2022-07-30 03:09
Only 400 days to go. Kind of a strange goal to write something for 5000 consecutive days, but I'm thinking I'm going to be able to do this. We're getting close now. Maybe a few more interest… Read More
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Some Assembly Required Blog
john-sealander.blogspot.com
Take a day-by-day journey with writer/photographer John Sealander as he attempts to assemble something coherent out of the confusion around him.
2022-07-29 02:18
I took care of a lot of little odds and ends today. Nothing important was accomplished but it was good to cross a few things off my list. The remote for the kitchen TV has been broken for a… Read More
2022-07-28 02:46
Another day just like all the other days. If we haven't already set a record for consecutive one hundred degree days, we will soon. We see lots of people in the park on our sunrise walks now… Read More
2022-07-27 02:52
It was a slow day. The big event of the day was giving Dawn a bath. She likes to roll around in the grass in the back yard and gets dirty incredibly quickly. It was a good time for a bath si… Read More
2022-07-26 03:29
I made my reservations for the Florida trip today. When I was finished, I turned on the radio and discovered that there was an active shooter inside the airport I will be flying out of. Jeez… Read More
2022-07-25 02:56
After failing again to find a hotel anywhere near Kennedy Space Center, I thought I'd try Airbnb. I've never used Airbnb before and had no idea what to expect. So far it's been a pleasant su… Read More
2022-07-24 03:10
It was a busy day. The good news was that I got the recall work done on my car without a lot of problems. They were ready for me when I arrived and the car was finished as promised by the en… Read More
2022-07-23 04:36
Yay. NASA approved my application for press credentials and it looks like I will be attending the Artemis-1 launch later this summer. Forget everything I said yesterday. This launch definite… Read More
2022-07-22 02:33
I never imagined that summer would be a never ending string of hundred degree days. This is getting old. The temperature was a bit cooler this morning since it was overcast. The skies were d… Read More
2022-07-21 02:29
Today is the 53rd anniversary of the first moon landing. We need more events like this. It might have been the last time the entire world felt good about something. Nevermind the fact that t… Read More
2022-07-20 03:04
It's going to be a very long summer. Every day seems the same. The relentless heat takes away my desire to do anything. Our sunrise walk with Dawn feels like what you'd expect at noon in a n… Read More
2022-07-19 02:52
Still fighting the heat. It was already 85 degrees when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk and the sun wasn't even up yet. Later in the day the temperature climbed to 109 degrees. Yikes. Needl… Read More
2022-07-18 03:16
We are well on our way towards having the worst summer of all time. There are so many triple digit days ahead of us in the weather forecast that chances are good that we will set an all time… Read More
2022-07-17 02:49
I wonder how long this heat wave is going to last? We've got to be setting some new records here. We probably should start taking our sunrise walk a little earlier. It's already pretty warm… Read More
2022-07-16 03:10
Well, my wallet is a little lighter, but I have my car back. I still can't believe how expensive catalytic converters have become. It's ridiculous. Your car will run just fine without one, b… Read More
2022-07-15 02:20
There was rain in the forecast today. I was hoping we'd get some, but we didn't get a drop. The sky darkened and I heard thunder, but the storm passed a little to the east of us. Usually, I'… Read More
2022-07-14 03:03
This heat is wearing me down. The entire day just seems like a futile effort to escape from it. The temperature on our sunrise walk with Dawn is already higher than the high of the day just… Read More
2022-07-13 02:57
When it rains is pours. I was hoping that something very minor was wrong with my car, but I didn't get luckly. I took the car to the shop first thing this morning and got the bad news a few… Read More
2022-07-12 02:24
No luck getting the car into the shop today. I guess those days are gone forever. I do have an appointment for tomorow though. I've abandoned the dealership for an independent Land Rover gar… Read More
2022-07-11 02:38
This has got to be one of the hottest summers on record. I remember one summer like this, but I was a lot younger then. If this continues, I may just start saying that this summer is the wor… Read More
2022-07-10 03:38
Not a great day. The app that lets me bypass the checkout line at the grocery store didn't work this morning and there were no berries. All they had were grapes. These were minor annoyances… Read More
2022-07-09 03:08
Another hot day. It's really hard for me to get motivated in this weather. I kind of envy Dawn's ability to sleep for most of the day. There's a whole list of things I need to do, but I keep… Read More
2022-07-08 02:55
Today was just like yesterday. Tomorrow will probably be the same. I'm not happy with this heat wave, but what are you going to do. It's summer in Texas. I think it's been this hot before, b… Read More
2022-07-07 02:42
Another really hot day. Our air conditioner is running constantly and is having trouble keeping up with the heat. The temperature is already in the mid 80's when we take Dawn on her sunrise… Read More
2022-07-06 02:45
I know this is not the hottest summer on record. It's seems that way though. How did I survive all those other hot summers? As the temperature rises, my desire to do anything diminishes. A t… Read More
2022-07-05 03:09
Our summer heat wave continues. It got up to 102 degrees today and there wasn't a cloud in sight. It was already in the mid-80's when we took Dawn on her first walk in over a week. The tempe… Read More
2022-07-04 02:29
Life has returned to normal. At least I hope it has. Janet returned this evening and Dawn was overjoyed. I think she got back just in the nick of time because Dawn was starting to become fea… Read More
2022-07-03 02:40
When I went out to water the lawn early this morning I could already tell that it was going to be too hot for a walk in the park. Dawn and I have our morning routine down pretty well now. Wh… Read More
2022-07-02 03:07
Another uneventful day. I think it's impossible for me to get eight hours of sleep. When I go to bed earlier, I wake up earlier. Somewhere between six and seven hours is all my body seems to… Read More
2022-07-01 01:35
It's hard to believe that it's already the last day of June. Where has this year gone? It feels more of a survival year than a year filled with milestones, but maybe surviving in these times… Read More
2022-06-30 03:08
No early start today. Dawn and I slept in again. I was glad to be back on a regular schedule, but my long walk was warmer this morning. My daily routine is more complicated now, but I try to… Read More
2022-06-29 03:39
I woke up early this morning, so I got up and ate my breakfast before getting Dawn out of bed. I think I woke up so early because I went to bed early. I've been getting a lot of sleep lately… Read More
2022-06-28 02:36
We didn't make much progress today. Dawn didn't want to come out to the kitchen to eat and I had to take her meals back to the bedroom. She did eat though and took all her meds. At one point… Read More
2022-06-27 01:07
Dawn seems a little calmer today. She still doesn't want to leave the safety of the bedroom, but she will come out to the kitchen to eat her meals, and walk down to the meadow behind our hou… Read More
2022-06-26 02:14
Dawn and I made it through the first day OK. She was reluctant to eat her breakfast this morning, but finally decided she was hungry when I added a little gravy to her bowl. She did much bet… Read More
2022-06-25 01:12
Our first vacation day has gone pretty well. Dawn is never a happy camper when Janet isn't around, but she did all the important things today. She ate her dinner, took her meds, and went dow… Read More
2022-06-24 02:41
The time before 10 AM is very valuable in the summer. It's just about the only time you can get anything done outside. The best time of the day is our sunrise walk with Dawn, but there's usu… Read More
2022-06-23 02:21
Home Depot is still trying to deliver me a second dishwasher. This is getting ridiculous. I got another call this morning from someone asking when I'd be home to receive the delivery. It's h… Read More
2022-06-22 03:32
Today was another day when the temperature determined everything. I just don't handle the heat very well any more. The day started as usual with our sunrise walk with Dawn. The air felt warm… Read More
2022-06-21 02:59
I had trouble getting up this morning. I guess I stayed up too late finishing my blog post after the birthday celebrations. When we took our sunrise walk with Dawn I could tell that this was… Read More
2022-06-20 03:43
Another trip around the sun. I'm 74 now. I'm definitely feeling a little worse for wear. I'm still hanging in there though. I walked my full six mile route this morning. We'll see if I… Read More
2022-06-19 02:50
Dawn and I have some work to do. Our trial run at being alone together left a lot to be desired. Dawn was mad when Janet left early this morning and didn't want to get out of bed. When I tri… Read More
2022-06-18 02:50
On days like this I kind of wish that I wrote one post a week instead of one a day. On a hot summer day like today it's hard to even pretend that anything happened. I was still asleep when J… Read More
2022-06-17 03:46
The dog days of summer are definitely here. It's hot. I feel lethargic. And there is a dearth of good news. When I turn on the TV during breakfast looking for something encouraging it's slim… Read More
2022-06-16 03:00
Today was busier than usual for me. I actually got a few things done. After our sunrise walk with Dawn and my usual bowl of shredded wheat for breakfast, I decided to mow the grass instead o… Read More
2022-06-15 02:41
It was a very slow day. I mostly thought about things I needed to do, but didn't get around to doing many of them. The daily routine is pretty familiar by now. We get up and take Dawn on her… Read More
2022-06-14 02:59
Yay. We have a new dishwasher. I don't know how to use it yet, but I'll worry about that later. I'm glad I had a good plumber install this thing. Nothing is as easy as it seems and there wer… Read More
2022-06-13 02:45
Our heat wave continues. It's hard to get very interested in doing anything when it's so hot outside. It never realy cooled down last night and was still warm when we took Dawn on her sunris… Read More
2022-06-12 02:34
Nothing is easy these days. The appliance installers arrived this morning, carried a huge box containing the new dishwasher inside the house and then told me that they couldn't install it. W… Read More
2022-06-11 03:06
I always erase the cookies on my computer before I turn it off at night, so I think that Facebook is just grasping at straws when it is trying to get me to click on things. One day my feed w… Read More
2022-06-10 02:38
I had a memory lapse today and thought I had ordered the wrong dishwasher. For some reason I was convinced that I had ordered a unit with top mounted controls. This was going to be a problem… Read More
2022-06-09 03:32
I don't know what it is about beeping noises. When I removed the old battery fron the uninterrupted power supply in the bedroom this morning so I could take it to the battery store, the unit… Read More
2022-06-08 02:53
We went back and visited the rescue Dalmatians today. Rocket was at the vet beginning his heartworm treatment, but Charlie, Oliver, Willie, and JoJo were all glad to see us. Each of these bo… Read More
2022-06-07 02:47
Well, we've got a new dishwasher. They won't be able to deliver and install it until Saturday, but that's OK. The old dishwasher still works and I just need to remember to mop up the small a… Read More
2022-06-06 02:58
Lots of walking today. It was another 20,000 step day. We took our sunrise walk with Dawn, ate breakfast, and then I immediately took my long walk in the park before the temperature got too… Read More
2022-06-05 03:51
I paid five dollars a gallon for gas for the first time I can remember. Sadly, I don't think it will be the last time either. Things are getting bad. I remember four dollar gas during the Ji… Read More
2022-06-04 02:08
Do people still work on Friday? The park was so full of people when we took Dawn on her sunrise walk that I thought it was Saturday for a moment. Maybe everyone was just trying to get their… Read More
2022-06-03 03:09
We had another big thunderstorm last night. The thunder was so loud that it scared Dawn, who typically ignores these things. I woke up when Dawn kept hopping off the bed to go to her "safe"… Read More
2022-06-02 02:59
Today was busy. Well, it was busy for me anyway. After breakfast and a sunrise walk with Dawn I mowed the grass in the front yard. I did this early before it warmed up too much. Last month I… Read More
2022-06-01 03:04
I didn't feel like fighting the heat today so I went to the gym. I might have to do this more often. Everything seems to be back to pre-Covid days. The water cooler is operational again. Mos… Read More
2022-05-31 03:25
My Mom's Dad was career military. Both her brothers were fighter pilots. My Dad served in the Navy during World War II, although I'm still not entirely sure what he did. I never served. I ha… Read More
2022-05-30 02:22
It was a nice day. It was a little warm this afternoon, but there was a pleasant breeze all day. Dawn was in the mood to walk today which is always a plus. There was no hesitation like there… Read More
2022-05-29 02:42
It was hot this afternoon, so I finally went back to the gym. I hadn't been there in such a long time that there were new owners and I had to enroll all over again. I still had a membership… Read More
2022-05-28 02:44
Another cool morning that turned hot in the afternoon. Dawn wasn't eager to take her sunrise walk. I don't know why because it was really nice outside. We bribed her with a couple of dog bis… Read More
2022-05-27 02:43
Today's big event was giving Dawn a bath. I didn't think Dawn was too dirty and probably neither did Dawn, but she likes to roll in the dirt and Janet likes a clean dog. We always take Dawn… Read More
2022-05-26 02:58
I'm amazed that the roof didn't leak. We really got a lot of rain last night. I'm glad that Dawn isn't bothered by storms. All our other dogs would havae been in a panic. I was close to bein… Read More
2022-05-25 02:24
It's a little late, but the rain has finally arrived. I spent most of the day trying to avoid getting wet but I guess you can't avoid it forever. I did manage to get my long walk finished be… Read More
2022-05-24 02:46
We're getting to know the remaining rescue Dalmatians pretty well. Each of these dogs has their own distinctive personality. Charlie can go from calm to chaos in a fraction of a second. He's… Read More
2022-05-23 04:06
What a difference a day makes. Finally, a proper Spring day. The temperature was in the sixties for most of the day and there was a nice breeze. Dawn was pleased with the situation and so wa… Read More
2022-05-22 03:49
When I started seeing reports of people spending over $100 to fill their tanks, I didn't believe them. "How is that even possible," I thought. Much to my chagrin, I discovered that it would… Read More
2022-05-21 02:23
I didn't accomplish much today. I think I'm just avoiding things. I got a recall notice on my car and didn't bother to open it. I'm pretty sure it's the same recall notice I got six months a… Read More
2022-05-20 03:02
I had my semi-annual physical today. It seemed exactly the same as every other physical exam I've ever had. What medications are you taking? Same as always. Do you have any questions or conc… Read More
2022-05-19 03:05
Yay. The star tracker is working again. I'm not sure what the Benro people did, but apparently their third try was the charm. The first two patches they sent me to fix the connectcion proble… Read More
2022-05-18 03:26
I had to pick up a prescription this morning and I asked the pharmacist if there would be any difference in price if I used GoodRx instead of my Part-D prescription drug plan. I was surprise… Read More
2022-05-17 03:01
I thought we were going to get a bad storm last night, but it passed slightly to the East of us. We experienced a few minutes of strong straight line winds, but got very little rain. Needles… Read More
2022-05-16 02:51
The weather was still hot, but it didn't affect our plans. We still had a nice early walk with Dawn and were able to take our Sunday outing a little later in the day after the ice cream stor… Read More
2022-05-15 03:09
It's nice to have a livable house again. It's hot outside, but the air conditioner is working fine and keeping it nice and cool inside. Hopefully, nothing else will go wrong this summer. I'm… Read More
2022-05-14 02:56
After another long, hot day we finally have a working air conditioner again. The house was so hot that I think it's going to take all night for it to cool down. We've making progress though;… Read More
2022-05-13 02:05
Not a great day. I waited most of the day for the air conditioner repairman to arrive. I was hoping that the problem was minor and that all I would need was a new capacitor or something equa… Read More
2022-05-12 02:10
Good grief. It's the hottest day of the year so far and our air conditioner broke. It got uncomfortably hot inside very quickly. Hopefully things will cool off tonight. I called our HVAC guy… Read More
2022-05-11 02:46
Not a lot on the agenda today. We got up early because of the unseasonably warm weather. It's still nice outside before the sun comes up. Dawn has decided that she likes walking again. She's… Read More
2022-05-10 02:57
It's starting to feel a lot like Summer. When you feel a little warm on the pre-dawn sunrise walk, you know it's going to be a hot day. It looks like the temperature is going to be in the 90… Read More
2022-05-09 02:34
Well, Dawn is certainly a mother. I bet she was a good mom. Lord know how many litters of puppies she had when she was a breeding dog at the puppy mill. I don't think those were pleasant day… Read More
2022-05-08 03:16
The stores were really crowded today. Maybe it was because Mother's Day is tomorrow. Maybe it was because stores are always crowded these days. Who knows? I keep saying that I should do my g… Read More
2022-05-07 02:48
The star tracker is driving me crazy. It kind of worked out at the observatory, but there were a few serious problems. I had high hopes that the latest upgrades would resolve these issues an… Read More
2022-05-06 02:43
Evidently Dawn thought that the weather was back to normal because she was eager to walk this morning. I was a little reluctant because my feet hurt but we all had a nice walk. My feet remai… Read More
2022-05-05 02:34
I made sure I got up in time to walk with Janet and Dawn this morning. It was extremely foggy and a little wet. Naturally, Dawn wasn't in a mood to walk. She hates getting wet, but it really… Read More
2022-05-04 03:07
It was surprisingly cold this morning. The temperature stayed in the 50's all day. I hope this is a sign of things to come. I'd like to see a mild Summer for a change. I overslept this morni… Read More
2022-05-03 03:04
There are only four Dalmatians at the kennel now. Dorothy found her forever home this week. Sammy has not been staying at the kennel since she's been busy raising eleven puppies. The puppies… Read More
2022-05-02 04:20
I woke up early this morning and against my better judgement I got dressed and went outside one last time for a look at the pre-dawn sky. Who knows when I'll have a chance to see the milky w… Read More
2022-05-01 05:04
I could get used to this. I woke up early, so I went outside to watch the Milky Way core rise in the east again. There was also a conjunction of Jupiter and Venus this morning. The two plane… Read More
2022-04-30 06:21
I stayed up late last night giving the Polaris star tracker it's first real test. I had a few unforeseen problems, but the thing actually worked. It tracks stars very well for long exposure… Read More
2022-04-29 05:28
I got up early this morning and watched the milky way core rise in the East before dawn. The morning sky is actually more interesting than the evening sky at this time of year. It's pretty d… Read More
2022-04-28 02:21
It's good to be back on Mount Locke. It was a long, tiring drive out to the observatory, but there wasn't much road construction and I didn't encounter any accidents. I've made this trip so… Read More
2022-04-27 03:09
I'm making progress. I picked up my rental car and I'm almost finished packing. I don't know why it takes me so long to get ready, but it does. There always seem to be surprises. I decided t… Read More
2022-04-26 01:59
For the second day in a row we visited some Dalmatians. The dogs at the kennel were in fine form today. This week Candy and Willie joined Julip in finding their forever homes. Dorothy has a… Read More
2022-04-25 02:29
We went and saw Sammy's puppies today. I'd almost forgotten how cute Dalmatian puppies are. Sammy had a large litter. There were eleven puppies and they were all adorable. The puppies were e… Read More
2022-04-24 02:40
I had to pick up some prescriptions while I was grocery shopping this morning and out of curiosity I asked the pharmacist if I would save any money if I used GoodRx instead of my prescriptio… Read More
2022-04-23 02:32
Another very windy, unseasonably warm, and largely uneventful day. After our early walk with Dawn and my ritual breakfast of shredded wheat and berries, I puttered around the house, doing a… Read More
2022-04-22 02:43
I paid my travel bills today. What a discouraging experience. When I enter transactions in Quickbooks, it always brings up the previous transaction I had with that company. This comes in han… Read More
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