ep. 492: Comets, Asteroids and KBO’s, and Ep. 493: Mars update.

Took Cassie for a long walk in the desert at sunset; much cooler at this time.

Wednesday 27- Windy Clear 106° | 77°

I did my stretches and jogged a mile.

I went for my physical therapy session. Went shopping afterwards at Staters and Subway; I like their spicy Italian sub.

I went outside to see the full Moon and Saturn Conjunction.

Thursday 28- Clear 100° | 73°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged a mile and a half.
I read chapter 30: The Protestant Reformation... in my history book.
I took Cassie out for a really long walk in the evening.

Ep. 494: Icy Moons Update 2018, Ep. 495: Update on Asteroids & Prospects of Asteroid Mining, Ep. 496: Update on Stellar Populations (I, II, & III), Ep. 497: Update on Globular Clusters, and Ep. 498: Dwarf Galaxy Update.
Me and Cassie went for a night run up the hill and back.

Friday 29- Clear 100° | 80°

I got up early when it wasn’t very hot to do my stretches and jog a mile with my Cassie.

I gave Chris a ride to the post office in Joshua Tree to pick up a vital package she has been waiting for.

I started reading chapter 31 in my history book.

Took Cassie for a long evening walk.

Saturday 30- Clear 99° | 82°

I did my stretches, exercised with 10 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, and jogged a mile and a half. I jumped in the pool to cool off when I was done with my exercises.

I finished reading chapter 31 in my history book.

It has been over the 20 years since our first potluck. I’ve seen many good folks come and go throughout the years. It’s nice to see friendly caring faces when I arrive each time. Kip Fjeld whipped up some guacamole with chips. Jeff Dongvillo cooked a beef and veggies casserole. Mack tossed up a salad. Cal Mayers brought his assorted fruits tray. Dyan Carroll and her Brother John cooked up a yummy lasagna, garlic bread, apple crisp and a bunch more. Chris VanNortrick made veggie meals for those who don’t eat meat. As usual, Yvonne Frances waltzed in at the last moment with watermelon and fresh corn. We all had a really nice time and maybe we’ll see y’all next potluck!

**************** Stuff I wrote this month ****************

Some people are just plain evil, not much you can do about that... I just try to stay my distance from them. Nobody's perfect, ain’t anyone normal, and not everyone has evil in them...
~RD

******************************

May 2018

May 2018

Tuesday 01- Thunderstorm 70° | 53° 0.01 in of rain.
I did my stretches, yoga, and jogged three miles.
I listened to four podcast episodes of Astronomy Cast.
I finished chapters 18 and 19 (1000 to 1300 high middle ages) of my history book.

Wednesday 02- Thunderstorm 70° | 50° 0.22 in of rain.
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 3 miles.
I listened to four podcast episodes of Astronomy Cast: 425 Naming Spacecraft, 424 Lightning, 423 Cyclones, and 422 Geysers
I finished chapter 20 (continuing high middle ages) of my history book.

Thursday 03- Clear 82° | 53°
I did my stretches, yoga, and jogged two miles with Cassie.
I listened to four podcast episodes of Astronomy Cast: 429 Living on Mars, 428 The Moons of Mars, 427 Clickbait vs Clear Science, and 426 Confirmation Bias
I finished chapter 21 (continuing high middle ages) of my history book.

Friday 04- Clear 89° | 57°
I did my stretches, core trainer, weight bench, and jogged a good mile.
I finished chapter 22 (still stuck in the high middle ages) of my history book.
Watched Launching of InSight Mars Lander... moved really fast towards the south... I believe I saw about two or more minutes of the glow of the rocket before I lost it :)

Saturday 05- Scattered Clouds 96° | 63°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 1.5 miles.
I took Cassie for a night run. It was overcast so I didn’t watch the Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower.
I received word that my friend Mike Long’s sister Mae had passed away.

Sunday 06- Scattered Clouds 99° | 64°
I did my stretches and jogged a good mile.
Kjtel invited me over for lunch. She lives about a quarter mile away, so I just walked. We had a very nice veggie meal she prepared and then watched a movie called “Gravity” a sci-fi thriller about being stuck in space with few options to get back to Earth.
Still overcast, so it’s a no go for the Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower.
I also listened to 2 Astronomy Cast podcast: 431 The Search for Life on Mars, ans 430 Coming Home from Mars, Part 2.
I received word that my dear friends Dorothy Jacobsen had passed away; she was 90 years old.

Monday 07- Scattered Clouds 96° | 70°
I did my stretches.
I went to the post office in Twentynine Palms to pick up a ..... Subway then on to Staters Bros.

Tuesday 08- Scattered Clouds 100° | 70°
I did my stretches and jogged a good mile.
I went over to Kjtel’s with Cassie and my guitar. Barney wasn’t feeling well so he had to stay behind. We messed around playing songs and we ate a veggie lunch.

Wednesday 09- Scattered Clouds 104° | 73°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 1.5 miles. On my run I tripped over a root that was exposed above ground and took a good tumble. I got right up and continued my jog. I was a little bruised, but I’ll keep an eye on myself for the next couple of day and kinda take it easy.

Thursday 10- windy Scattered Clouds 98° | 70°
I did my stretches and took Cassie for a mile jog.
I went to Yucca Valley and got my blood work done, stop over at Subway, then over to Staters...
I’m getting a little concerned about Barney. He isn’t eating much and is having a hard time with his back legs standing.

Friday 11- Scattered Clouds 90° | 66°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 3 miles.
I also listened to 4 Astronomy Cast podcast: 435 The Butterfly Effect, 434 Am I On An Alien World? 433 Volcanoes on Mars , and 432 Geologic Ages of Mars – From Wet and Wild to Desolate Desert

Saturday 12- Clear 82° | 62°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 3 miles.
I worked cleaning up the patio sweeping up all autumn and winter leaves and dirt buildup and tossing the whole mess into the dumpster. Did some watering of the plants and picking up trash in the yard.
I also listened to two Astronomy Cast podcast: 437 Destroy and Rebuild, Pt. 1: The Torino Scale , and 436 Common Misconceptions in Probability.

Sunday 13- Clear 84° | 61°
I did my stretches, yoga, and jogged 1.5 miles.
I went to the poetry reading at Space Cowboy Books in Joshua Tree. I had my poems already picked out and on my Fire Tablet which decided to do a system update just then. I had to apologize to the audience, quickly go back to my backpack, grab a book with some of my poems. I jumped back on stage to fumble through a couple of poems I wasn't prepared to read. Other than that I had a wonderful time with some really great poets and storytellers.
I also listened to 6 Astronomy Cast podcast:  443 Destroy and Rebuild Pt. 7: Tsunamis, 442 Destroy and Rebuild Pt. 6: Magnetic Pole Reversal, 441 Destroy and Rebuild, Pt. 5: Continental Drift , 440 Destroy and Rebuild, Pt. 4: Supervolcanoes! 439 Destroy and Rebuild, Pt. 3: How Do We Terraform Earth? And 438 Destroy and Rebuild, Pt. 2: Geoengineering


Monday 14- Scattered Clouds 84° | 61°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 3 miles.
I read a few pages of my “A Short History of Western Civilization” (1300-1500) I’m now in the Late Middle Ages. I kinda gotten tired of the history book, it’s the one I used in my history class in college, and started on the “Chemistry- A Molecular Approach” textbook. I also listened to one Astronomy Cast podcast: 449 Robots in Space! 448 Prepping for the Eclipse, 447 Animals in Space Pt. 3: Dogs, Monkeys and More, 446 Animals in Space Pt. 2: Mice and Other Small Animals, 445 Animals in Space Pt. 1: Insects and Arachnids, and 444 Fractals.
I did a night run with Cassie and then fell asleep watching a video on Quantum Theory and why physicist can’t agree on which Hypothesis to use; the Copenhagen interpretation, Many Worlds Quantum Theory, or a number of others.

Tuesday 15- Clear 90° | 63°
I did my stretches and jogged 3 miles. I’ve been really building up on my jogging mileage lately and also upping my time spending ten minutes punching on the heavybag, but I need to take a day off tomorrow to rest up.
I was given penicillin for Barney to take. He doesn’t like it. I switched dry food to only canned dog food and he seems to be eating more.
I listened to four Astronomy Cast podcasts: 453 Favorite Things We’ve Done These 10 Years, 452 Summer Observing Challenges, 451 When Can I Buy My Ticket To Space? And 450 Inflatable Habitats.
Cassie cut her ear and there was blood all over. Freaked me out when I first saw her with blood running down her head to drip big splotches on the floor; ears bleed a lot! Every time I got her bandaged up she would flap her ears like dogs do and it would start to bleed again. With the help of a friend (my guest who is staying in my trailer who wants to remain nameless) we were able to stim the flow and bandage her up. I was going to start editing book two of “Upon Ashen Roads,” but my mind isn’t into it because of Cassie’s injury.

Wednesday 16- Clear 91° | 60°
I did my stretches and yoga.
Took the dogs for their morning and evening walks. Barney is feeling much better now and is putting on some weight. Cassie’s ear is healing and has stopped bleeding thank goodness.
I tinkered around outside putting some cactus in planters and watering the plants with water from the laundry I did.
Fedex delivered my new iPod Touch I ordered the other day. My old one wasn’t holding a charge for long and would die in the middle of a lecture.
I listened to two Astronomy Cast podcasts: 455 Your Practical Guide to Colonizing the Milky Way! And 454 Things We’re Looking Forward To...
Dream:
I was in a classroom taking a test. The teacher handed them back. I was at the right front first desk. The test I got back was someone else's. It had one hundred percent. I could not read the writing of the name, it was blurry, but it looked like Rachell with two Ls. I looked around asking for her, but no one seemed to know her; I might have gotten the name wrong. I went back to my desk and there sat a bunch of books bound with twine with a note on my notebook. I thought maybe the teacher put the books there for me to take back to the library. I pushed them aside rummaging through my notebook for my own test to see what grade I received; it wasn’t there. I went back to trying to see if I can find the student whose paper I had. It was recess and the students left the room to go out into the school yard. I followed. There were a few tough boys who said something mean to me, I looked different from the rest of the students, so I took them no notice. I found I could float an inch above the ground and glided through the yard. There were others doing the same and I followed them trying to rise my feet higher to my knees. We floated to the back right side of the chain link fences which separated the school grounds from a dense jungle. We were going to follow it around to continue, but a mass of rebels, some wearing army fatigues and peasants wearing Asian rice hats, were carrying machetes and rifles broke down the middle of the fence and charged the school. They didn’t see us. I decided to get out of there by going over the fence and hiding. There was a street on this side with small industrial buildings. This is where my dream ends.

Thursday 17- Clear 88° | 62°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 3 miles.
I listened to one Astronomy Cast podcasts: Ep. 456: Pluto Revisited.
Barney stopped eating so I made another change in his diet; he likes cooked hamburger.

Friday 18- Clear 90° | 63°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 1.5 miles.
I listened to four Astronomy Cast podcasts: Ep. 460: Earth from Afar: Remote Sensing, Ep. 459: Arecibo Observatory, Ep. 458: The Science of Cassini, and Ep. 457: Why Did Cassini Have To Die? In Memoriam.

Saturday 19-  Scattered Clouds 91° | 66°
I did my stretches.
I went to my dear friend Dorothy’s services. The parking lot was full and I was 20 minutes early. I saw many of our potluck friends there. The services were very nice and comfortable.

Sunday 20- Scattered Clouds 91° | 66°
I did my stretches, yoga and jogged with Cassie for over a mile. She likes to run with me.
I listened to four Astronomy Cast podcasts: Ep. 461: Measuring the Weather with Satellites, Ep. 462: Modeling the Weather, Ep. 463: Pareidolia and the Moon, and Ep. 464: Why the Hype over an Exorock?
I’m still stuck in the Late Middle Ages reading in the history book. I read a little more of chapter one in “Chemistry- A Molecular Approach” textbook.
I went over to Kjtel’s for dinner at 6pm and took Cassie and Barney with me. It was a fantastic meal with fish and vegetables. Afterwards we watched “New York: A Documentary Film” episode 1 which was two hours long, but very interesting.
I dreamed I was an astronaut and almost missed my flight because some thief stole my yellow VW Baja Bug. I walked up to a curved road which led to the launch site. Because my ID was in the bug a young man had to hack the system to get me through the gates. I found a shortcut on my own and was strapped into my seat and the rocket took off for the stars.

Monday 21- Partly Cloudy 86° | 66°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 3 miles.
I listened to one Astronomy Cast podcast: Ep. 465: Exploiting Interfering Light.
I finished chapter 24: “political, economic and social tensions 1300- 1500” in the history book, and read a little more of chapter one in “Chemistry- A Molecular Approach” textbook.
Cassie and me went for a night run up the hill and back. Barney looks like he may be recovering from whatever it was he had.

Tuesday 22- Scattered Clouds 87° | 63°
I did my stretches.
I went to Tractor store to get 4 bales of hay for archery. I then got gas filling mt truck with about 11 gallons and a five gallon gas can for $70!
I went to WalMart to pick up a few things and bought a small pool. I got home putting stuff away and I went outside to see what the dogs were barking at; it was a woman walking down the street! I asked her where she was headed and she said to Landers. I told her Landers is about 15 miles away and gave her a ride. Her name was Stephanie. 
I went over to Kjtel’s to watch episode 2 of “New York a Documentary Film” with her.
I dreamed I was back in the Army and no matter how I tried I couldn’t find my locker and no one would help me. This is a continual dream I had many times.

Wednesday 23- Clear 89° | 64°
I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag for 10 minutes, and jogged 3 miles.
I listened to three Astronomy Cast podcasts: Ep. 466: Origins of Zero (0), Ep. 467: Resonance, Ep. 468: Simulations for Science and Fun.
I worked in the yard doing the Poop Patrol and also clearing and preparing a spot of flat ground to put the 10 foot pool I bought the other day at WalMart for $44; gotta cool off when the summer and the high temps come. I also stacked the four bales of hay I bought at Tractor Supply on top of each other for my archery target site.
I finished chapter 25: “the decline of the church 1300-1500” in the history book, and read a little more of chapter one in “Chemistry- A Molecular Approach” textbook... this textbook is going to take me some time to finish.
I took Cassie for a night run up the hill and back.
I practiced guitar.

Thursday 24- Clear 91° | 64°
I did my stretches, yoga, and jogged 3 miles.
I listened to three Astronomy Cast podcasts: Ep. 469-470- 471-472: Sci Fi books part 1 2 3 and 4. Episode 473: remembering the best space science of 2017.
Worked more on clearing a spot for the pool; lots of junk and debri to move and clean up.

Friday 25- Clear 86° | 63°
I did my stretches.
Finished chapter 26 of my history textbook.
Ep. 490: What’s New with Supernovae, and Ep. 491 Exoplanet update.
I did some more work in the yard clearing a spot for the 10 foot pool, but it was too windy to set the pools up.

Saturday 26- Clear 80° | 57°
I did my stretches.
I went to Potluck today with my usual rice... maybe someday I’ll surprise them and cook something else for a change. Jeff Dongvillo simmered a crockpot full of beef chunks and veggies. Mack made up some pasta that got all eaten up. Cal Mayers brought a tray full of assorted fruits to share. Dyan Carroll cooked up some delicious enchiladas, chicken casserole, a banana split truffle, and asparagus puff pastry. Chris VanNortrick made up an egg and cactus stew, along with a chicken casserole. As usual, Yvonne Frances waltzed at the last moment with KFC bucket of chicken, cake, and pasta. We all sat around yammering about everything under the sun and had a great time doing it!

Sunday 27- Clear 88° | 60°
I did my stretches and jogged a mile with Cassie.
I finally got the pool all setup and filled it part way with water. It took longer than I thought to fill it up and I wanted to go inside to watch a movie and I didn’t want to forget and have it overflow, so I turned off the water and will fill it all the way up tomorrow.
Barney stopped eating altogether and can hardly stand. His back legs keep going out.

Monday 28- Clear 93° | 68°
I did my stretches and yoga.
Got the pool all filled up and went for a nice dip!
Me and Cassie walked over to Kjtel’s for dinner and watched episode 3 “New York: A Documentary Film.” I told my friend Ami Ven it was made before 911 and you can see the Twin Towers; I guess history never stops. She replied, “Old documentaries - and especially old non-fiction books - can be fascinating that way. They're true, up to the point when they were made, which might have been a long, long time ago.”
I was home and I heard both dogs barking, Barney was up on all fours at the fence howling like hound dogs do. I looked to see what it was, there right across the dirt road was a big coyote walking up the hill growling at my dogs. Barney went back to lie down. This would be his last act of providing Cassie, me, and the house protection, because he wouldn’t be able to walk anymore.


Tuesday 29- Clear 97° | 72°
I did my stretches.
I have a doctor’s appointment at 3pm so I left the house early and did my all shopping before going there.
Took Cassie for a long walk when I got home.
I played guitar for Barney, about two hours worth, while he laid curled up not feeling well. I decided for now on to keep Barney inside the house in my bedroom next to me and Cassie on his favorite cushion where he likes to sleep. 

Wednesday 30- Clear 98° | 73°
Had to run into town to get my shoulder X-Rayed... On my way there was a guy walking down Winters Road and I gave him a ride to Yucca Valley. I went to the pharmacy, and Staters to get lots of healthy vegetables for my high cholesterol my doctor now says I have to eat.

Thursday 31- Windy Clear 91° | 64°
Drove Cassie to the Vet for her rabie and other shots.
We got back only to find Barney had passed away while we were gone... I covered him up and carried him to the front room so Cassie wouldn’t see him like this. I put her in the bedroom and closed the door. I found a nice spot in the yard near where he liked to lie in the sun, chase lizards and bury his bones. I dug deep a resting place for my dear friend and my last connection with Sherry, his former owner, who I am sure Barney is with right now.

**************** Stuff I wrote this month ****************

How time drifts away, moments turn to memories, only to fade slowly from my mind as age takes its final bow to bend a knee to thee my love.
~RD

I hold no hate towards anyone just dismay for those who do...
~RD

***********************

April 2018

April 2018

Sunday 01- Clear 84° | 63°

I did my stretches and jogged a mile and a half.

Easter Sunday I went to Joshua Tree Zine Fest at our Community Community...

I drove to my mailbox on Border Ave. to collect my mail.

I finished chapter 19 and started chapter 20 of the geology textbook.

Monday 04- Clear 84° | 60°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 20lbs dumbbells, and ran a good mile.

Continued reading chapter 20 of the geology textbook. I listened to two podcasts of Astronomy Cast.

Tuesday 03- Clear 82° | 61°

I did my stretches, yoga, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 1.5 miles.

I painted the whole guest trailer in Snow Coat... took all day, but I got it done. Now it’s all bright white.

I finished chapter 20 and began chapter 21 of the geology textbook.

I listened to 3 podcasts of Astronomy Cast.

Wednesday 04- windy Clear 86° | 57°

I did my stretches, yoga, and jogged 1.5 miles.
I went to Yucca to do some shopping at Staters and WalMart for supplies.

Thursday 05- Clear 88° | 64°

I did my stretches, yoga, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 1.5 miles.

I went to drive-in movie with a friend to watch “Ready Player One,” and “Tomb Raider.”

Friday 06- very windy Clear 88° | 64°

I did my stretches, yoga, and jogged a good mile.

Saturday 07- scattered showers 93° | 66°

I did my stretches, yoga, core trainer, exercised with the 20 and 30 lbs dumbbells, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 1.5 miles.

Sunday 08- Clear 84° | 59°
I did my stretches.

Monday 09- Clear 87° | 57°

I did my stretches, yoga, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 1.5 miles.

I finally finished studying the Geology textbook.

I listened to 2 Astronomy Cast podcasts: 414 Navigating Far and 413 Navigating Near

Tuesday 10- Clear 91° | 55°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 30 lbs dumbbells, and jogged a good mile with Cassie.

I listened to 2 Astronomy Cast podcasts: 416 Fireballs from the Sky! and 415 Temperature of the Universe.

Wednesday 11- Clear 81° | 61°

I did my stretches, yoga, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 2.5 miles.

Thursday 12- really windy day- Clear 79° | 60°

I did my stretches.
I listened to 2 Astronomy Cast podcasts: 418 Error and 418: I’m a Teapot! And 417: Expectation Failed

Friday 13- Clear 72° | 54°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, rode my ebike 2 miles, and jogged 2.5 miles.

Worked on the Harley for a spell.

I listened to 3 Astronomy Cast podcasts: 421 Space Games! 420 FIRE! And 419 DragonCon 2016 Live – Rocket Girls.

Saturday 14- Clear 81° | 44°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged 3 miles. Bike got a flat or I would have ridden it.

I got a call from my friends Wessel and Greg from Holland telling me that they are at the Denny’s Restaurant in Twentynine Palms... I jumped in my car and raced to meet the two of them there for dinner. We yammered on about things and times gone past... good times :)

Sunday 15- Clear 84° | 52°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged with Cassie a good mile.

A friend dropped by to watch 3 episodes of “Lost in Space” on Netflix tonight.

Monday 16- Cloudy 78° | 48°

I did my stretches; to many particulates in the air to do any heavy exercising.

I worked most of the day securing my home from high winds gusting up to 60 mph at times.

A friend and I watched one episode of LIS tonight.

Tuesday 17- Clear 68° | 44°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile with Cassie.

Cassie got away, but I was able to get her to run home after me on the scooter.

Wednesday 18- Clear 78° | 44°

I did my stretches and jogged a mile with Cassie.

I drove on over to WalMart to replenish my food supplies.

Thursday 19- Cloudy 66° | 50°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged with Cassie a mile.

2Gig RAM  for Toughbook CF-30 I’m working on was delivered and rode scooter to mailbox on Lear Ave to get it. I installed it and the CF-30 runs mighty clean now.

Friday 20- Clear 81° | 52°

I did my stretches, yoga, and jogged with Cassie a mile.

Rode the scooter to pick up battery and parts for Toughbook CF-30 I’m working on. Testing it out now to see if the battery is any good.

Saturday 21- Clear 87° | 57°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged with Cassie for a mile.

New battery for Toughbook seems to be okay.

Sunday 22- Cloudy 91° | 63°

I did my stretches and jogged with Cassie for a mile.

I worked in the yard

Monday 23- Cloudy 93° | 64°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged with Cassie a whole mile.

I did searches on all my backup drives to collect songs I wrote and recorded. Went through some photos of friends from times gone past as I searched.

Tuesday 24- Cloudy 93° | 64°

I did my stretches... had a toss and turn sleep last night; probably something I ate.

I went to the post office in 29 and also did shopping at Stater Bros. there.

Wednesday 25- Cloudy 93° | 64°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged with Cassie for a mile.

Thursday 26- Cloudy 95° | 64°

I did my stretches and jogged two miles.

Friday 27- Clear 95° | 66°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile with Cassie.

Saturday 28- Clear 87° | 57°

I did my stretches and took Cassie for a good mile jog.

I went to potluck:

Cal Mayers brought his son Calvin and daughter Tina along toting a tray full of assorted fruits to share. Chris VanNortrick stirred us up some veggie chili mac casserole along with a pumpkin cheesecake pie. Dorothy Jacobsen rolled up a bunch of spicy meatballs for us to enjoy. Dyan Carroll was busy in her kitchen cooking up an enchilada casserole, a chocolate pie, cauliflower with cheese sauce, and a very decadent southern sour cream raisin pie. Bruce cooked up some magical baked beans he said would sing to you when you get home. Yvonne Frances slid into the community center at the last moment with her yummy banana pudding. I brought my usual pot of rice which went well with the Dorothy’s meatballs. Birthdays this month were Tina Mayers and John Jacobsen. We would have sung Happy Birthday to them, but everyone was too busy eating the fantastic grub. I went for seconds and thirds as did everyone else.

Sunday 29- Clear 82° | 59°

I did my stretches and took Cassie and Barney for a very long walk.

Monday 30- Cloudy 77° | 57°

I did my stretches, yoga, exercised with the 10 and 20 lbs dumbbells, core trainer, weight bench, punched the heavybag, and jogged a mile with Cassie and Barney.

**************** Stuff I wrote this month ****************

In my dream I followed a steep trail making my way carefully, climbing over boulders, scaling ridges, and traversing gullies and streams. Ever so slowly higher through the pass I climbed as billowing clouds before me grew ominously darker with turbulent black foreboding. With much arduous effort I finally reached the summit of a great mountain I fought. I saw a man standing alone before me, immobile, right forefoot at the edge of precipice, looking casually out at the wide expanse of mountainous ranges. Wind blown hail pelted him as his long black cloak rippled like the sounds of a gale ripping through sails of a mighty clipper ship rounding Cape Horn. Weaken by my climb, I clung to rocks and crevices as I slowly crawled to the foot of the man. Fighting the bitter wind, frost formed encrusting my beard, teeth chattering, and I could no longer feel my fingers as I reached out to grab onto this omniscient man’s ankle. He finally took notice and bent ever so slightly down to peer questionably into my face. Stunned by what I saw I lost my grip and was swiftly swept away to be thrown back down the mountain trail far from the raging madness at the edge of forever.
~RD

Yes Ariji, blood does not make a family. Family is sword. Forged in the fires of infinity from the finest metals, laid bare upon the hard anvil of sacrifice, pounded and folded over many times to remove impurities by the hammer of truth, then sharpened by time, honed to a razor’s edge, protecting the ones we love.
~RD

Whispering to a future whose burdens I will never bear. Whispers that glide upon waves of time, forever left behind... left behind... will I always be left behind? Written words gather, collects like dust on windowpane. Be it me or another, it doesn’t matter... it’s really all the same. Whispering to a future whose burdens I will never bear... did I make myself clear? Will they even listen, will they even care?
~RD

So symmetrical the tiny snowflake, so surreal the structure; fragile but firm, to drift from great heights falling upon my palm, then in an instant it’s already gone.
~RD

I have to laugh at myself when I look back on all the dumb things I did and all the crazy people I’ve met in my life... and you know what? I wouldn’t change a dang thing!

~RD

*************************************