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WEEK 18 2020
Last Week- Sun- Mon- Tue- Wed- Thur- Fri- Sat- Next Week
Saturday - Hot.
The internet went out in the morning, while I was using it. This isn't unusual, so I didn't bother calling until the afternoon when I noticed it was still out. At which point they said "it must be your fault" and followed that with a "we can get the technician out on Tuesday". Jeez. That's 72 hours turnaround on a complete phone and internet outage. So, probably not a lot of up-to-date posting for a bit. Verizon has upped my data allowance, but I honestly haven't had a lot of luck using the iPhone 11 as a hotspot. The old iPhone 6 worked reasonably well.
Well, they (Frontier) declared bankruptcy last week, and are simultaneously being investigated for defrauding the government on broadband claims, so they've probably laid everyone they can off.
In the afternoon I had the chance to get the Hicks boys to come over and help put the fencing up. Even with four of us it took almost four hours. They also unloaded the concrete from the truck and put it in the garage, and Glen did some weed whacking, since my hands just weren't up to it (wearing wrist braces again) :-(
There is still more to do - chicken wire for keeping critters out, some wind block, actually planting the seedlings, but I was beat. As were they.
Friday - Hot, a bit windy. Glad to have the swamp cooler running.
Saw this the other day:
Thursday - Hot.
I tried to put up the fencing fabric, but gave up after a bit. It's really a two or three man job.
Did some cleanup in the garage though, it really needed it. Needs a lot more too.
Book #18 was The Cosmic Computer, by H. Beam Piper. Free, via Libby. I read this many many years ago - as a teenager I think - so it was like a new read. Despite the purple title it's more like Asimov's Foundation series, with the path of history being predicted by computers. There isn't a lot of character exposition, but it's still a fun read.
Wednesday -Warm.
Did yard work in the morning, out in front, so as to make sure the garbage man doesn't stir up the dirt by trying to make a 180 right in front of the house... The weeds are already 12-18" high in spots again, despite them being trimmed less than two weeks ago.
House work falls into three categories, mainly, I want to do #3, but #1 and #2 take up most of my time:
Tuesday - Hot.
Dug holes for the two gateposts, and cemented them in. I actually used two 90# bags of concrete I had in the RV shed - the rest is still in the back of the truck. One 90# bag burst while I was trying to carry it, you can imagine the cursing and swearing that ensued.
The one line post I just hammered in with a post driver I borrowed from AH a while ago. That was it for the morning, except for a minor amount of weed whacking.
I read a bit more in Neuberg's book, it's pretty dense stuff. I'll probably re-read this chapter, then start on the next, which is actual hands-on stuff. It's 5.0 and 5.1, so it should be reasonably current.
Monday - Nice weather.
Started laying out an area for the garden, in back of the house where there is, supposedly, less wind. About a 20' x 6' gated area. I have an old 5' gate, so I don't have to buy one of those. I had the Lowe's guys put 10 bags on 60# concrete into the truck yesterday, so I have plenty of concrete. I have a few in the RV structure, but you can never have too much!
In the evening I noticed that the crescent moon was surrounded by a ring of stars, very dramatic. Later my brother texted that he had (independently) noticed the same thing. It almost seemed fake, like something you'd see in a cartoon.
Sunday - Reasonably warm.
I went shopping in the morning for groceries, with a side trip to Lowe's next door.
I am trying to build a little critter-proof enclosure for the vegetables. I already have straw bales, and S has some seedlings for me, tomatoes and peppers.
In the afternoon I worked on the roof, on the swamp cooler. It turns out that I had the wrong size pads. Actually they say, in huge letters, 32x26, which is the correct size, and then in little tiny letters under that: (Actual size: 30x24). What the hell? Lots of cursing and swearing after that.
And then the wind came up, because, why not? And blew one of the plastic panels right out of the housing, off the roof, and broke off a corner. More swearing.
After that I was beat and called it a day. A very long day.
