Football Epilogue

Time has a way of moving both fast and slow. Any day can feel like an eternity or an eye blink depending on any number of factors. The future, for me, almost always feels so far off but then looking back the past seems like everything happened so quickly. Now here I am, pushing ever closer to whatever reckoning awaits. I'm not writing today to talk about what might come. I work to be in the mode of "Que sera, sera". That is whatever will be, will be. That's not to say don't plan and all that but also I'm in no rush and try to have little worry about what the future might bring. This is more challenging currently, however I leave that to another blog.  Similar with the past. There's no need to worry or dwell on what might have been or what could have been. Instead the past is strewn with learning opportunities and ways to live more fully. An array of facts that can be leveraged into growth.  So here I am in the present, feeling at a summit of sorts. The pri...

A favorite scene from "The Money Pit" . Sometimes feels fitting :) Calling weather in the mid-40°Fs (~7°C) comfortable seems absurd but that's the hand we've been dealt at the moment. At least it's warm enough to keep things thawing and to start out on some outdoor projects. I even had a tree cutting/trimming crew out this past week (I've got a recommendation if you need it) to take care of a few things including a branch that was significantly deflecting my power line, removal of an overgrown birch and trying to keep a couple of ash trees cleaned up and treated for ash borers as good as possible (although that may ultimately be a lost cause).  The tree work is one small part of the greater home ownership challenge I've been encountering. It seems it's near time to reset/refresh on most everything to do with the house. Starting with the trees, they seem to have been planted with the notion that they'd stay small-ish. Spruces and oaks were planted w...

I'm over 1/4th done with my time in work limbo and thought it would be a good time to check on and tweak the self-imposed "Honey-do" list from last time. Two days ago was more of an "action day" with plenty of time spent in the yard. Yesterday was more of an "out and about" day with a couple of appointments and a "farewell" happy hour to cap off the evening.  I think the biggest thing so far was getting my garden areas tilled and planted. First was my little flower display at the end of the driveway. Here I put the geraniums from my son's football fundraiser as well as a couple perennials. This year I added some lily to the middle and hope it comes out well and not too crowded. The next was the vegetable space up closer to the house. I planted a mix of seeds, home starts and store bought starts this year. It's definitely not much to look at yet, so I overlaid the planting map; partially for my own reference. I'd like to get more o...

 

Now if I could only cut the outlet holes consistently properly twice.

Dabbling with the Google Maps API I'm in a tinkering mood. I also have a couple of ideas that involve messing around with Google maps. Thus, I researched embedding a map on my page. It's pretty basic so far, there's a lot of hunting through references and tutorials for the right commands and I had to learn a little about Google Map's application programming interface (API), javascript and GeoJSON (a map data format for adding features to map data). So here it is, Bloomington, MN with an itty-bitty flag. Simple first steps to perhaps something bigger.

Image from http://clipartmag.com downloaded Aug. 18, 2019 Getting old is a pain. Or more literally, full of small, additive aches and pains. For me, it's most often nerve pain and tightness throughout the right side of my body, i.e. sciatica . Working out my lower body through squats and lunges, etc. seems to aggravate this more following the exercise; likely from inflamation from the muscle fatigue, micro tears, etc. However, I'm not a doctor so I hate to speculate. I also notice that the pounding at my heels from walking seems to contribute to soreness and stiffness during the day. The other area I've had issues with has been my right shoulder. I pinched a nerve/tendon in that shoulder over a year ago while replacing the clutch in my car. That took several months to heal, but seems to be recurring from some overly active work coaching football. Regardless, the ultimate problem becomes lack of flexibility. The pain combines with the fact that loss of flexibility h...

This post is a little overdue as the pumpkin carving was two weeks ago. However, sometimes I need to write something for my own reference. In this case I took a swag at baking pumpkin seeds and they came out rather good. They had just enough spice to notice and I was mildly impressed, so here goes the recipe. The obvious stuff: de-goop and rinse seeds post-pumpkin removal Brine: Put seeds in a bowl of water overnight with a tablespoon of salt and a heaping teaspoon of crushed red pepper. Stir and let sit overnight. Bake: Preheat oven to 275°F. Spray baking sheet with non-stick spray and spread seeds over the sheet with minimal water (use a slotted spoon) taking some of the red pepper with onto the sheet. Bake for about an hour until the seeds start to brown. Consume: allow to cool and eat, enjoy, etc. Simple I know, but I would forget if I didn't write it down. Oh, and in case you're curious, here are the pumpkin carving results for this year: My daughter...