The weather has been so on again, off again between sun and downpours of rain that it has confused the flowers. I took this picture as I left for work this morning.
Well, Crap
2 months ago
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Pay to sell my car?
The title of this post sounds distinctly odd.
I'll explain.
The problems that evolved last year with my back and leg made me realize that it can be problematic to count on a small, low, stick shifted car to get around in.
My small car is a 1990 240SX, which is popular with the street car fans.
It drives well. It is in quite good shape for its age. Yeah, it needs cosmetic work. We all do as we age. Florence is still fast and beautiful.
There is a neighbor kid (17) who wants a car that he can get to school in and work on. He is enrolled in classes to become an automotive engineer. He works on his Dad's BMW. He has no money, or not much.
His father works on Boeing's airplanes. He has come and looked car over, ran it, approves.
So we now have a "handy-kid" who is gung-ho about helping with yard work, or other work, that we don't want to tackle (like climbing up on a roof to spread moss stuff). He doesn't want money in hand, we are keeping a worksheet of hours worked and/or tasks performed to show accumulation of value.
So I guess you could say that I am paying him to buy my car. The old barter system at work.
His grandparents (who I am guessing to be around my age, based on ages of his parents) got a chuckle out of it when they heard.
Handy-kid also works for others around the neighborhood but says it is hard to get enough jobs.
He doesn't work on Saturdays. That's his dirt-bike day.
I'll explain.
The problems that evolved last year with my back and leg made me realize that it can be problematic to count on a small, low, stick shifted car to get around in.
My small car is a 1990 240SX, which is popular with the street car fans.
It drives well. It is in quite good shape for its age. Yeah, it needs cosmetic work. We all do as we age. Florence is still fast and beautiful.
There is a neighbor kid (17) who wants a car that he can get to school in and work on. He is enrolled in classes to become an automotive engineer. He works on his Dad's BMW. He has no money, or not much.
His father works on Boeing's airplanes. He has come and looked car over, ran it, approves.
So we now have a "handy-kid" who is gung-ho about helping with yard work, or other work, that we don't want to tackle (like climbing up on a roof to spread moss stuff). He doesn't want money in hand, we are keeping a worksheet of hours worked and/or tasks performed to show accumulation of value.
So I guess you could say that I am paying him to buy my car. The old barter system at work.
His grandparents (who I am guessing to be around my age, based on ages of his parents) got a chuckle out of it when they heard.
Handy-kid also works for others around the neighborhood but says it is hard to get enough jobs.
He doesn't work on Saturdays. That's his dirt-bike day.
Bang!
Did I tell you that the local firearms store relocated?
Did I tell you that it is now within a mile of home?
Did I tell you that it is also now an indoor range?
Last month I went in and took a refresher course on shooting. My grip is much improved.
Ladies get discounts all day on Tuesdays.
Met a lady who wants to be shooting buddies.
LCR tries to bite which is not nice.
Star, OTOH, behaves better than others of its ilk that the range master has seen. :)
I'll let you know how this goes.
Did I tell you that it is now within a mile of home?
Did I tell you that it is also now an indoor range?
Last month I went in and took a refresher course on shooting. My grip is much improved.
Ladies get discounts all day on Tuesdays.
Met a lady who wants to be shooting buddies.
LCR tries to bite which is not nice.
Star, OTOH, behaves better than others of its ilk that the range master has seen. :)
I'll let you know how this goes.
Age, definitely a state of mind
This year I will have a garden. More exactly I will have 4 raised beds that are 4' X 4'. With risers for viney things.
I put in 2 different types of tomato, several herbs, an assortment of greens, peas, beans, cucumbers. There will also be carrots and radishes, also kohlrabi and golden beets (hopefully).
We got a string of days with really nice weather and so in went the vegetable starts. Then we got a couple of frosty nights. Followed by a couple of nice days. Followed by thunder storms.
I like rain, it means that I don't have to water anything. It's just that I don't want it in such a way that it eradicates my plantings. Sigh.
But I am feeling "young" and able and cane free; so very unlike last year when there was only pain and hobble.
And now I will start shooting again. More about that in a separate post.
But I am older according to the calendar so I guess I'll have to accept some of the things that occur as a result.
Eyes:
My optometrist informed me that my eyes are aging. A change in prescription, stronger, is in order.
My present glasses suit me admirably; unless I get tired, at which time I occasionally loose focus at bit. So the new ones should keep me sharper.
I picked up my new glasses a couple of days ago. They are going to take some getting used to. The first time I wore them and moved around very much I got a bit dizzy. On the other hand I can now read the fine print on things without "trying".
I'd never heard of the frame brand of Ellen Tracy. The pair I chose is called Greenstone. The stems have sort of a jungle grass pattern, and in just the right light there is a subtle green tint.
Back:
I started getting some pain from the herniated disk again in late January. Saw the doc, again.
This time he wanted me on a nerve paid medication. Start with 1/2 a pill 2X day and work up to 1 whole pill 2X day.
Uh uh. 1/2 a pill made me feel dopey and unfocussed. Not a good trait for a bookkeeper.
So I talked to my pharmacist. She said to reduce the medication and add an Aleve tablet.
It works! So morning/evening I take 1/4 pill + Aleve (it's shorter to spell than generic name) and am pain free.
Now if I can just keep from miss-stepping and twisting my ankle...
I put in 2 different types of tomato, several herbs, an assortment of greens, peas, beans, cucumbers. There will also be carrots and radishes, also kohlrabi and golden beets (hopefully).
We got a string of days with really nice weather and so in went the vegetable starts. Then we got a couple of frosty nights. Followed by a couple of nice days. Followed by thunder storms.
I like rain, it means that I don't have to water anything. It's just that I don't want it in such a way that it eradicates my plantings. Sigh.
But I am feeling "young" and able and cane free; so very unlike last year when there was only pain and hobble.
And now I will start shooting again. More about that in a separate post.
But I am older according to the calendar so I guess I'll have to accept some of the things that occur as a result.
Eyes:
My optometrist informed me that my eyes are aging. A change in prescription, stronger, is in order.
My present glasses suit me admirably; unless I get tired, at which time I occasionally loose focus at bit. So the new ones should keep me sharper.
I picked up my new glasses a couple of days ago. They are going to take some getting used to. The first time I wore them and moved around very much I got a bit dizzy. On the other hand I can now read the fine print on things without "trying".
I'd never heard of the frame brand of Ellen Tracy. The pair I chose is called Greenstone. The stems have sort of a jungle grass pattern, and in just the right light there is a subtle green tint.
Back:
I started getting some pain from the herniated disk again in late January. Saw the doc, again.
This time he wanted me on a nerve paid medication. Start with 1/2 a pill 2X day and work up to 1 whole pill 2X day.
Uh uh. 1/2 a pill made me feel dopey and unfocussed. Not a good trait for a bookkeeper.
So I talked to my pharmacist. She said to reduce the medication and add an Aleve tablet.
It works! So morning/evening I take 1/4 pill + Aleve (it's shorter to spell than generic name) and am pain free.
Now if I can just keep from miss-stepping and twisting my ankle...
A-crusing we will go
Plans are made for a family reunion of sorts on a cruise to Alaska. That wasn't planned, it just happened. It is quite a tale.
D.W. and I took our 1st cruise this past December, courtesy of his parents. We had a good time. You can read my previous post if you want to know more about it.
We have said for the past 20 years that we would like to take a cruise up the Inside Passage to Alaska "someday". Well! In February we received a reasonably priced cruise offering, which we decided to take.
Remembering the pleasure of cruising with "the folks" we asked them if they would be interested in booking onto the same cruise. They decided to join us on board.
A couple of weeks later Mom told us that she had been talking to D.W.'s sister and told her about the cruise plans. Sis decided that she and our niece would join the party. (Bro-in-law is doing a stint with an overseas company, which is 1/2 way complete. His schedule precludes him from joining us. Sis was already planning to be in the States taking care of business that would be difficult if not impossible to do from overseas.) We haven't seen Sister and Niece for way these many years. So now we are 6.
Another month passed and again Mom called. She left a message. D.W. said that he couldn't tell if she was laughing or crying, but that she sounded slightly hysterical. He called back.
Mom had been talking with her sister and telling her how the 6 of us were going cruising as a family. Mom's Sis looked into it, and now she and her daughter have joined the party as well. Mom called the cruise director and re-booked the dining arrangements as we will now need a larger table for the 8 of us.
Cousin expressed some reservations about them just "dropping in" on us. I emailed her that it was by far the easiest family reunion I had ever planned. All it took was a phone call to Mom. And none of us has to worry about housework or cooking for a week.
D.W. and I took our 1st cruise this past December, courtesy of his parents. We had a good time. You can read my previous post if you want to know more about it.
We have said for the past 20 years that we would like to take a cruise up the Inside Passage to Alaska "someday". Well! In February we received a reasonably priced cruise offering, which we decided to take.
Remembering the pleasure of cruising with "the folks" we asked them if they would be interested in booking onto the same cruise. They decided to join us on board.
A couple of weeks later Mom told us that she had been talking to D.W.'s sister and told her about the cruise plans. Sis decided that she and our niece would join the party. (Bro-in-law is doing a stint with an overseas company, which is 1/2 way complete. His schedule precludes him from joining us. Sis was already planning to be in the States taking care of business that would be difficult if not impossible to do from overseas.) We haven't seen Sister and Niece for way these many years. So now we are 6.
Another month passed and again Mom called. She left a message. D.W. said that he couldn't tell if she was laughing or crying, but that she sounded slightly hysterical. He called back.
Mom had been talking with her sister and telling her how the 6 of us were going cruising as a family. Mom's Sis looked into it, and now she and her daughter have joined the party as well. Mom called the cruise director and re-booked the dining arrangements as we will now need a larger table for the 8 of us.
Cousin expressed some reservations about them just "dropping in" on us. I emailed her that it was by far the easiest family reunion I had ever planned. All it took was a phone call to Mom. And none of us has to worry about housework or cooking for a week.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
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