What's everybody doing today?

[Pearl]

Have a day off today!! Catching up on stuff around the house since its cold outside. Will take Bear shopping this morning to the farm and ranch store, he needs to get out!

 

[Weedygarden]

Some of the best real estate in San Diego County is owned by the feds and used for military installations: parts of Point Loma, the Silver Strand, and other locations with excellent views

Isn't there a light house there, Point Loma, that is open for tours? I went there many decades ago.

 

[Heartbroken]

I had that happen with the school library in 3rd grade. The librarian was demanding I either give her $ (which I didn't have) or I was going to get hit with a paddle. I told her I turned it in before its due date and it was in there. This was a week after I turned it in. I walked over to a rolling cart of returned books and found the book in question. She saw me pick it up and I put it under her nose and told her she owed me an apology. She called me a "brat" and to get out of the library and that I was banned from checking out books from then on. Didn't want to admit she'd made a mistake and I was too stubborn to back down.

That there was just criminal. That attitude and behavior would have a catastrophic life time impact on a child's love of reading, ability to read, and even school achievement. A child should never, ever, for any reason, be denied the chance to read books.

I had something slightly similar happen in 8th grade. I always had my nose in a book, started reading when I was three and never looked back. The librarian in our school was a pompous jerk and always thought I was just pretending to read all the books I checked out. We could use the library during lunch break so I was always in there. He took to sitting in his office and ignoring me standing at the desk waiting to check out so I'd have to go back to class without my books; or he'd finally come out to do it so late that I'd get a tardy going back to class. One day I got so frustrated I simply took the books and left. He then followed me into the classroom and proceeded to lecture me in front of everyone about "stealing" books. I do not miss going to school.

Stayed up really late visiting with Daughter, slow start today. She has a night job so I'll try to adjust to her schedule some while she's here. Need to bring in some more firewood and scrub the kitchen floor, but that's all I'm planning for today.

 

[Morgan101]

I met a friend yesterday, although "friend" just doesn't sound right. He is my closest fiend in the world. His birthday came up when we were out of town, so it was a catch-up Happy Birthday lunch and visit. We worked very closely together for 15 years, and were even co-holders of a patent, for something we developed at work. Outside of work, he was my teacher, and mentor for all things guns. He has forgotten more about guns than I will ever know. Any time I have a gun question, he is my first, and usually, only call. The last few times we have gotten together I have lugged a couple of guns to his house to clean. Yesterday was no exception. I think I am caught up on my gun cleaning. I have one more that will be a much bigger project.

It is cold, so I am just going to put a rear end in a recliner. I will putter around here and clean up a few things. I have already done the dishes. Hope everybody has a great day.

 

[BBLife]

Today I'll be PRAYING all day for dry days for the next 9. I have a ton of work lines up and taking next week off of my day job to try to get some big projects done for the Homestead.

 

[jishinsjourney]

PT today, and cooking, and some more work on the second build of the game. I’m really looking forward to being done with it — I need it off my plate, I have other stuff I have to do.

 

[Hooch]

Woke a little while ago and couldn't get back to sleep, so I decided to have a cold beer and surf the web for a bit, then try to rack out again, lol. Sometimes I'll go with a cup of hot chocolate, but this is not only Friday, it's also St. Patrick's Day, aye? Peanut, I agree with you, the motion of such older sailing ships in a seaway can be violent, especially if the ship is empty of cargo... that's why ballast stones were used back in the day. A loaded ship handles much differently from an unloaded ship, as all of you sailors & nautical types know... riding high & empty, the San Salvador would definitely bob like a cork, while the pitching, rolling & yawing would be difficult to bear for those susceptible to motion sickness. Some folks get hit really hard by that malady, thank goodness I've never been plagued by it... but when I worked as a deckhand aboard various craft, I saw a few folks laid out by seasickness, it was a real problem for them.

Going back to ballast stones, one can find many on Ballast Point, a smaller point situated in the lee of Point Loma near the harbor entrance in San Diego. In days of yore, sailing ships would pick up or drop off ballast stones as necessary... I think that's how the point earned its name, now shared by an excellent brewery in San Diego, lol. Funny to think that there are stones from all over the world to be found on Ballast Point, which is now Navy property... IIRC, there's a nice club for naval officers on that point, with a killer view looking down the channel and offshore. Some of the best real estate in San Diego County is owned by the feds and used for military installations: parts of Point Loma, the Silver Strand, and other locations with excellent views. There are even old naval gun emplacements on Otay Mountain down by the Mexican border, built back when the Japanese scare was in effect up and down the coast.

Long ago when I was doing search n rescue, we had a small craft advisory and a emergency call from a small family type fishing boat with 6 inboard. They were getting tossed about pretty bad and were a few miles offshore n south of the harbor. The wind had picked up that afternoon and they either wernt paying attention or didnt check the advisories before heading out. Probably a combination since the boat owners were entertaining inlaws over the weekend from inland.
Anyways, the coast guard cutter that is normally around wasnt , the nearest one was over 2 hours away.
The sheriff rescue boat was all that was available. The marine deputy operator was former military with alot of skills in a boat. He was training a partner who was not very skilled, but learning and already had a few incidences with sea sickness. They needed one more person to deal with any survivors if we made it out and I was the only SAR member who showed up at the dock that didnt get sea sick.
We get gear on, I was to sit in the middle n just behind the deputies seats. Before we left the safety of the harbor, we just kinda jogged right between the last boys. The operator was checking out the conditions and debating if we should. He voiced his doubts. We were in a powerful boat designed for some serious water but we still had limitations. Conditions were not good n getting worse. The swells were huge, walls of water on both sides in the trough n beyond that out further looked like a white spray capped wash..it was ugly.
He had warned us that we wouldn't get far before having to likely turning around. The conditions were just hovering below the threshold of what our boat could handle. But because we had a small margin of opportunity, we had to try.
We roll out beyond the bouys, get up on a plane just right n still I was catching air. I had a big smile on my face as I'm hanging on but im thinking..this is so exciting and scarry but there no way. It was just getting worse , the deputy was riding n surfing the boat with crazy skill but we were getting worked.
The new deputy pucked..on me..since I was in the middle. He felt so bad , luckily for me it was mostly coffee puke. Even getting puked on i still dont get sick.
We had to turn around. We had miles to go still, dispite the operator skill we were still a small boat in terrible seas and now down one.
The coast coard helo spotted some debris but no people. It was a ****** situation.
We go out again later around just before sunset when the seas calmed down n the next morning n afternoon We recovered 3 bodies I believe. , I had to work the morning so I was only there for one of them. When they had called for help , no life jackets on board. If they had life jackets tho..I doubt it would have helped much. The Pacific north coast is cold water n it wasnt until the next afternoon that the debris had got closer to a remote beach.

 

[Hooch]

I have to get ready for work..short night tonight..hopefully. last night we kept having issues. First the same part that broke the other night broke again. But it was eerily enough to get it repaired..then about a hour after we get going, were already almost 2 hours late going into our shift , a saw breaks in the new machine getting a big chunk of partically sawed log stuck in the saws. That took over a hour to get out..then it was going ok..lots of sorter wrecks n wrecks after the trimsaw..but kinda going n then my rolls go crazy n slam a unit completely off my roll case outside..
I'm hoping tonight is more fruitful n smooth..

 

[Wingnut]

Isn't there a light house there, Point Loma, that is open for tours? I went there many decades ago.

That's the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, now an integral part of Cabrillo National Monument. The USCG maintains & operates a newer light at a lower elevation, down by the tip of the Point. Heavy fog would sometimes obscure the old light, hence the relocation. Nowadays the Old Point Loma Lighthouse serves as a small museum, so visitors to Cabrillo National Monument can get a glimpse of what it was like to be an old school lighthouse keeper. I'd always recommend a visit to the Point for tourists, the views alone are worth the relatively short drive... elevation up by the Old Point Loma Lighthouse is roughly 425', so the views are magnificent.

Long ago when I was doing search n rescue, we had a small craft advisory and a emergency call from a small family type fishing boat with 6 inboard. They were getting tossed about pretty bad and were a few miles offshore n south of the harbor. The wind had picked up that afternoon and they either wernt paying attention or didnt check the advisories before heading out. Probably a combination since the boat owners were entertaining inlaws over the weekend from inland.
Anyways, the coast guard cutter that is normally around wasnt , the nearest one was over 2 hours away.
The sheriff rescue boat was all that was available. The marine deputy operator was former military with alot of skills in a boat. He was training a partner who was not very skilled, but learning and already had a few incidences with sea sickness. They needed one more person to deal with any survivors if we made it out and I was the only SAR member who showed up at the dock that didnt get sea sick.
We get gear on, I was to sit in the middle n just behind the deputies seats. Before we left the safety of the harbor, we just kinda jogged right between the last boys. The operator was checking out the conditions and debating if we should. He voiced his doubts. We were in a powerful boat designed for some serious water but we still had limitations. Conditions were not good n getting worse. The swells were huge, walls of water on both sides in the trough n beyond that out further looked like a white spray capped wash..it was ugly.
He had warned us that we wouldn't get far before having to likely turning around. The conditions were just hovering below the threshold of what our boat could handle. But because we had a small margin of opportunity, we had to try.
We roll out beyond the bouys, get up on a plane just right n still I was catching air. I had a big smile on my face as I'm hanging on but im thinking..this is so exciting and scarry but there no way. It was just getting worse , the deputy was riding n surfing the boat with crazy skill but we were getting worked.
The new deputy pucked..on me..since I was in the middle. He felt so bad , luckily for me it was mostly coffee puke. Even getting puked on i still dont get sick.
We had to turn around. We had miles to go still, dispite the operator skill we were still a small boat in terrible seas and now down one.
The coast coard helo spotted some debris but no people. It was a rotten situation.
We go out again later around just before sunset when the seas calmed down n the next morning n afternoon We recovered 3 bodies I believe. , I had to work the morning so I was only there for one of them. When they had called for help , no life jackets on board. If they had life jackets tho..I doubt it would have helped much. The Pacific north coast is cold water n it wasnt until the next afternoon that the debris had got closer to a remote beach.

The ocean can be a harsh mistress or taskmaster, and it pays to be well-equipped for every voyage. Most (if not all) states require life vests or PFDs aboard boats, whether they're on the coast or on inland waterways... to NOT have them aboard is just plain stupid. I always preferred the sleeker vests used by water skiers & pro sailors, those are good for small craft sailing at a high performance level. Funny thing, the newer AC (America's Cup) cats are SO fast, and knockdowns or 'death rolls' can occur SO quickly that the skipper & crew all wear lightweight HELMETS as well as vests, the helmets similar to bicycling or skateboarding helmets, lol... it's like an extreme sport now with the boat speeds those catamarans develop. Just watching those big foiling cats "bend on the knots" is insane... they accelerate like Indy cars, lol.

Here at the ol' hacienda, I started my Irish Stew over an hour ago, and it's simmering away on the gas range... house smells good, though the aroma will become stronger once I add the cabbage, lol. No worries, I can always air out the house, I usually do that once a day anyway, even in colder weather, as I like to recycle or refresh the air in my home. If I open the windows now, every Irishman in Alamo will be lining up at the door, lol...

 

[Pearl]

I met a friend yesterday, although "friend" just doesn't sound right. He is my closest fiend in the world. His birthday came up when we were out of town, so it was a catch-up Happy Birthday lunch and visit. We worked very closely together for 15 years, and were even co-holders of a patent, for something we developed at work. Outside of work, he was my teacher, and mentor for all things guns. He has forgotten more about guns than I will ever know. Any time I have a gun question, he is my first, and usually, only call. The last few times we have gotten together I have lugged a couple of guns to his house to clean. Yesterday was no exception. I think I am caught up on my gun cleaning. I have one more that will be a much bigger project.

It is cold, so I am just going to put a rear end in a recliner. I will putter around here and clean up a few things. I have already done the dishes. Hope everybody has a great day.

Keeping an eye on you!

 

[dademoss]

and it's simmering away on the gas range.

ACKKK, KILLER . LMK when it's done, I'll stop by

 

[LadyLocust]

Milked the blarney cow last night- that’s code around here for I made a batch of homemade Irish Cream . Sent a bottle to work for each of the guys.
Made a loaf of bread earlier then planted spuds. It’s gorgeous out. I’m in a T shirt.
There’s an estate sale going on Hubby and I might go to after work.

 

[sonya123]

We have 3 goat kids, 2 boys, 1 girl. The big fat goat finally had them, no problems despite her being so old. Weather was ok too but she is in a stall in the barn with the babies now. Will post photos later

 

[Spikedriver]

A few pics from the Des Moines Botanical.Center's "Dome after Dark" event.

My daughter at the waterfall...

The koi pond...

Trippy trees...

The bar was open for @Pearl and @Wingnut

The Des Moines skyline at sunset...

 

[Pearl]

A few pics from the Des Moines Botanical.Center's "Dome after Dark" event.

View attachment 105645
My daughter at the waterfall...
View attachment 105646
The koi pond...
View attachment 105647
Trippy trees...
View attachment 105648
The bar was open for @Pearl and @Wingnut
View attachment 105649
The Des Moines skyline at sunset...

How cool, thanks for posting the pics! I think it's awesome you and your daughter do such quality things together!!

 

[LadyLocust]

Went to the estate sale. Advertised as entire household, antiques, furniture, etc. Arrived to almost nothing and mostly modern “weird” decor. There was however a good library. We ended up with 19 books! But that’s all.

 

[dademoss]

Went to the estate sale. Advertised as entire household, antiques, furniture, etc. Arrived to almost nothing and mostly modern “weird” decor. There was however a good library. We ended up with 19 books! But that’s all.

19 books is worth the trip

 

[Pearl]

Had a productive day off!! Two loads of laundry, took Bear shopping, got a bunch of hair off the donkey (wow he's shedding)! I'm making Bear a "run in shed" for his front yard. It's near my pool and he has his pool out there so he spends many an afternoon out there. The yard has great shade, but thought it needs a wind break. So I got the post holes dug and posts set! Got a bunch of little jobs off my list (trash out, vacuum, etc)! Working all weekend!!

 

[Spikedriver]

Went to the estate sale. Advertised as entire household, antiques, furniture, etc. Arrived to almost nothing and mostly modern “weird” decor. There was however a good library. We ended up with 19 books! But that’s all.

Hey, if they're good books, or useful books, they're always a welcome addition! My town's library often has donated books for sale. I've picked up several for .50 or $1 apiece.

 

[dademoss]

Yipeee, it's the WEEKEND!! Saturday, so count out next weeks pill/vitamin. After cartoons, we drive to the League for Animal Welfare to "interview" orange cats

 

[INresponse]

I had a decent night at work. We had a truck to unload and because the latest new hire moron didn't show for the second night in a row I was able to through freight in the Electrical department instead of packing down the overhead storage I was supposed to do. I am not proud to admit it but because management (not my boss) has been pathetic over and over again I did a great job of getting my work done while doing my best to not work hard at all. Pace yourself is the name of the game and I am getting better at working at the slower speed the others have set and get by with.

The GF stopped at a few stores in Nevada on her way home from work (flight attendant working out of the Las Vegas airport) and when we talked on the phone while I was driving to work she mentioned she bought a small variety of alcohol for her daughters small/casual wedding reception next Saturday but she missed a couple things I thought were important. I stopped at the Utah state run liquor store and bought a gallon of Carlos Rossi Paisano red wine and a cheap but good strong bottle of Sailor Jerry's rum. I was hoping for some Lambrusco or Sweet **** Red but Paisiano red was all they had so it will do. I bought them more for the humor effect but as a kid I loved a glass of Lambrusco or sweet red wine during the holiday season. Also, she bought the Fixin's for whatever pasta dish she plans to make for the small reception at the church after the wedding. Since the groom is Chinese I have the thought of talking with the owner of the good Chinese restaurant in town and seeing if he can make a few special dishes to add to the buffet table at the small reception. Who doesn't love a good Fried Rice and maybe a couple other American-Chinese dishes? I will talk with her, and the happy couple, about it tomorrow/today and see what other dishes we could add to the menu. I think even if she says NO I may still order up something and have it mysteriously appear at the reception.
We should have a couple days of good, sunny weather so I am hoping my portion of the driveway dries out. My heavy truck is still sinking into the wet ground.
Well, happy day to all ya'all, sweet dreams to me.

 

[Pearl]

Heading to work in a bit! My Saturday morning job is always a big one! Older couple I do a lot of extras for, never know what they might come up with next! Then I'll finish all the things I didn't do yesterday!! Should be a nap in there somewhere too!

 

[snappy1]

Good morning!
Will walk first.
Bake cookies from my stash of homemade frozen cookie dough. Cookies are for a friend's 71st Birthday party this afternoon! Should be fun.
May work on purging and re-arranging laundry room cabinets and shelves.

 

[FarmOR]

Got my annual sheep maintenance completed yesterday. I'm happy to report that the power pruners worked better than expected for hoof trimming. There was a short learning curve, but once I used it, slowly at first, for a couple of sheep I started picking up its abilities and it made easy work for the rest.

After years of saying he would at least a thousand times, my dad finally really did sell of his cattle herd. The prices at auction were excellent. Bears warning to the rest of us: beef will be in short supply. Means prices are likely to rise. Cattle inventory nationwide has not been this low since 1986. That's alarming news because it will increase demand and prices for chicken, pork, lamb, turkey, ostrich, eggs, protein in general? I don't know about crickets.

Back to working on what I have immediate control over. I'm operating on extreme cost cutting mode. With these economic conditions, I expect demand for hay to plummet along with prices. That doesn't bode well for my immediate future prospects. But like I joked with a neighbor yesterday, "we live in a county literally named after hard times. A national depression will feel like old hat to us?"

 

[Wingnut]

Rainy day, so the cats & I are holding the fort... no Mescalero Apache raids expected, they're all at the casino, lol. Uh-oh, that probably makes me a "racist" for saying that, BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Meh, I'm a conservative white male, I'll be labeled a "racist" no matter WHAT I do, aye? Cue the Beatles tune: 'LET IT BE'

Household chores only today, thanks to the rain... but we really needed a good soaker like this, so I'm happy. I have a large pot of Irish Stew left in the fridge, so I'll put another dent in that later... it is DELICIOUS! With rain forecast into tomorrow, this is perfect weather for stew! I'll have a slice or two of fresh bakery loaf bread with real butter too...
Otherwise, it's quality time with my five furry little friends... they make rainy days fun, the blasted varmints!!!

 

[txcatlady]

How to know you are tired ? Fall asleep and wake up at dusk to close chickens in for night.
Surprise! Founds cows are in my yard because I forgot to close gate after feeding. Hook cuber up and led out of yard to give 2nd cube feeding for afternoon.

 

[Amish Heart]

Ha, yep let the cubes flow. Our neighbor tells us where his cubes are at in his barn in case his get out. He just put a bunch of cows out in our back pasture.

 

[INresponse]

Slept decent today, but the alarm at 3pm was rather rude. Met with 3 of the neighbors to invite them to the kids wedding next Saturday. Did I mention that ordeal? I forget. GF's oldest daughter's boyfriend lost his tech job when the company he worked for eliminated the entire department and because he is Chinese working here on a Visa (he already attended 6 years of college at Florida) and had this job in Commiefornia for a few years and he is conservative politically and says no way would he move back to China, he had 60 days to find another job with a company that would "sponsor" him or get married and start the legal/lawyer process to get a new visa and become a citizen. They were planning a wedding in about a year anyways so this is not a citizenship scam but life threw a curveball and things got shifted into high gear real quick. A full blown real wedding including a traditional Chinese tea ceremony and other fun stuff will take place next year but here and now is coming up very fast. Soooo, we are a week into this chaos and one week away from the wedding. The Lutheran Pastor at their church, the daughter even works there, is completely on board and their church friends/family are completely supportive.
Fortunately my GF is a great cook and already prepping the home made pasta, making cookies, planning the meatballs to go with the pasta for the reception dinner, and they already decided on the cake the GF will make. She makes delicious, awesome, beautiful cakes so that will be super yummy. If the girl and her fiance agree I will meet with the owner of the good Chinese restaurant in town and see if we can get a couple of big dishes made special to go along with the pasta and meatballs. I love her pasta but I love Chinese too and I think it would be a fun addition to the food for the reception. We shall see.
Two of the neighbors offered help as needed, I told my GF to ask them for help but the Italian in her is reluctant and she thinks she can do everything herself. The old guy across the street said he will be there but because it will be in the evening I suspect he may not want to drive down to town because he would be driving home at night so I will ask the other neighbor if they will offer him a ride to and from. He lost his wife a year ago and I am hoping he will go just to get him out and have a little fun.
I borrowed the Kubota tractor from the one neighbor to do some muddy driveway repairs and to clean up the horse coral. First thing I did was hose it off to clean off the mud, I will go to town tomorrow and get oil and a filter to give it an oil change and it needs some hydraulic fluid to top off the tank so everything functions better. The rear grader is sluggish due to low fluid level. I may even polish and wax it for him as a surprise. In a bit I will go out and make a list of what I need to buy for it but after that I will try to relax a bit tonight and try to get to bed early. If I drive the GF and girls down to church in the morning and hit the auto part stores for my stuff I need to be awake by 8am. Heck, most days I am not even headed to bed at 8am.
Aside from that, nothing exciting happening here.

 

[Heartbroken]

Quiet day at home. Planted another flat of tomatoes, did some laundry, took a nap. Daughter got up in time for us to head to evening church. Roads were icy but nothing that due care couldn't handle. Then we got hit with a complete whiteout. It was the scariest bit of driving I've had in some years; clear sunshine then suddenly zero visibility. Had no idea where the road was and was so scared of getting hit head on. But thankfully we made it through without mishap. Pic was taken on the way back home. I love this kind of weather, but not to drive in! Now we're snug home with a big fire going and watching Swamp People on tv.

 

[Bacpacker]

Spent the day grubbing some brush and trimming up some white pine limbs from some 30 year old trees that are planted close to some of my blueberries. I hadn't cleared it in a while and needed to be cleaned up. Got maybe 1/3 done. What a mess. Hauled a load of brush to the brushpile and have another load or 2 cut already. Have already found 3 small trees that had died and will need to be taken out. These trees are the left overs from the 500 I bought to plant 2 borders of my property with when we first bought it. I planned to use them to replant some I lost, so I planted these about 3 to 6 ' apart in 3 rows. They are way over crowded and many have died off, but the ones left are 30' tall and some over 12" diameter. But it shows what the over crowding did. The ones I spaced out are nearing 50' tall and some are over 24" diameter.
But once I'm done I'll be able to mow the whole area with the tractor and will get more light on my berries.