Today’s Abstracts

July 15, 2026 – some days are like a blank slate. I love them that way. You fill it in as you go. The trip to Home Depot was planned. Michele likes to go with me. We park in the veteran’s spot. We came for one thing, new hinges for the gate. the hinges came two in a pack and matches what we took off. Cost was about $23 with my veteran’s 10 percent discount. We enjoy the drive to and from. On weekends we look for garage sales.

Listed two staple guns and not much else. Completed and published a youtube video. Worked on the gate by removing the last two planks. Set the two new planks in place. Next is the placement of the new hinges then to figure out how to hang the gate on the hinges by myself. The gate must not only be hung on the hinges it also needs to line up with the latch. The latch is a replacement I bought and put in several years ago. In order to close correctly, the gate and the latch has to line up just right. The latch comes in two parts. One part with a drop down piece is mounted on the gate. As the gate swings into the closed position, the latch on the door meets the latch that is stationary on the fence. A 4 inch bar sticks out from the fence. The bar will hit the latch on the gate. When the latch on the gate gets hit a moveable piece rises up and then down over the bar. This connection locks the gate into place. In order to open the door, the latch on the gate has a string. When the string is pulled the latch opens up releasing the bar.

Watered with the impact sprinkler. Just then I was thinking it will probably rain. Sure enough 50% chance of rain in the afternoon.

Listed a postcard today of the Watch Man and his “worlds largest watch store!”. He sold the watch business. His name is Ray Lindstrom and he wrote a book called, “Feerless: Confessions of a serial entreprenuer.” I enjoyed the book. He was a character. I remember the commercials for these art paintings being sold from city to city with prices slashed. they were supposed to be painted by real artists. Turned out they were mass produced in Korea. He got in on the 900 phone number business. The book ends with watches. If I remember, and I hope i’m wrong. But I believe the most interesting storyline in the book was his battle with alcohol. He drank it once, enjoyed it, then spent the next 40 years or so drinking to find the enjoyment of that first time. It never came. He went through some personal trials. My kind of man. My kind of story. I put the postcard at $9.99.

July 14, 2026 – This blog now has its own uRL. The word wordpress is no longer part of the uRL. It’s simply Abstracts Today. This is not a major upgrade, in fact I’m not sure what to do with it. I have some ideas. I do like the existing format and it’s very easy and simple to post a blog and walk away.

A stay at home day. re-arranged the garage and consolidated some totes. This allowed me to place SB’s stuff in one area while opening up room for my stuff and Ebay. CB’s stuff got move above the donation area. I placed luggage in the rafters.

Removed the metal hinges from the side gate. Of the many bolts holding the hinges in place, most of them broke off. These bolts have been holding up that gate through rain and shine, cold and heat, for over 40 years. They snapped off with little effort. The hinges need replacing which will require a trip to home depot.

All the small monkey puzzle tree plants in pots are outside by the shed. I trimmed a bush that gets in the way of the house number. I trimmed the weeping tree in front; just a few strands hanging too low. I listed nine postcards on ebay.

sat outside for about a half hour under the gazebo. The air is still and warm. After some time a mild breeze passes through the trees and it’s cool air is refreshing. Summer in Washington state is a beautiful thing. The temperature exceeded 80 today.

July 13, 2026 – A day of doing things I’ve been putting off for years. Namely, cancelling one newspaper to subscribe to another. And saving money at the same time. I then cancelled one music streaming service to get on Youtube Premium, paying a little more for this service but getting a month free. I then, finally, upgrade this blog to a paying website with it’s own url though still hosted by WordPress.com. What I can do with this upgrade I still don’t know. I like the website/blog as it is. I’d like to add sections. Keeping it simple will be the trick. The key to updating a blog is to make it simple. You can create a mosaic of sections and subsections but updating it becomes too time consuming and complicated. I’ve fallen into that trap. Write the piece and hit “save” or “publish” and that should be it.

placed all my monkey puzzle trees outside. I have about 20 growing, most of them indoors. The plant or tree will do fine in the warm outdoors. I’ll keep an eye on them. Watered. Filled the birdbath. Filled the backyard birdfeeder.

Removed the wood structure i built and put at the window downstairs. It’s made mostly of 1x2s and looked like a long skinny table. I put some boards across it and placed my pots on it and under it. There’s nothing their now.

Long walk along the sammimish river. did the full 4 miles up and back. The notable thing beside listening to a great book is watching the millions of flies above the river. Then the tree swallows would swoop in from the trees to go after them. They did this is such short bursts that I couldn’t get them on video. Maybe they gobbled up the flies so quickly that they would appear and disappear and in a few seconds they were gone. Enjoyed the show. It reminds me that many birds eat flying things. Also, crows attack smaller birds and smaller birds attack eagle. Battles are going on above our heads.

July 12, 2026 – Several home visits and one ok garage sale. At the garage sale I picked up a handle for the gate and three plumb line tools. Afterwards went home to get some work done before a 3:30 p.m. birthday party.

Cleaned up cat’s mess upstairs in the living room. Steam cleaned living room and common area. Vacuumed downstairs including entrance to garage area. Cleaned up kitty litter; didn’t replace it just cleaned it up. Took down upstairs trash and brought trash cans down to the street.

Listed a bunch of postcards starting with Alabama. Altogether there are 45 postcards. I must have done about 25 today alone. sold two in the last two days. One from the Law school at the university of alabama. The other from the stadium at the university of alabama.

July 11, 2026 – I’m committed to taking the wife around for healthcare visits on the weekends. today we were busy most of the day going from Seattle to shoreline and ending up in Issaquah. Lots of traffic in the afternoon, in part because I-5 was closed off near Seattle. Traffic was diverted to the Northbound I405 making a mess of the I405 and I90 interchange.

Got home to help MB put on a solid tire on his scooter. This replaces a tire and tube job that had a puncture. He’ll leave the house around 3:00 a.m. to go down the hill to Fred Myer on that scooter.

The beautiful day brought out the garage sales. We must have visited six garage sales. In one case where we visited a home for medical reasons, there were two garage sales within a block. Michele loves free sections. We went to one that the entire garage sale was free. There were a few things for sale but the vast majority of stuff laid out on the front yard were free. I left behind a hole digger and a vintage microscope. I should have taken the microscope and all the accessories but I stop when I feel I’m being greedy. We came home with some treasures and we usually find stuff that will sell on ebay form exponentially more than what we paid.

July 10, 2026 – After organizing a third of 2,500 post cards, arranged by state, I started to list them on ebay. Ebay has bulk listers. I tried these and spent too much time correction errors, double checking, and revisiting the same listing over and over. I cut my time in half using a listing template that has most of the fields already completed. I do one by one but it’s better than trying to do multiple listings at the same time with numerous double checking.

Broke out all my packets of seeds going back years. This year I plan to plant all of them. Just put them in the ground and see what comes up. Seeds can last two years in the package. It’s time these go in the ground and I’ll enjoy seeing them sprout and maybe grow to maturity. and maybe, I might get a beet, a pea, a pumpkin, a corn stalk, or a flower. I’ll try but it’s doubtful being that we don’t get much sun due to the trees.

Low key day and I didn’t go out except to remove pots to the shed. Didn’t work on the gate or fence. Nor did I do any work on the outside sink.

July 9, 2026 – These beautiful days draw me outside. I enjoy the heat and sun. But more than that I love the feel of entering the shade. Today I worked at the gate part of the fence and replaced as many slats as I could without taking out the hinges of the gate. Several of the slats require me to remove the hinges thus the gate will fall to the ground. Lifting it back into place after replacing the slats will be a challenge. I have no choice and I work alone.

watered key plants and called it quits for outside. A few days ago I applied Murphy’s Oil to a wood bench outside. I haven’t filled the bird feeders since they haven’t gone down much. The birds are chomping away but there is so much feed to eat it takes them a week before replenishing is needed.

MB and I worked on changing a tire on his scooter. We’ve done this before and it is hard work. We ended up popping the tube through the tire. Not fun. We ordered a sold tire that doesn’t need a tube.

July 8, 2026 – Four mile walk along the Sammamish. It’s been about a week and I hated every step for the first mile and a half. The podcast I was listening to helped out. The river was high and wide. Certain boats along the river have moved. I saw ducks and a great blue heron.

No yard work. Organizing postcards by state. I have 2,500 plus to organize. Accidentally sold a remote for the price of a postcard. I made the mistake of editing a postcard listing for a remote listing. The price was not changed. I sell postcards for $4.99. So the $12 remote sold for $4.99 plus shipping. I made about $2.96. Brought this to the post office.

July 7, 2026 – I’m working on a side fence that has severely deteriorated wood. To finish the job I need 25 more slats. I completed the last section on the hill and did a few slats on the gate. The hill work required cutting the wood to a certain length. I have myself a “C” on measuring and estimating length. I came up a bit short on the bottom end. In other words an animal can crawl underneath it. This will be covered by brush and dirt some day.

Transplanted some four hosta plants from the back to the front, then watered. I added a hydrangea plant taking it from a pot to the ground in the same area. The area is a steep hillside directly under a chestnut tree. I have several chestnut trees growing from the seeds laid down from the mother tree. why is this interesting? Because we live in Chestnut Hills.

July 6, 2026 – The shelving unit I painted got placed in SB’s old bedroom. I used this peach color and got a good response. ofcourse no one like it when I applied to a downstairs wall years ago. It was supposed to be a southwestern look. People didn’t get it then but they appreciate it on cheap furniture.

Watered by hand including the grass planted under the chestnut tree on the hillside. Summers here are dry and somewhat hot. No rain in the foreseeable future.

Itemized the stuff going to donation and made the trip to woodinville. Stopped by the post office and dropped off four packages. These were items sold over the weekend. The net on the four is incredibly low, $40. But, that’s $40 in the pocket.

Several Hydrangeas flowing. Hydrangeas can flower in the spring and late summer. And mid-summer apparently.

July 5, 2026 – Four home visits in Seattle and the last one in shoreline. Then a garage sale put on by a 93 year old man to fund his acreage on Whidbey island. Something having to do with children able to roam free. It wasn’t enough for me to pay his high prices. There was a supreme bird bath like the one I have here. We walked over to it and he said, “make me an offer.” I said, “how about free?” He said, “three?” He wanted $100 for it. We didn’t buy anything. The second was worse than the first. The second garage sale was in mountlake terrace and it was so picked over there was no one there to attend it. From the stickers we saw, there pricing was too high.

Sold an oversized childrens book, four barbie DVD lot, and a book about Terrariums i’ve had for decades. All these boxed and ready to shop tomorrow.

Painted the back side of the bookcase. The bookcase is probably from target and made of particle board and white laminate. By applying Kilz primer and excess household paint I was able to transform it. I didn’t do the back so I went ahead and painted that part today. Applied murphys oil to the bench outside to moisturize the wood.

July 4, 2026 – A working 4th with visits in the seattle area. Usually we are done about mid-day. CB prepared hamburgers for the family and we ate outside in back under the gazebo. Plenty of bird activity at the feeder. No hummingbirds. I noticed that the birds do use the bath I have back there. I try to keep water in out two baths. With the dry weather there is considerable and immediate evaporation.

Listed the rest of the remote controls. These are usually easy sells on ebay. But I found most of the remotes were not big sellers and there was plenty already listed on ebay. I listed two and will donate about 10. I have about five more to list from the death pile (stuff not listed and backlogged).

I’m also listing postcards, slowly, one at a time. Thinking of stepping up sales of these things. The 2,500 lot I bought for $25 still sits there.

Often projects need several steps. Pushing them forward means taking a portion of the project and doing just one little thing. in this case I have an abundance of seeds. Seeds that are old or require full sun. I plan to plant these. The first step is to realize I had them. Then today, I gathered them to be taken inside. The next step is the clear the propagation are inside. It’s a mess with plants and dirt.

July 3, 2026 – I went for it. Two boxes of shipping peanuts being given away free here in Bothell. Peanuts are expensive and freebies are seldom, especially in quantity. The appointment was for 9:00 a.m. Received two boxes of peanuts and an additional bag of the same.

At 11:00 a.m. met with someone who bought out all my Norman Rockwell collector plates. There were 71 plus one larger one. All but two or three had certificates of authenticity. I paid $70 some months ago from the family of the original owner. today, they paid $80, plus my tote. They left me the 22 styrofoam containers. I learned that collector plates don’t sell well. Facebook and Ebay are full of them. I tried to give a deal and still no takers. I had it listed for a sacrifice $100. They asked for $80 and I accepted.

Painted a cheap Target bookcase. Very unusual color. I think it looks good. The color is orangish.

Listed many remotes and postcards. Several remotes are going to be donated. There are too many of these kind on Ebay and they don’t sell fast. I’d rather get the credit out of a donation.

July 2, 2026 – One goal that I never seem to get to is updating this website. With doing that I’ll have my own domain and be able to have a store. Plus I’ll be able to change the fonts and style. I like this website and it’s just what I wanted; basic and easy to update. Make it too difficult and it will become a burden. I love updating this sight because I don’t have to remember to do anything but edit and save.

Replaced two horizontal 2x4s and put up about 9 slats today. Then transplanted some grass to the front hill beneath the chestnut tree. Watered afterwards.

Listed remotes and postcards this evening. Put out the second feeder in back for the birds. Starting to get crows in the yard. Prefer they stay in the trees. They don’t go for the feeders. Typically, crows are scavengers.

July 1, 2026 – First day of the week the mortgage gets paid. I’ll pay the water, gas, trash, and water heater (lease program) if I can.

big news. It’s rare, very rare. it’s rare for me to make a purchase on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. A couple of days ago I came across an ad for some postcards. The ad stated they had three shoe boxes of postcards from a collection spanning 30 years. They wanted $25. Today I gravitated to that ad. this is important because I typically walk from the emotional purchase. For example, while living in San Diego, we frequently went to the swap meet. I taught my kids to not buy immediately but walk away. If you are about to leave and still want that thing, whatever it is, then go get it. Don’t buy impulsively. If it’s gone, oh well.

In this case, i confirmed that I was going to make the purchase. Through messenger, the person said that I would be getting each postcard for under a penny. I did the math. That would be 2,500 postcards. When I got there I met the man, 80 years old, and he said that he pinched an inch and counted 80 cards. there were 32 inches of postcards. We chatted for quite awhile. The collection wasn’t his but a friend who passed in 2014. The friend had been in the merchant marines since abot 1943. He had collected cards from all over the world that were given away or donated to the local senior center. The postcards that I got are from his journeys in the USA starting in 1976 with him and his wife.

The fence. I attached the first horizontal 2×4.

took a neighborhood walk. this walk measure just over a mile. I can’t say I enjoy it but I believe it is healthy. I like the neighborhood and gather landscaping ideas. But where is the river and bridges?

June 30, 2026 – One goal today and that goal was reached. The first step toward repairing a fence is putting a post into the ground. This required clearing a path to the old post, digging a hole, putting down rock, pouring cement, and applying water. There’s more to it than that but those are the main steps. And the job got done.

At 9:00 a.m. traveled to a house to pick up shipping paper. The house is just 7 minutes away in an isolated woodsy neighborhood similar to mine. I drove down the driveway to a trailer as instructed and got the box. Inside was a lot of paper. I went from having run out of paper to an overabundance. Inside the box of paper was a DirectTVe remote, about 12 clips, a thermeter from Hawaii, and an Eifel tower magnet. Also, a butter fly magnet. They did not want these back. There were also two sacks made of fabric and a draw string. The sacks were blue and roughly three feet long.

yesterday, I sold a book on Amazon. the book was in its original wrapper so I advertised it as new. I put it into a strong box with plenty of cushion and brought it to the Mill Creek post office. The book was given to Michele and I free by a police officer at the Pensacola dam at Grand Lake in Oklahoma. By Michele’s urging we went to the dam which was significantly out of our way. We entered the lobby and talked to this officer. He offered to run a movie about the dam and we accepted, watched the movie, and started to head out. He gave us the book. The book was $50 and in its wrapper. There was no way I was going to take the wrapper off, but no way I was going to resell a gift so generously given by a kind hearted police officer I won’t soon forget. I ended up listing it on Amazon.

Taking that side trip to Pensacola Dam required me to find our way back to the interstate. The GPS lead me down a road that happened to be old Route 66. On that road we stopped and enjoyed a route 66 museum type roadside oddity. I’m so glad Michele was determined to see the dam. It was far out of the way.

June 29, 2026 – Staring at the end of June. My calendar is clear. Friday’s birthday party is postponed because of a rodeo in eastern washington. Oh, to be young and freewheel around the state with a buddy.

started listing on ebay to put a dent in this backlog. Listed several old books, a couple of decanters too. One from Avon and the other from Old Spice. Both were after shave. Bought at a garage sale. Two for 20.

Took the long walk along the sammamish River. Me and few others out there.

Last year I built two cold frames and put a number of pots with seeds. Most of the seeds were of the monkey puzzle tree. I didn’t think much of it. Today I checked and sure enough a few sprouts have emerged. Once they emerge they are hardy and will continue to grow. I collected those seeds off the ground when our tree dropped them. I counted 14 growing. After today, it will be about 20 or so. No wonder there are so many of these trees in the region.

The bird feeder I received for father’s day has a design the birds don’t like. First it is built to be squirrel proof. For that they put an exterior cage over the length of the feeder. Birds can land and eat but as soon as a squirel tries to eat, their weight will cause the cage to come down and block feeding. The problem is that the thing looks like a contraption and unfriendly to birds. The birds also can’t see the food. i find this last part necessary. I found out my wife paid just $20 for it on clearance. I removed the cage thing and the birds still didn’t warm up to it. Today I tied twine to wood perches under each feeding area. The perches that came with the thing were skinny metal not much thicker than a wire. I don’t think birds want to land and balance on that skinny perch. So far it seems to work.

Some calundra seeds sprouted indoors and needed to be transplanted outside. i had some empty ceramic pots waiting for something. I planted the calundra. at least they will have a chance to live through the summer. but will I get a flower which is the very reason I’m’ growing them. I’ve found out that flowers require full sun. this house does not have full sun.

June 28, 2026 – Five visits in Seattle and shoreline. Afterwards we stopped at a garage sale just 5 minutes away. We were the only ones there and spent $15 on a light fixture, german stein, snow glob with canada geese, and an old mantle clock. We passed up pocket watches and other ceramic items. Also paintings. A garage sale appeared for Sunday and Monday. The person was trying to get rid of everything in the house following his father’s death. The free section was huge and there were many things inside the house and in the back yard. In the free section I got a box that included close to 30 remote controls. In the free section I got a tote of old publications. Michele got some books and we called it quits. I thought the garage sale to be disorganized and wasn’t sure what was free and what we needed to pay for. I ended up giving him $20 for everything. I’d rather overpay than receive anything that I took as being free and it wasn’t.

At home I removed the anti-squiral thing around the bird feeder I received on father’s day. The birds avoided the thing. It had moving parts and the birds couldn’t see the food through the cage. I removed the cage. I also filled the suet feeder.

June 27, 2026 – Four visits in seattle and shoreline. We stopped off at a corner where somone set up a tent with free stuff. I’m using the computer speakers i got from that stand. They work great. I also got some a ceramic camera and curtain rods. there was a Sounders scarf and a speaker too. Michele wanted the speaker. I didn’t want to stop but I’m glad we did. Later we hit a church fundraiser garage sale. I picked up a couple of books, a couple of decorative tomahawks, and a light fixture. We also grabbed up a stein from Heidelberg, Germany. maybe a couple more things. They were giving things away and we got half price on evertyhing. total spent was $15. As far as ebay sourcing goes, it was a successful day.

the day can best be described at what I didn’t do. I didn’t modify the new bird feeder. the birds hate it. I can improve it. I didn’t put more suet out and I didn’t put more seed out. MB made lunch and we sat around the table and enjoyed his food. I forget what he made but it was a pasta dish with a number of ingredients. Courtesy of Pioneer Woman.

During our visits today I accepted an offer for $29.99 on a 6 in 1 game set. The set would be worth about $10 max if it didn’t have the name “Boeing” on it. That set the price higher. I had it at $49.99. I know I didn’t pay much for it. I’ve listed about five things in the last month and have sold something about every other day. I re-organized my ebay inventory. Picture below.

June 26, 2026 – Morning visit from SB who had a procedure at 8:30 a.m. that went well. We put the license plates back on the car after I realized he paid for the tags.

Sold an password book and packed it up. For the first time, my packing job bugged me so much I re-printed the label and repacked the thing much better.

Took a moment to take the shovel and scoop up a couple of wood ferns and transplanted them on the hillside in back. We found that ferns are strikingly beautiful in this location. The small hydrangeas and hostas don’t make such an impact.

June 25, 2026 – After a week of sunny and hot, today is dark and rain was expected later in the afternoon. I didn’t know this. Wore shorts and a t-shirt on my walk. Found out my walk is just over four miles. that’s a mile more than what I thought.

First errand to the uPS store for two amazon returns. This one is an android tablet that the family got me for father’s day. It doesn’t meet my needs. Why not? It’s supposed to replace my old kindle. But my kindle reads books to me. It also reads documents to me out loud. It has true text to Speech. The android and other such units like phones require the kindle app. The app does not read back to you. Sure you can use the unit’s voice but then it starts reading everything to you in rapid fire. Wherever you turn, whatever page, it reads it from the top no control. I like kindle because of the TTS. It also has reduced blue light. I have the kindle fire and it can show movies and do other things. The android can do more, sure. The android is a Google product and the features reflect this relationship. I’m not a google person. I’m more Microsoft for storage and drives and such. Most of what the android does I have on my laptop. I prefer being the square who is content with a kindle.

Second errand was to run elmer’s glue to a local craft shop. I’ve had about two dozen of this glue on ebay. I was tired of having the box around and I wasn’t crazy about shipping it. I could have donated it and got a small tax deduction. Sometimes I like giving things directly to those who need it instead of donating to a for profit corporation using the face of a non-profit to collect and sell donations. They give the non-profit a minority percentage. The craft store was grateful and through text said they needed to glue for summer camps that come through the shop.

Finished my inventory of every item for sale on Ebay. I hand wrote the items and the exact location; box 1, 2, 3,4 etc. now, no more searching all the boxes for a single item. I want to know exactly where the item is and be done with it.

June 24, 2026 – If I could push a button and eliminate this day I probably would. It had some good parts like organizing my ebay inventory. The books are done.

Gifted a good car away to avoid liability. Careful getting into an accident when injury lawyers are ready to take you to the cleaners. I troubled just about everyone to get this gifting thing done. No joy.

I received this squirrel proof bird feeder contraption for father’s day. It’s bulky and intimidating. After a day I have yet to see a bird go to it. Supposedly, if a squirrel tried to eat from it the outer cage will come down preventing access to the food. It should work in theory. Birds are so light they wouldn’t activate the thing.

Adding water to the birdbath daily. I know the birds appreciate it. Getting more crows on this property. They living in the trees but for some reason are hanging out in the yard and in the trees and on the street.

June 23, 2026 – Working through finances and realized we have a huge liability that involves a car we own. Your insurance policy offers some protection but personal injury lawyers are everywhere and ready to take your assets. If you drive, there’s always a risk of causing someone major injury or death. That is a necessary risk we all have to take. If you are responsible for another person’s actions, say you lend your car out and they get into an accident or cause serious injury or death, then it’s your personal assets at stake. That includes your money, your house, your Retirement savings.

It happened to us. A young man in a truck rear ended my wife and three kids. His insurance didn’t cover everything so we sued and won a judgement. Who’s policy was triggered? not the young man’s but the father who owned the car. Remember, the insurance follows the car. If the young man had his own insurance it would be secondary. Our lawyer did not go after the father’s assets but could have. The lawyer was a christian man and wouldn’t go after the retired father’s assets. I didn’t know that at the time. We did get a settlement. The lesson is, if you want to hold on to your assets/wealth, don’t lend out your car, or boat for that matter. especially when negligence can be proven on your part. For example, you knew the driver had a history. Or if a dui was involved, the insurance company can deny the claim. Who are they going to come after you. It was your car, you gave them permission to drive the car, you knew they were reckless, you knew they drove and drank, you allowed a disaster to take place. I’ve seen courtroom drama and the attorney could take me apart as if I my actions were criminal. I’ve seen it play out. Who wants to go through that?

Weeded the front area by the street. Transplanted an American chestnut into a large ceramic pot at the entrance of the house where a geranium that clung to life died on the spot. I moved a tomato plant towards the sun. Watered the garden.

Cancelled an ebay order yet again. This time it was a large book that I sold on Amazon but forget to de-list on ebay. It will be a miracle if I keep my Top Rated Seller status.

While weeding I pulled up this plant with roots intact. there was also a large seed. It will be a tree if it survives. I’m going to wait until it gets bigger and produces larger leaves before I can identify it. I planted it in a pot.

June 22, 2026 – we got home at 1:30 and this marked the end of a series of commitments that has kept me busy for days. Now my schedule is free until Saturday and I can handle that. I prefer an open calendar. this morning was a dentist appointment that turned out very good. I will keep the same Hygienist when I go back in January 2027. Though I dreaded this Appointment And it has haunted me, I had to stop and pray for a moment.

We did a couple of mid-week visits in the shoreline area just to help out. that went fine and back home before two. I did drop off two packages at USPS bothell and got gas.

My friend the piliated woodpacker is back. Boy that bird gets confused. I try to make things easy but my setup pales in comparison to the natural world. Consider how strong and reliable a branch on a tree is. It moves but doesn’t sway. My feeder sways 180 degrees back and forth. I also have a dangling stump of wood hanging from a branch of a tree. It also sways. Like landing on a tree that moves. No wonder it’s confused.

June 21, 2026 – Two visits in West Seattle and one in skyline, a seattle neighborhood. I wait in the car reading and browsing on my phone. We carry snacks including hard boiled eggs, half a bagel, cherries, and grapes. Yesterday we also had watermelon slices.

We stopped at a Uhaul store to pick up bubble wrap and peanuts for shipping. I need these to properly pack the monster high doll. I ended up using a good portion.

We celebrate father’s day and forego the BBQ and opt for Panda Express. then gifts and brownies. Later I nap then get up and box up two sales. I set up a photography station in my little office downstairs. Maybe I’ll start listing on ebay again. I’ve listed less than 10 things in a months time.

June 20, 2026 – A day spent mostly running around Issaquah and south down to Kent, Washington. Between appointments we hit garage sales found in our travels and at least one from Craigslist. Some good, one great. The last we went to advertised a free section. We picked up a blue-Ray player, index card dividers, a decanter, and new soap. We also bought wrapping paper, a case of magnifying glasses, and some old books about radio and the telegraph. Then I took a chance and bought Clawdeen Wolf on a stand. This is a 17 inch monster high doll. I paid $7 and after researching what they were going for, I listed it for $79.99. In my research, I found exact yet inferior Clawdeen’s for over $100. My first offer came within the hour and it was sold within a couple hours.

The tomato plants and pumpkin plants survived the night and look healthy.

June 19, 2026 – Using Google Pedimeter I figured out that I’m walking over 2 miles along the Sammamish River. the first length to the bridge is .4871 of a mile. At .891 of a mile I reach the second bridge next to the turnoff trail to the UW Bothell campus. When i reach my turnaround point in Woodinville, the distance is 2.0525. Add the return and I’ve been walking over 4 miles. Now as I’ve picked up my pace it goes quicker.

Dropped off a package at the post office. The old USPS boxes I dropped off yesterday was gone.

After the walk, I spent time on the garden in the front yard. I cleaned up the rows where the pumpkin sprouts go. there are two small plants growing already from an earlier attempt a couple of months ago. I have several starts that I planted into the soil. I then moved to the tomatoes and planted 10 plants that were growing indoors. The circumstance is that the indoor tomato plants were not thriving. In fact they were not growing and the leave were turning yellow. Outside is hot and sunny but unfortunately the sun doesn’t strike the plants directly much of the day. Still they’d do better outside than inside. If they suffer outdoors I’m still ok with my decision to transplant them outside.

I watered the front by hand. Never saw the mail man all day to give him yet another ebay sale. This time it’s a clown in a box. When you wind him up he dances. I plainly put in the listing that it is in poor condition. That little box got a lot of attention. Vintage too.

June 18, 2026 – Took out a small beehive the size of a grapefruit on the side of the house. I always keep wasp and hornet spray around. One can will shoot up to 27 feet in a power stream. I’ve taken out several on this property. The only difference with this one is that it was above ground. Being small I felt the poison will take care of it. Being in the moring, the bees are less active I believe. The hive was located a few feet from a glass sliding door. I sprayed from behind the glass door exposing only my arm. the bees didn’t know what hit them. The material that makes up the hive is like paper and gives quickly. The spray wiped it out with the bees scattering. One can did the trick but I unloaded a second one which was only a quarter full. The last thing I wanted to do was kill bees. But, this nest was too close to the house. I also had to act fast before the family next door got home.

We made a trip to south seattle for the repair of a work computer. A good amount of traffic. Then we went north to Mill creek and celebrated our wedding anniversary at a new mexican restaurant. They have a $10 lunch special. I had three tacos, beans and rice. Michele had a taco and enchilada.

Sold a lot of seven helicopter training books I bought at an estate sale. I wanted $99 for the seven. They offered $40. I took the deal then realized I offered free shipping. When all was said and done I made just over $19. gotta watch that free shipping. I did get rid of the books and made a profit.

June 17, 2026 – Every year I get a physical to keep my Class B CDL. This year may be my last time. Today’s physical went fine and the nurse and doctor were great. cost $138 at Kaiser Permanente though I’m no longer a member. free parking.

Dropped off two packages at the post office; a large fire and safety book and a smaller book about lost treasure in california. While there I dropped off a pile of old priority mail boxes that were just taking up room in the garage. I put them off to the side in the building so hopefully no one but an employee discovers them. Because they are 10+ years old, their markings may cause problems. i don’t know but I couldn’t use them and I didn’t want to throw them out.

Weeded a good portion of the front yard including my garden area. Found a mustard plant growing up by itself. From last year? Also, a giant pumpkin is growing. Not sure if it is from old seeds or new seeds I planted a couple of months ago. I have more pumpkin sprouts to add shortly.

Transplanted three of four monkey puzzle tree starts. I thought they were ready to be separated and put into larger pots. Will see how they adapt to being transplanted and the outdoors.

replenished the bird feeders and added suet. Some time ago I took a large branch of a tree and bored two holes on each side for suet. Them I knotched underneath the holes so larger birds can get a grip. this never worked so today I hammered little perches under the holes and hung it up on a tree branch after stuffing the holes with suet.

June 16, 2026 – Went to get a physical in Bellevue. Only to find out I was a day early. I’ll go again Tomorrow.

Shipped off old volkswagen repair book. sold two more today, including a huge fire and safety inspection book and book about lost treasure in California. Both are boxed up next to me now.

MB removed a bookcase from SB’s bedroom. I’m taking a similar bookcase and fixing it up and will paint it. The bookcase is a Target special made with particle board overlaid with laminate. I firmed up the cardboard backing to strengthen to bookcase. Then applied Kilz primer. It went from laminate white to primer white. I may paint one color or several. I’d like to experience with paint i have stacked up in the garage.

As expected, the branches attached to the suet feeder has been used by the birds. The smaller birds are having a ball at the feeders. However, I put up the branches to be used as perches for the larger birds. When first heard of suet, it was introduced to me as a way to attract the larger birds. I noticed that the piliated woodpecker looked frustrated having to dangle by its talons then lift its head up and lean into the cage to grab some of the suet. Shortly after setting up the branches I noticed the woodpecker didn’t come around. I wasn’t surprised. I just hope I wasn’t too late and the bird hasn’t left Permanently. A northern flicker returned to the feeder and that lifted my hopes. Today, the woodpecker returned and looked confused. Then it hung out and fed on the suet for awhile.

June 15, 2026 – On Occasion I get the urge to start a running program. this urge hits me and I start strong but fail in consistency. This has happened numerous times. There was a time when I did run and enjoyed the sweat. I’m reaching for that again. It starts with a vision which happened last night. This morning I got up and had a great walk run. One difference this time is i’m listening to a book about someone’s experience as a runner. The book is The Running Ground by Nicholas Thompson read by the author and i’m listening to it on Libby. Though I ran some and walk quite abit I was able to enjoy the birds and a flower identified as Smooth Cat’s Ear.

Listed all 72 Norman Rockwell plates on Ebay, Facebook, and Craigslist. this is my grand attempt to unload these collector plates. I paid $70 and I’m offering them for $100. No chips or cracks and all but a couple has a certificate of Authenticity. They are each numbered. Ofcourse, so are the hundreds already listed on these platforms.

Old a postcard I picked up in Ellensburg, wa years ago. also sold an old time woodworking book.

June 14, 2026 – I haven’t listed anything on Ebay for over a week and I’m still selling miscellaneous items. A woodworking book just sold. There is thought to be a momentum with ebay. The more you list, the more you sell. The more activity, somehow the Algorithm rewards you. but I’m not listing and I had to cancel an order recently that is like shooting yourself in the foot.

As of yesterday, i realized that the larger birds were having trouble eating the suet from a dangling metal cage. today i took several dried limbs from trees and put them through the cage to make a perch for these birds. I tied the limbs with twine to make them sturdy. I sat back and watched the smaller birds use these branches and noticed how the limbs swayed by their weight. These birds weigh a matter of ounces. How would a piliated woodpecker do on the flimsy structure. I haven’t found out, however a northern flicker landed on the things and hung out for a minute or more. Very unusual. It didn’t have have to strain or balance itself, it just landed on the limb and hung out eating the new suet bar I placed inside. when I put out a limb the birds instantly use it.

gathered and took out the trash today. MB took a furniture from me that held pots of plants. I replaced it with one of many end tables we have around this house. I like to give cheerfully when I can.

June 13, 2026 – Every weekend I have the duty of driving the wife around to hospice visits. This takes in and around Seattle, Bellevue, Redmond, Renton, West Seattle, Shoreline, and today Greenlake. During a lull, we went to a garage sale advertised on Craigslist. A waste of time but I did get a “Student Driver” magnet from the free section. I’ll put it on Ebay for $12.50. Comes in a three-pack. Picked up a watering can left on the side of the road while we were tucked in the shade waiting for an appointment.

Came home to do very little. Prepared trash to take out on Sunday. Watched some golf, and a movie.

Late in the day I saw the piliated woodpeck struggle with the suet feeder. the suet feeder is made to be squirrel proof thus making it hard for any animal to get to the food. You have to be either tiny to fit through the bars or have a long beak as the woodpeckers do. But late this afternoon, i saw the woodpeck staring at it from all sides then fly away. In my mind, I’m thinking it’s thinking that to get to the suet is too much trouble. The poor thing has to grab on to an edge, dangling by its claws in a balancing act then rear up its head to stick the beak deep into the feeder. At best it gets a morsel. I have a solution and tomorrow I will put limbs across the feeder, two of them, that will allow the bird to stand their and feast. After all, I was told that suet attracts the larger birds. Well here it is. The piliated woodpecker and the northern flicker are the two large birds that have come around.

June 12, 2026 – Tried to fulfill and order for a Frick Collection art books. I believe there were five or six. i looked and looked and could not find these books. I went over each tote and box twice. I had to cancel the order for being out of stock. Ebay hates when you cancel. Who knows, i may lose my top rated seller status. It’s a rarity.

I unlisted the rest of my art books. there were 100. I packed them in two boxes and donated them to Value village. Several hundred of these books were given to me by a neighbor who was having an estate sale before selling their house. I did them a favor by taking about 12 boxes of these art books. They’re actually auction catalogs mostly from christie’s and Sotheby’s. I sold quite a few. Most went to a person collecting anything that had to do with Chinese art. Almost half the books were of chinese art. I must have made just short of $300 off this one person. About every few weeks I’d sell more groups of books through ebay. But I haven’t sold one for some time and the books are heavy and getting in the way. i needed the room. Anyway, by donating them we can get more money out of them.

Today was the IPO for SpaceX. The symbol is SPCX and starting price was $135, then it changed to $165. I ordered four shares with a limit at $200. I ended up buying four shares for $150 each. At one point today I made $90. by the end of the day and constant fluctuations, I made about $43. At least i’m in with this historic offering for a company valued over 100 times its revenue and hasn’t earned a profit, and run by a single person for life.

regardless, I think Elon Musk is tied to the future in space and AI. We’ll see where the stock goes. As a small investor I’m glad someone got me in today. I bought two shares of Meta for $43 each and they are now worth $1,1198. I like getting in on these IPOs.

Plumber came and looked at the upstairs bathtub and found the mystery leak. He went to it immediately by cutting out the wall behind the tub. From that vantage point he could see a plastic pipe with a messed up gasket. The leak was intermittent and was caused when someone took a bath in the tub and water got into the overflow drain. The water should enter the drain then exit through the pipe. Unfortunately, This pipe had a mess up rubber gasket and the pipe was also mis-aligned. The water missed the pipe and went straight down to the ground floor bedroom along the wall where it dripped down the wall to the floor. He looked at an outside spigot and tightened it and the thing stopped leaking. He looked at the water stains in the downstairs family room and told me to call him if I spot a leak. He changed out the cartridge on the upstairs bath and allowed me to film him making the change. I bought a cartidge from him on discount. I’m going to give them a good Yelp review.

June 11, 2026 – Yet another quiet and peaceful day spent mostly outdoors in the yard. Weeded the side yard with weed eater. Went on roof and blew the roof clean. Cleaned out the gutters with the blower. Cleaned up afterwards with the blower. Picked up the piles of weeds left over from yesterday. Vacuumed the family room, stairs, entryway, and upstairs common area.

CB, MB, and B from visalia came home today. B takes SB old room. All happy and glad to be back. She’ll take off tomorrow to go back home. sunny, warm day. Summer has arrived.

Wrote about the monkey puzzle tree. I’ve got quite a few sproutlets from seeds I planted months ago. they like the indoors and water and sun. Indoors is warm and that’s why they like it. I noticed we got one growing outside. when the mother tree dropped the seeds this one sprouted and is about 7-8 inches tall. I have about 10 actively growing now.

June 10, 2026 – Another quiet and peaceful day. never left the house, not even for a walk. Heavy phone and research about financial matters. Also, submitted photos for Friday’s plumber. We have identified the tub upstairs as the source of a mysterious leak that has alluded us for eleven years.

Weeded areas in the front. Raked out the weeds in piles. Added water to the birdbath. Added suet and bird seed to all the feeders. Brought in the large hummingbird feeder and remade the solution using powdered sugar and scalding water.

June 9, 2026 – Quiet and peaceful around the house with two absent. Michele made us breakfast; bacon, eggs, and a toast. We sat at the dining table just the two of us. then the day started. In the upstairs bathroom are two towel racks. Both have been yanked from the wall. I’ve repaired them in the past and dreaded the day i’d have to come back and re-attach the racks to the wall since the attachment points have been abused. The task seems impossible and so it was. However, often with repairs of this nature, you learn. After many attempts using molly bolts, I went to home depot and picked up some 4 inch exterior screws. I placed the rack in place and drilled the screws in so far in the wall they held. Now to the other rack. This one required a toggle spring wing thing that enters the hollow part inside the wall and then opens up attaching itself to the backside of the drywall. With that part holding fast I screw the rack on tight. And so after hours of work, what I learned is simply invaluable. It was worth the trouble.

On the way back from home depot, I noticed branches hanging down from a tree that is to the right of the driveway. Two large branches had broken from the weight of rain. this tree has done this before. One branch I was able to grab with my hands and tear off. I cut it up and placed in the compost bin. The other broken branch is too thick and too high. It sags but looks like a droopy limb of the tree.

Also, getting upon my return, there was a pileated woodpecker on the side of a tree. I captured it with my camera. the head jerks wildly looking in all directions like it’s Nervous or very curious.

June 8, 2026 – MB, CB, and B off to Leavenworth at about 2:30 p.m. I wasn’t around but called said goodbye. they’re gone until thursday. Around 8:12 p.m. CB texted to say they made it. The road is incredibly beautiful and even more so on the way back. Called Steven’s Pass.

Went to mailbox down the street after trip to bank. Mailed off yet another remote and postcard. Sold three fiction books I was selling as a set for $14.95. They got me down to $12. At least they’re making an offer like it says to do. I would guess you never have to pay full price on ebay if make offer is checked.

Weeded the side yard and blew out the driveway. Brought up trashcans except for recycle. Helped mB bring down cooler from rafters. showed MB some dry wood I keep in a tote under the stairs. Totes are not water tight and slugs get in there too we found out. I have an ax in there which he took with them to Leavenworth.

Talking with a plumbing company to change out all three cartridges in the bathtub and shower handles. Potentially leaking.

June 7, 2026 – B from Bakersfield is staying with us tonight. MB, CB, J, and B from Bakersfield will be staying at a house in Leavenworth. Leavenworth is a mountain town on the east side of the cascades. Back in the early 60s, the town converted itself with a bavarian theme, similar to solvang in California. Nearby are rivers, mountains, hiking, and apparently homes for rent. MB has arranged similar trips a few times. CB is going for the first time. They leave today. Be back Thursday. MB flew B in from California.

Sold a remote control and a postcard. May be selling a Readers Digest book from 1958. I’ve grouped four of such books together for $19.99. This person just needs the one for a collection. I’ll set it up and offer it for $12.50 plus shipping.

June 6, 2026 – MB turns 25. Full day of hospice visits; bellevue and redmond. Added suet to the feeder and bird seed to two other feeders. Watched the Belmont Stakes. Watched “Alone across the Arctic” about Adam Shoalts’ solo traverse across Canada on a canoe. strange, I’m listening to the book. I didn’t know there was a movie.

Please read the blog published today. Received the postcard below. They wrote me a thank you for sending them a check for $17. the money was for some postcards I got from their museum in guthrie, Oklahoma. they didn’t have a means to process my credit card so I sen them a check. This is their receipt and thank you for that check.

June 5, 2026 – Celebrated MBs birthday. he created a pot roast stew served with french bread. CB made cupcakes using cream cheese in place of a cake. I had some ice cream with mine. MB opened his gifts. I gave him a Hershey bar and a puzzle purchased somewhere in the mid-west.

Picked flowers for a bouquet. This included several colors of foxglove and buttercups. The rhododendrons have flowered and are past their prime. I did find some flowers that would compliment the bouquet, but they weren’t easy to find.

Put out some suet to attract the larger birds, mainly the northern flickers that have been coming around. I made it easy for them to get. Unfortunately, it became easy for the squirrels to get and they ate it all. Still the flicker came around as did a pileated woodpecker.

June 4, 2026 – Early morning allergies or some kind of a cold. Kept me indoors most of the day. Planted pumpkin seeds on pots along with some flowers. These went in the window downstairs. Moved a couple of pathos to the side of the room where there is less light but that area needs some color.

In the background, we’re preparing for a guest on Sunday. MB is preparing the room; switching bed frames, cleaning up under the bed, laundry, and finding totes, and steam cleaning the floor. He got it done.

Put out some suet for the Northern Flicker to get at it easily. that’s why I got the stuff to attract the larger birds.

June 3, 2026 – Before getting up this morning I sensed I might be sick. Or, it could be allergies. I still don’t know. All day I spent downstairs and half of it on the couch. I did read and brainstormed on the yellow pad briefly.

I studied sound and Youtube thumbnails. I redid about four videos. Michele brought home mexican food. I never went outside.

June 2, 2026 – Short walk in the morning. Prepared pots for seeds. this required soaking the hardened soil and mixing in perlite. ended up not putting in seeds but will tomorrow. Filled bird seed and placed suet in several of the feeders. Lifted up some branches at the feeder in front. Watered the rhododendrons on the side. They were looking dry a couple of days ago. Second watering.

Washed the windows in front. Noticed bees going in and out from under the eaves of the house. Sprayed it down with bug poison. Listed some items bought at a thrift store in Yoder, Kansas. These items are 60 year old cut out doll books. Some printed in the 1940’s.

Sold, packaged, and mailed my big stump trail booklet. Did the same with a remote control. Both sold at discount.

June 1, 2026 – Long walk along the sammamish river. Listening to “Beyond the Trees” by Adam Shoalts. I had just finished “Where the Eagle Flies” and this other book comes on as a sampler and I checked it out. Checking it out is literal for I’m borrowing the book from a library on Libby. This is my third book by Mr. Shoalts. It’s day by day, first person account, and a solo adventure where he travels in a canoe. He’s very descriptive which I like and fearless when it comes to traveling in bear country. “Where the Falcon Flies” is a national bestseller.

On the trail I’m seeing more crows that come Menacingly close. There are rabbits out now, here at the house and along the trail. Robins are another frequent sight at home and on the trail. We’ve been seeing northern flicker at the bird bath and at the suet. Chickadees and juncos are usually around and by far the most common bird. We do attract squirrels and I saw a coyote a few days ago enter our yard and leave immediately. It may have been after a cat that’s been coming around. We have three cats and only one is allowed out.

Foxglove is growing in my front yard. These are white. On the trail this morning there was a stand of purple foxglove. The foxglove should have been in the foreground, water in the middle with trees and blue skies in the background. It didn’t work that way. I love the purple against the variations of green and the blue sky. Anytime there is blue sky i’m looknig for a shot.

May 31, 2026 – Enjoyed a church service for the first time in weeks. Then went for a drive for garage sales that didn’t produce anything.

We did spot two great blue herons off the side of the road near church in the business complex. Usually these birds are in the swamps, canals, marshes, and drainage ditches. These two were out of place. We passed one and then turned the next corner and caught the other flying away from us. What a sight to see such a big bird flap its wings so effortlessly and move through the air. I figure the two are together but they were separated by about 100 yards. Behind a nearby building is a sizeable pond. was there intention to go there. Or, did they get off track while casing North Creek?

sunday tends to be lazy. Watched some motocross and Indy car racing in Detroit. Then the PGA Tournament. Later, watched the rain delayed Cracker Barrell 500.

May 30, 2026 – May is coming to an end and though temps are cool in the morning, we warm up in the afternoon. It’s been dry yet it sprinkled all day yesterday sending refreshing moisture to the area. I went out briefly and noticed puddling in some areas. A lot of water came down. When a lot of water comes down it lays heavy on bushes and branches. they sag. i noticed SB having to duck under a branch as he exited down the stairs in front and he’s relatively short. A delivery person had to duck in another area of the stairs. One spot was cut and the other plant was tied back which we’ve done before. I like a clear walking path for myself and others. There is no reason to having to avoid branches.

I finished cutting the lilac back, way back to the ground. today I cut up the wood. Thicker pieces went to the wood pile covered with a tarp. The smaller branches went to be picked up as compost.

I got a little carried away and weeded the backyard hill. Pic below.

Mailed two sold postcards. One of Carson peak near June Lake in California. The other I created and had printed. It is a closeup of the face of Florence Nightingale. The second one I’ve sold of that postcard. Also, sold a Home Alone coloring book.

May 29, 2026 – The rain never quit today and I’m ok with that. Didn’t really know what to do anyway and this kept me indoors. got into computer work. Light stuff. Listed a few items on ebay. I always check amazon to see if the book can be listed on amazon, not all can or there are too many listed already. When I went to check I noticed I had a notification. I learned that someone had bought a book from me two days ago. I never got the notification. I changed that. The book is a large hardcover about seattle then and now. Wrapped it in tissue, then a large white envelope. I cut down a strong UHaul box and padded it with shredded paper. I cut the box down to 17x14x7. I’m not sure what amazon is paying me. I figure just over $20. When a purchase occurs, you can’t wait, you have to ship. It’s a miracle I checked amazon at that time. After boxing went directly to the Mill Creek post office and shipped it out.

Cut back the lilac tree. It was raining so I left the big branches on the grass and will come back and cut them up. I will use my sawzall to cut back more of the lilac. They are supposed to be cut back Immediately after blooming, about two weeks. The rest of the year they spend gathering the energy to bloom again. They bloom for about two weeks.

Cut side braces for my wooden structure that sits by the window where the sun shines in. This is where I put my indoor plants. There are about a dozen tomato plants growing. None too well. The wooden thing was getting wobbly from the cats jumping on it so I strengthened it with two cross members.

May 28, 2026 – Warm sunny day. So warm the air-conditioners were taken out and placed in two rooms, MB and the living room. Noticed some rhododendrons were dropping leaves and looked like they could use some water so a put the sprinkler on that area for about a half hour. the come to find out it might rain tonight.

Produced a youtube video so bad that i won’t publish it. Listed a number of postcards and mailed off three that sold. They were, President Truman with mickey mantle and roger maris, Thomas edison, and a san pasqual battlefied to someone in vista. I got the postcard from the battle field sight.

I packaged the below postcard with five others about Eisenhower. This is the main card. the others showed rooms from his boyhood home which michele and i toured. also, the presidential library and museum building. and one other of a mural. I’m asking $17.99. I paid a buck each.

May 27, 2026 – Cool in the morning; cold enough to have to turn on the heat. Then it got warm and I appreciated the cool of the basement room. Two postcards sold today; one was my own creation.

Listed several postcards, mostly of Harry Truman. A few of trains from Ely, Nevada.

Long enjoyable walk along the sammamish. Saw many mallards and unidentified bird hiding behind the leaves on a branch over the river. The tree was large. When the animal saw me it switched to another tree, another branch, behind the leaves. I wasn’t fooled and I’m no predator.

May 26, 2026 – Cold and damp all day. Birds back as are the hummingbirds enjoying some refreshments at the feeder. Red finches which are rare to our yard keep returning to the suet and birdseed. Could it be the birdseed MB bought that has more sunflower seeds? We buy seed at Fred Meyer but sometimes they’re out of the cheap stuff.

sold a silly talking parrot. The parrot has a recorder and will say back what you say to it. Tested and works. My sixth sale this week. Handed to mailman.

Uploaded two vids to youtube; Columbia gorge and Bonneville Dam, and

May 25, 2026 – Memorial Day. the flag flies though we got some sprinkles today. A light remains on the flag even at night as required. Tomorrow I’ll put it away until July 4th. No work on the yard, feeders, or plants. boxed the sixth ebay sale since coming back off our road trip. Starting to create youtube video. Had michele and MB watch the latest. Michele loves the youtube work. But in truth, for all the work I put into those things, the end result is embarrassing.

Michele cooked hotdogs and hamburgers on the barbecue in back. cB and Michele watched the sequal to Phantom of the opera on TV. This is a stage version, not the movie, at least not yet. The family loves the first phantom of the opera. the music is so good by andrew lloyd webber.

This morning took my long walk along the sammamish. First time in weeks. Dropped off five packages in the bin at the post office. When I park by the river, i look out at this immense weeping willow.

May 24, 2026 – Five ebay sales this weekend, includes eight fiction books, a Willy Wonka mass media paperback, a bible, a 30 oz thermos, and lastly a karate book. Keeping in mind that I reopened the store May 21. When an order is received it is immediately pulled and boxed. This allows me to print out the packing slip and in the end, the pre-paid mailing label. Creating a label within a certain time frame, say three days, is critical to maintaining the top rated seller status.

Cranked up the weed eater and cut the front lawn. First I went to the street level to take out some weeds. When I got there and started swing the machine, i noticed that I would be cutting blooming buttercups. I’ve been turning areas of the yard into pollinator gardens. These gardens look like I’m growing weed with a few flowers. But these buttercups were growing prolifically and looked nice. I didn’t touch them. Later as I’m looking at the flowing Rhododendrons I realized that my whole yard is a pollinator garden with many tree sized rhodies.

Cleaned the rear deck and scrubbed down the seat cushions on the chairs under the gazebo. Weeded the rear area where white rock is placed.

Birds are back. This morning we saw a pileated woodpecker at the suet feeder. hummingbirds can be seen going to the feeders in back. Birds are back.

May 23, 2026 – This day was supposed to be spent behind the computer working on videos, postcard creation, writing, and postcard listing perhaps. Nothing clicked and I spend half the day outside in the yard. Later, I sold a 30 oz thermos given to me by CB. Immediately, after getting that all boxed up, another offer came through for an old Willy Wonka book. I accepted the offer and boxed that puppy up. Tonight a third order came through for a set of eight books by Albert Payson Terhune. He writes about dogs, collie’s in particular. If i was into fiction, I would devour these books. I had these eight for $59.99. He offered $50 and I accepted and boxed these up.

These eight books are hardcover and roughly 90 years old. He was a righter in the 1920’s and 1930’s. Each book was wrapped in two laters of tissue. then I wrapped two together in heavy brown paper from a roll. The box was tricky. I found one that I got from UHaul and cut it down to fit the books tightly but with enough room to wrap crumpled brown paper around and through, under and over. Finally, the packing slip tops the whole things. I cut the four corners of the box with a sharp box cutter. The blade must be sharp or cardboard buckles. A sharp box cutter cuts like butter.

Once the corners are cut I take a 12 inch ruler placed in a horizontal position and bend the four sides of the box towards the center. The four sides lie upon each other creating the top of the both. The contents should not move, thus the packing paper fills empty spaces. I used a tremendous amount of brown wrapping paper on this box. It took at least one third of the paper I have. This buyer spent over $60 with shipping and taxes. I’m going to take care of their books. This care should show. If there are no issues I’ve done my job.

the first package got handed to Brian, the mailman. Brian pointed to a the back and sure enough there was a trainee sitting in the box part of their truck. Will he like delivering mail?

When I was on my road trip, brian knew something was different with the house. I guess MB and CB were receiving the mail. He joked to them that they were having a party in my absence. they laughed and ran off. He, the mailman, recognized that something was off. He told me that the home is back to normal with the garage door up, and activity going on. I’m a familiar sight.

May 22, 2026 – Opened the ebay store one day early. Photographed and listed about a dozen items. No activity on ebay.

Weeded the front and raked into piles. Still no birds at the feeders and I filled all of them and a whole pie of suet. robins are coming around but that’s it. A bird in the bath this morning. it was having a good time.

May 21, 2026 – First whole day back with much to do. Start with watering the indoor plants then removing the dead ones. With the dead ones all that is left is the pot, nothing of the plant remains. There were about 10 of these. I cleaned the area that holds many of the pots. The cat used the area as a litter box while we were gone. I watered other plants in the house. I trimmed an overgrown plant down to make a hedge and hung the american flat over it. I filled the bird feeders and put water in the bird baths. I blew the driveway and stairs that lead to the front door. My car hadn’t been run in three weeks so I started it up and moved it over so MB can get his e-bike next to it against the wall.

My ebay store is still closed. that may change tomorrow. One more thing I did. The family room carpet was messed up and the kitty litter area not looking well. I Vacuumed and steam cleaned the carpet. Took a nap in the afternoon and afterwards did some weeding outside.

May 20, 2026 – Air travel is for those who have no alternative. Today was my turn. Though I like St. Louis Lambert for easy access for dropping off bags. The terminal is uncrowded. Here in Seattle, Sea-Tac is congested and hectic; one of the busiest in the country. despite lesser crowds at st. louis there still can be headaches, but I’ll spare this journal the details. I’m happy to be at home and taking alaska airlines from st. louis was fine. about half way on the flight they asked if anyone was a licensed medical professional. Michele, and EMT, and a surgeon raised their hand. On board and in pain was a young woman. Michele had her lay down in back and eventually she took our three seats. They moved two of us and michele stayed by her side as for the rest of the trip. I sat up front with more leg room and width I believe. Because we got our tickets late, we grabbed the last two seats that were next to each other. We found out why they weren’t taken, they were next to the bathrooms. It was grand central station back there.

Home with MB and CB. We got mcDonalds and had a small birthday for michele. It’s good to be back home and there is lots to do. On this road trip we ate well. that’s got to end and I need to Exercise daily. It’s good to see the cats and my plants. Tomorrow I’ll fill the bird feeders and do other work. Might even open my ebay store.

May 18 and 19, 2026 – Hannibal, missouri will be our last stop before heading to St. Louis and flying home. We look back at an extraordinary trip that began on April 28th. We’ve been on the road exactly three weeks, but it’s come to an end due to a health issue. Travel, though enjoyable, can wear you down without knowing it. It’s almost undetectable but after three weeks of hotels, long drives, and many necessary day to day functions, you can become overtired. Emotionally you’re ready to keep going, but sometimes the body and heart say otherwise. The heart spoke in Hannibal, mo and we ended up in the ER. So ends our stay in hannibal where we get another day’s rest before heading to st. louis, mo. can’t see the arch, but the wingate by windham is nice. we’re on the third floor.

it took just two leisurely hours to get here. We checked in early and walked over to a BBQ restaurant and had ribs, beans, bread, and fries. Nice eatery called Bandana’s Bar-B-Q. There are several in the area.

By 2:00 p.m. we sequestered to our room. Tomorrow, May 20th, we head to the airport and drop off bags. I then return the car and shuttle back to the airport. We check the bags in and wait to board at just after 4:00 p.m. We got the last two cabin seats. Way in back. The cost of the two one-way tickets were paid with airline miles, otherwise we’d be set back about $800. Looking forward to being home.

May 17, 2026 – We booked a one hour cruise on the mississippi here in hanibal, missouri; mark twain’s hometown. We didn’t make the cruise but did get a chance to tour his home. We were also inspired by his humorous writing. Mark twain can turn a phrase like no other. This town has two sides. One side is living a normal life like any other small town of 17,000. The other side is a tourist town in constant celebration of mark twain and it’s been that way for a century.

Statues and His boyhood home were dedicated back in 1926. He’s been the toast of the town for 100 years. and things are letting up. It’s the off season and tourists are milling about filling the eateries, and reading placards in the properties available for the public. We learn about becky thatcher and tour her home and learn who she really was. She was real. Also his friend Huck Finn’s character was taken from a real friendship. We learn his father had failed investments. Mark Twain’s own financial failures are explored.

Hanibal is like being in a make believe town that is more alive than most towns i’ve visited in the last few weeks. Not a retail vacancy on main street. Happy people gathered around tables ordering food. Lots of open shops with doors open to entice couples strolling on main street.

Something that keeps coming up is where the fence that mark twain and his friends whitewashed. it’s attached to his house. What about lovers leap? How about the mark twain lighthouse? they are hear with the stories around them. Most of what you see and touch on the properties open for touring are period pieces. sort of like Facsimiles. In the mark twain museum, overlooking the street and great mississippi river somewhere in the distance is a huge steering wheel and horn. Both are fun, but he never put a hand to either. But what we learn is that he was a steamboat pilot with license for four years. at the end of four years the civil war began. He went off to california.

May 16, 2026 – Travel day up the center of missouri to hannibal. The unusual part is that we didn’t stop to sightsee turning a 4 hour drive into a six hour endurance race. In hannibal we were able to tour Mark Twain’s boyhood home along with Becky Thatcher’s home, Huck Fin’s home, and the museum. The museum contains several items used by Samuel Clemens, namely a desk, chair, and pen. How often he used the desk isn’t clear. I happen to know he wrote while in his bed.

For may, hannibal is full of tourists just like us. Older couples. We raced through most of the Exhibits until we came to the museum. The reason in part is because the furnishings in his house and other were period pieces, not the ones used by clemens himself. The city of hannibal is charming with truly old structions. One building I passed was built in 1840. That’s old for our standards. One more note about the day, we passed over the missouri river and saw from a distance, the mississippi. Tomorrow we take an hour cruise on the river.

May 15, 2026 – Accomplished two things today; a visit to a civil war battlefield and a cave tour.

Missouri can surprise you. It’s known as the cave state because there are so many caves in the state, many to be toured. We had several to choose from in the springfield area. The most advertised is Fantastic Tours. They advertise on billboards along the interstate. With fantastic tours you enter a tram and ride along for a 55 minute cave tour. But i wanted to go underground where various rooms of caves with stalactites and stalagmites fill the walls and ceilings. One cave review said that their cave had many areas where you’re bending and squeezing through places. I didn’t want that one. So we went to crystal cave. As typical, I got my reviews mixed up and there we were bending, crouching, and Scurrying along with low ceilings and slippery steps. it wasn’t bad. we got our various rooms of stalactites that hang from the ceiling and stalagmites that come up from the floor. when they meet in the middle, they form a column. The cave tour was excellent.

One of the first civil war battles occurred here near springfield, missouri near a place called wilson’s creek. Missouri was a mixture of both confederate and union sympathizers. they say the north of the state was more confederate and the south side of the state was union. but there was a mix and no clear lines apparently. over 1,200 engagements took place. Missouri shows up on the union flag and the confederate flag.

in the big picture the goal was to take springfield, mo. The confederates were on the march. the union under Brigadier general Nathaniel lyon flanked them front and behind to stop them or at least give them a bloody nose. On August 10, 1861, they fought. mistakes were made, over 500 killed, and the union retreated. Lyon was killed. it was a win for the south. Interesting that the lone house in the area was used as a hospital. The family living there went below into the cellar when the battle began. when they came up out of there the house was filled with the wounded. Lyon was dead and put on a bed with a blanket over him. he was later taken away.

In the visitor’s center is the bed and blanket used that day for the general. The house is still standing and i toured it. The cellar where the family hid is there to see but you can’t go in. The battlefield has canons placed where they would have been that day. The whole thing is a bloody story with one of the hills called bloody hill. They fought in the cornfields, up hillsides, atop hills, and in the valleys. Now the area his covered in trees, but back then you can see the enemy from afar.

May 14, 2026 – See blog of this day.

May 13, 2026 – Taking a tour of downtown Guthrie, Oklahoma today, we stopped in at the oklahoma frontier drug store museum. I immediately recognized the bottles in the cabinets living both walls. They were turn of the century remedies, Tinctures, potions, cures for baldness, loaded with everything from opium, cocaine, and Strychnine. The medicine bottles were just one of the things on display. We saw an old typwriter used by a pharmacist to write out labels. The things was older than i’d ever seen with the striking keys rising above and striking down. We saw and handled pharmacist’s tools of the trade, some of which i couldn’t identify. They used mortor and pestal to crush meds into powder. Apparently, they were responsible for making the meds right there in the shop.

I noticed some postcards on a rack. Most recent creations but there were a several that were linen. Linen postcards were made prior to 1950. I gathered all they had, about 30, and made a deal for $15. She couldn’t process the credit card so I will send a check later for the amount. A total of $17.

I’ve photographed many historic downtowns over decades. Guthrie, oklahoma is amongst the best, most picturesque, most impressive that i’ve seen. And most of the stores are occupied, very rare with old downtowns.

May 12, 2026 – Most likely for the best, we diverted to Oklahoma. each location brings new things to explore. Unfortunately, at the rate we are going, I’m barely going to complete this trip by may 30. We still have carlsbad caverns, tombstone, monument valley, tonopah, lassen NP and more, each taking up to four days for travel, a first night in location, visiting the location, returning from the visit to the hotel, then launching out again to the next place. The key is you can’t have a travel day with sightseeing. There just isn’t time to travel and see the site. You need to travel, spend the night, see the site, then launch out again the next day.

Calculating the necessary time it takes for a visit, we are running close to our deadline. I’m ready to cut out monument valley. It’s so isolated up there at the arizona / utah border.

Today we visited Harry Truman’s birthplace in Lamar, Missouri. That’s it.

May 11, 2026 – Day two in independence, Missouri. Toured the Truman presidential library. Still haven’t seen the missouri river. Independence loves truman and his name is attached to the courthouse and countless retail centers. His bronze stature appears in front of the courthouse and on the street corner. The courthouse is the truman courthouse and the area is the truman historical district. The name truman appears on a number of street. He loved the town and the town loves him. His pre and post presidency life revolved around independence. He lived with Bess’ family home here, had an office at the courthouse, and worked the farm just outside of town. He said the world revolves around independence. after the presidency he didn’t go out making speeches, he stayed home, walked the streets, and bought cars from the local dealership. His last car is in the garage on jacks.

The farm had over 600 acres. Now just 10 acres. Truman worked the farm for about 11 years, sacrificing to help the family. It is there that they say he learned about hard work and became the man who would be the president he was. Before the farm, he was city folk.

May 10, 2026 – After four days at the Holiday inn Express we left wichita and Kansas altogether stopping at Walmart and Target before we hit the road. Now in Independence, Missouri the first goal was to tour the Truman home. It’s a free tour but tickets are required and they are picked up about five blocks from the home at the national parks visitors center. The home has some 10,000 visitors every year. We arrived at the visitor center at 12:30 p.m. and were able to make the 1:00 p.m. tour.

The house was originally constructed way in back around 1870 by Bess Trumans grandfather. The home stayed with the family and an addition was added. Including the basement the home is some 8,000 sf with 5 bedrooms and two baths. When harry truman and bess truman got married they lived in the home with bess’ mother. when truman left office he moved back Into the home. It is not a humble home as i thought. It is elaborate inside though the floor is uneven and it creaks. It is spacious with great detail. the one thing I wanted to see was his chair with the table in front and all his books stacked on top. A chair was there but it wasn’t his favorite. Bess had it replaced with a nicer chair because his was too ratty. The table is the same according to the tour guide. Most of the house is exactly as it was when they lived in it. When bess truman passed, she donated the home to the government and we got the house, his car, all the furnishings, their silverware, dishes, clocks, knick knacks, and their portraits. Where harry hung his hat by the front door is where the hat remains next to his coat. The entire house is as it was when they lived in it. The tour only touches the downstairs. To access the second floor you’d have to use a floating stairway. Floating means there is no support underneath.

We are now checked into the holiday inn Express and suites in independence, missouri. tomorrow we’ll visit the truman presidential library god willing.

May 9, 2026 – An unplanned fourth day in wichita, kansas. That makes five days in kansas. Yesterday, I passed michele a brochure on the cowtown museum in wichita. This is a living museum with 50 plus buildings with a central theme of the birth of wichita. Keeping in mind that wichita is historic as being the terminus of the Chisolm trail. On this trail cattle was brought up from texas to wichita kansas where the livestock was shipped east. We find out that wichita is more than cattle and they wanted to get away from that reputation after a time.

In this cowtown museum are many buildings built around 1965, including the first home built in wichita. The home is there on the grounds. There is the doctor’s office with dentist suite. a blacksmith shop which i enjoyed a conversation with the blacksmith. That has been his full time job for 13 years. Nearby was his apprentice on his second day of work.

There was the obligatory saloon and theatre, a carriage house, marshal’s office, jail, mercantile, church, funderal home, and about a dozen more such buildings and several homes. Loved entering their kitchens with the wood burning stove. So homey. The day was hot and as time went on more and more people came yet there was plenty of walking space in this 23 acre museum.

at the end of the main drag there was a car show. A typical car show with muscle cars and two model Ts. Even the weiner mobile was there. Hit two garage sales on the way back and two thrift store. We spent $57 on a estate sale we stumbled upon. The items were a vintage little red riding hood book and two cut out doll books of june allyson. Michele grabbed up a bunch of these type publications and went for the deal. They were having a 70% off sale and we got a little better than that. Later i went to a thrift store that we’d gone before and picked up more linen post cards. linen post cards were made approx from 1930 to 1950. I went through and bought them out. spent over $20.

May 8, 2026 – Our third day in Park City, Kansas near wichita. The initial plan was to go to hutchinson, Kansas to the Strataca salt mine tour. But first, we stopped off at a small town called Yoder. It has a large presence with a small downtown. Population 165. We met some nice folk including a man born in wichita and raised in haven, a nearby town. He said he’s been banking at the Peoples Bank & Trust in Yoder since he was 14. He’s not 70.

At Strataca we waited in the car for our noon time tour. An RV with a utility trailer entered the parking lot. Following it was another vehicle towing a different type of trailer. I told michele they were hauling race cars. Sure enough they backed out a couple of sprint cars. I asked if i can photograph the cars and stay out of the way. They said I could get up close if I wanted. I singled out the driver C.J. Leary who is a well known winner in this type of racing. He answered my questions and pointed out various parts of the car including the tires which cost $350 a piece. The rear left is a touch smaller than the right. He’ll go through three tires in any given race.

As a driver he will well paid. Sponsors are important to shoulder the expense. Mr. Leary pointed to the rear and talked about the 75 gallon feul cell. The car runs on methanol. It has one speed – fast. These are cars that bank and run sideways on turns. He’s at the local speedway on saturday night.

The salt mine tour took us 650 feet below the surface. Down there are 250 miles of tunnels, over 1,000 acres. There are bathrooms and a gift shop and an expansive museum with two loading zones; one for the tram and one for the train. Our ticket included both. The tunnels are dark yet as we approached an area, a light would come on and the driver would discuss what was illuminated. It could be a look at rare red salt or a toilet the minors used.

Down there, property is protected from the elements and theft. That is why many documents are stored in that giant cavity with temperature and humidity held at a constant. Some key movie memorabilia is also stored there like a superman outfit, men in black sunglasses and gun, and model of the daily planet building from superman.

May 7, 2026 – Three nights in park city, kansas, some distance north of wichita, kansas. How much north I don’t know. I haven’t traveled to see wichita. We may grab a quick glance of wichita on saturday on our way out. Wichita was the end of the line for the chisolm trail. So we are interested in that portion of history when cattle from texas was driven to wichita where the cattle was put on railway cars headed east.

We were in abilene today. The cattle used to go there until tracks were built to wichita. Wichita became the terminus of the chisolm trail after that. abilene is also the birthplace of Dwight D. Eisenhower and his childhood home is there. Also on the property along with his birth home is his presidential library, museum, and visitor center. we toured the home. Can’t go upstairs as there is no egress – law requires an entrance to the upstairs and a separate exit. One entrance can’t be both entrance and exit. we were able to see the second floor as part of a film being shown. Our tour guide has never been upstairs where dwight and his brother shared a room. he was the third of six boys. I believe they had one girl later.

The museum showcased his whole life from humble beginnings in abilene, kansas to presidency and retirement. in abilene he was on the poor side of the tracks. And those tracks are a stone’s throw from the house. Those trains run right into town and are noisy as they couple and shift violently with metal against metal. The library reminded me or robert caro studying lyndon johnson, spending years researching at the library. here in the eisenhower library it has a basic layout with a front counter and a large, well lit room with large glass panes for viewing the researchers. There were school pupils inside and a teacher amongst them. Somewhere in that building are his presidential papers. typically, Request is made to clerks who collect the papers to be studied and these papers are turned when the researcher is done with them. They welcome the research. Though caro got some hassle when his first in a series of books on johnson came out. sometimes a biography requires that the truth be unearthed. what caro found was, the truth is often hidden in the papers.

May 6, 2026 – Travel day starting with a return to downtown Goodland, Kansas to it to michele. first, the street is brick. second, there is music played through exterior speakers. I showed her the old buildings and their mismatched design showing they were built at different times or so it appears.

our destination is park city, north of Wichita. It took over four hours due to stops. Again, staying at a Holiday Inn Express. I’m a member of IHG and get a discount. This is an older hotel but the price is right.

Tomorrow, we plant to tour the Eisenhower Presidential Library and his birthplace. We’ll give it several hours for the tour. We may go to wamego to the wizard of oz museum. That museum has been one of our top places to go but is on the chopping block. We will stay here three nights.

May 5, 2026 – Tonight we are in Goodland, kansas, staying at the holiday inn express. After checking in I went out to see the city and take pictures of the 80 foot easle with a van go on display. I noticed a water tower with the Goodland name on it. Decided to photograph the High plains museum which i did along with a one room school house. There were huge grain elevators in town and a downtown the took the rest of my time. Downtown has a brick street and is wide. Most of the buildings look old and mismatched as expected from a downtown that’s been around a hundred years or more. Met Tim Miller from sawyer, Kansas. He was taking his family around Kansas for a celebration since one of his daughters graduated high school. They have three daughters apparently and are baptist. I like him and they were all friendly and conversational. I might right him a letter how impressed i was. got his picture and one of the daughters, with a canon dSLR, got mine.

May 4 and 5, 2026 – Travel day from Delta Utah to Grand Junction, Colorado. On the way we heard of a cold front coming into Colorado. We had a choice to stay in Grand Junction until the front moved through or head south to Albuquerque, New Mexico. We found a window of opportunity to cut across colorado through denver and out of the state and enter kansas before the front arrived. It worked, but very nervous through the continental divide. That divide is a long stretch at very high elevation. we passed vail and went through several high passes. We got rain, some snow, below freezing temps, low visibility, and a fogged up windshield at one point. We passed through denver and made it to goodland, Kansas. We’re in Kansas, tonight.

Utah was beautiful with a landscape of such variety in shape and color you’d think you were going through a national park. we did go through the San Rafael Swell. A more diverse geologic landscape is hard find. I admit I got distracted by the flora and took many pics of plants and trees, as in nevada. The plant life is so diverse though it looks like all the same plant until you get up close and try to separate the species which i tried to do.

May 3, 2026 – It’s only 2.5 hours from Ely, Nevada to Delta, Utah. This allows some time in Great Basin, the national park situation situated smack dab in the middle between the two small towns. Great Basin is like an island rising up long and tall. Wheeler peak is covered with glaciers at 13,000 feet elevation. Highway 50 raps around the left side going east. Then you head south on 487 to get to the visitors center.

Wheeler peak lookout was closed due to snow but Mather Lookout was open and just 20 minutes up the only paved road in the park. At mather peak you’re at 9,000 feet elevation and staring into the face of wheeler peak at 13,000 feet. The sight is awesome. Looking east, a rocky outcropping on our left framed the flat valley below. We were high up there. On the way down we stopped for lunch at the Upper Lehmann campground day use area.

The rest of the day was spent getting to Delta, Utah. This is a small town with the widest mainstreet i’ve seen. old streets are often made so a horse drawn cart has room to turn around. This street exceeded that.

We’re staying at the day’s inn and tomorrow we’re off to Grand Junction, Colorado with some sightseeing along the way.

May 2, 2026 – Crossed northern nevada with no stops, but it was hard getting out of winnemucca. A cool Saturday morning in winnemucca is worth a photo or two or more. I started with an old section of downtown then to the courthouse. I happened upon a relic hotel named shone and got pictures of that. Then off to the interstate and passed two planned ghost towns because of errors on my part. One really wasn’t a ghost town so we decided to go to the other. The other one turned out to be too far on a dirt road.

This all worked out because the drive was Beautiful. Northern nevada is high desert with snow topped mountains on the east. There is even skiing in them hills. approaching ely there was a yard full of rusted cars dating back to the twenties. After dropping off michele, i went back and grabbed a few pictures then spent the afternoon at the railway museum and had a great time though didn’t ride the steamer. Got good pictures of it.

May 1, 2026 – Tonight in Winnemucca, Nevada heading out to Ely tomorrow. Nevada is different than the oregon we enjoyed. The terrain in oregon is tall sloping hills while nevada is more flat and covered with sagebrush. Winnemucca attracts the rodeo crowd and bikers. It’s not a picturesque town. The motto here is winnemucca is the friendliest town in Nevada. We enjoy the openness and the wide open spaces. The heat feels like home – southern california. The one planned stop tomorrow is Golconda, not quite a ghost town but easy to get in and out I think.

April 30, 2026 – The adventurous roadtrip begins as we descend south to the John Day territory of east central Oregon. First we stop at the living ghost town of shaniko, population 25 or 26 or 30 depending who you ask. we asked two prominent people of shaniko and they had two different answers. The postmaster said 30, the mayor said 25, maybe 26.

The mayor is mark haskett. His role as major is unpaid and often unappreciated. There is a written rule amongst townsfolk to not air their dirty laundry and there is plenty of that. Disagreements even threatened lawsuits among residents. One party wants to dis-incorporate and become a county jurisdiction.

Shaniko is similar to many towns that have a rich history and the old buildings to show for it. Many towns have this. Shaniko has it in spades plus many old cars. The cars stole the show for me. I had to move quickly to document what I was seeing. To mention a couple is a 1923 panel wagon and a model t. but there were many old cars throughout the town. I also saw the three cell jail and a tilting one room school house. Again disagreement about the schoolhouse. The postmaster said it was condemned. The major said no it’s not condemned and it’s been listing since they moved it there in 1961.

After spending so much time in shaniko we quickly moved through antelope, oregon where there are several old structures. Then on to John Day Fossil Bed national monument. huge as far as land area. The visitor center was ok. I liked the swallows that were nesting under the open roof entranceway.

Lastly, we spend the night at the best western in the town of john day. This town is everything we could ask for. I’d have to live with no large body of water but the john day river runs for miles and miles.

April 29, 2026 – We are staying at the Westcliff Lodge near Hood River, Oregon. This is called the Columbia Gorge region. Our rear window overlooks the columbia River. On the opposite bank is the Washington State side.

On this road trip we do not get up and hit the road. Hours went by and after several cups of coffee we headed out to the town of Dufur, prounced like “do for” as in “what can I “do for” you?” This town is often listed as a ghost town. That’s not accurate. Sure it has a history and has gone through its share of boom and bust, but there is an active community, store fronts, gas station, and an ace hardware store. It’s heavy agriculture and equipment rolls down mainstreet as if street legal.

Some of the buildings are old and well placed on downtown corners. Only problem is they’re vacant. Most of downtown has seen better days, but if you listen and watch there is a hum of activity downtown, at the gas station, and the post office.

After photographing an aged hotel turned B&B, we walked downtown and strolled a few sidestreets. What caught our eye is the unubstructed view of mt Hood. A lovely town and a majestic mountain as if joined.

We ended up at the living history museum which is closed until june. We took a self-guided exterior tour of the buildings, farm implements, and one room school house. The museum is just off of downtown and wide open. I felt we were welcomed to wander the grounds. Folks in this town are used to tourists.

Back at The dalles we cruised through downtown seeing some old buildings including the post office which had corinthian columns in front. Lastly we toured the Fort Dalles museum and Anderson house. The museum is one of the best of it’s type i’ve seen. The type is a museum that showcases what life was like a hundred plus years ago. There are many but few have been around since 1905.

Dufur with Mount Hood in the backgrounded.

April 28, 2026 – This day marks the first day of an extended roadtrip planned several months ago. We start by heading to The Dalles in Oregon and go from there. On the way to the Dalles we tentatively planned three stops. We ended up doing them all. The three are:

Bridal Veil Falls – just off the interstate this is a popular short hike to a 120 foot waterfall.

Multnomah Falls – A Picturesque waterfall that drops over 600 feet. There is also a museum and gift shop.

Bonneville Dam – A dam complex with 10 generators built in 1938. Later, the dam expanded. Interesting that they also built a fish ladder at the time the dam was built. We saw Chinook salmon using the ladder. The locks were open to allow fish to go from upstream fresh water to the coast and salt water.

April 27, 2026 – Back in January, during a miserable camping experience, I asked myself what do you want to do. if I travel, what do I want to do? the images of national parks and visiting distant relatives came mind. Actually the thought sparked more than interest. The wife got inspired and immediately we targeted may. While I was still contemplating a trip she took the entire month off. Now, the day has come to live out this month long journey. How do people do it? Many go in RVs and we considered that. We plan to travel by rental car and stay in hotels. I got membership with Best Western and Wyndham. Wyndham owns La Quinta, Ramada, Days Inn, Super 8, and even Travelodge and Howard Johnson. These will get us by. I’ll take a marriott, hampton, or hilton any day.

Like with the hotels, nothing is Definite. How long we stay, where we go and what we do. We have a month. I’m a desktop guy. I do not like laptops. but for this trip I’ll need it if I want to splice some video for youtube, add to this blog or continue this daily Abstract. The daily Abstract is a year long commitment. It puts me in the seat as someone who writes and forces me to write prose. Sounds good? there are negatives. For one, you write to check off a box. in other words you write out of commitment and the content can be shallow, especially if you do it when your tired at night. Also, heaven help if it turns out to be a diary like reading or stream of consciousness. I’ve read from many who kept daily journals. My two favorite are Isaac Asimov and Naturalist hal borland. Asimov put in so much detail like times of appointments if I remember. Borland was able to watch the sky and the seasons. He knew plants, birds, landscapes, and history. What you read here is trivial matters that make up the day. Heaven help us all if I get good at this.

We picked up the van and it sits loaded and waiting for our morning start tomorrow. Daily life will be different. We’ll replace routines for sightseeing. However, all our routines enjoyed at home we are bringing on the trip. such as taking meds. We’re bring a small keurig with creamer and our favorite coffee. We sleep with little fans blowing. Even brushing teeth that require a water-pik won’t be missed. I read a new testament chapter and a psalm in the morning and an old testament chapter at night. That won’t be missed. Whenever I have traveled or camped, my daily routine goes out the window. I don’t want to skimp on these things. Maybe, just maybe, travel won’t be rushed.

April 26, 2026 – Early start for three visits; one in Redmond, another in Bellevue and the last in Mercer Island. The home we were visiting in or on mercer island was deep within a wooded neighborhood with slow winding roads. Finding the driveway took special instructions. Afterwards I was exiting the driveway and had to put the car into the roadway just to see any oncoming traffic to the left and right. Sure enough a car was coming to my left and I backed up while they passed by. I safely hung the left and continued down the winding road. We came to point where several cars were stopped and a bicyclist was laying along the side of the road being attended too by other bicyclists and cars. Michele being a nurse needed us to stop and see if she could help. There were two other doctors there so she backed off. i had a hand knitted blanket in the car and put it over the bicyclist. Michele knitted the blanket some 35 years ago and I was glad to part with it in such a way. I have others. The bicyclist was a young girl. She was riding along the bike path when a car exited a driveway. She hit the car and went over the hood.

Took the trash down and picked up some piles of leaves left over from the fall. Watered the garden where nothing grows. Replaced the water in the hummingbird feeders, all three. That will have to do for several weeks.

April 25, 2026 – It’s like coming to a full stop. Locking the door behind you and taking off for the unknown. I do know I’ll have good company and there’s lots to see. Things I’ve never seen before and new ways to showcase it all. I’m glad to go and I’ll be glad to make it back.

We did two visits in bellevue and one in redmond. home by 1:30 p.m. CB made hamburgers for the family. SB and Dylan were over to grab some camping gear. They didn’t take much but were welcomed to it all.

April 24, 2026 – Putting my life to rest. Getting my house in order to leave it for a short time, just 30 days or so. Things that I enjoy doing at home have to come to a stop. My many sprouts will have to manage on their own. I transplanted the largest sprouts to larger pots to give them room to grow. I watered. Our days are warming up and the sun is getting brighter but they still struggle. Inside with the furnace going, the soil gets dry; you can’t over water. Three things to remember; sun, water, and soil.

My ebay store is closed. funny, my facebook add for some TVs came through and I sold two large TVs. I gave them a deal and made $90. I’m $10 in the red on that deal but still have three more TVs to sell.

The ebay store closed at the height of the activity which isn’t saying much. Several items were selling a week. But I was also spending 70% of my time on the store and not getting a good return. I like having and ebay account and making a buck or two, but I may need to tone it down. Michele wants me to create.

Beside transplanting and selling TVs, I planted some potatoes. Actually green shoots have risen from several pots. These are pototo plants telling me that the potato below is growing. The pots are too small so I put them in larger pots. I placed the pots under a tree. When do you know when the potatoes are ready to be dug up? When the green shoots and leafage die back. Then they’re ready. Don’t be in a rush. I prefer large potatoes and digging up tiny undeveloped potatoes are a drag.

April 23, 2026 – As of today my ebay store and amazon seller account are shut down. On vacation. The truth is my ebay store was at going well and all that momentum that I put into it has stopped. Ebay momentum requires listing daily, responding to inquiries, shipping quickly, and generally making customers happy. You are rewarded for things like consistently listing. Some don’t think so, but there may be a Correlation between store activity and ranking on searches. As a top rated seller, i know my ranking will be high. I boost that by promoting each listing at 2%. My sales have increased since i started promoting.

My ebay account started in 2002 and I sold books through it and over time stopped. I revived the store in January of 2025. I’ve learned a lot and sales reflect it. I can be a slow learner though on face value there really isn’t much to it. You list things using basic intelligence and wait for the order. But there is more too it. Junk doesn’t sell. You lose money if you don’t price the shipping right. Do you offer free shipping? how you describe a product is very important because when people search you want the words in your description to match their search terms. There is also photographing the product. How you showcase your product also matters. as mentioned pricing is probaby the most important thing, given you have a product people want. some will say ebay is dead or slow but what they’re putting out their is stuff that may be overpriced and has a slow sell rate. I have an instinct but i’m far from being someone who sources well. for products to sell, i’ve looked around the home for my own stuff, shopped moving sales and estate sales, won online auctions, and twice went to a business that was clearing everything out for free.

Used the weed eater to trim the grass and side yards. blew the driveway and front steps. watered down the front steps because a fine layer of something couldn’t be removed with the blower. I looked like saw dust and i figure it’s spores or microscopic seeds from the trees around here.

Filled the bird feeders and put out some suet front and back. I have some Rhododendron trimmings that i’m making cuttings from and planted them into the rich soil on the side area of the house. I’ve probably planted 30 cuttings of which perhaps none or maybe some will root. Talked to a neighbor today from the next block. her and her husband have been living at their house for 33 years. i know that house and we talked houses, yards, plants, and how there are no kids on the streets.

April 22, 2026 – Sat CB and MB down to go over instructions should something happen to michele and I. I have the formal binder with all the legal paperwork in an obvious spot. What i went over was a paper that summarized and streamlined the key points such as what bank and investment accounts we have. Also, The contact information to an attorney that I’ve spoken to. She now has the basic instructions on what is to happen to our assets. It’s necessary to give them an idea of what is expected from an Executor. They now have a clue and are confident they can handle things. The lawyer is there if they need help.

Every three months i go in for teeth cleaning. Today was the day. it went fast and i was complimented on what i was doing, namely, flossing, brushing, and using the waterpik. Quite a routine that i stick with and will hopefull continue when traveling.

This person has been talking back and forth with me about a parrot toy I have for sale on ebay. why would someone make up stories to lower a $10 toy with no intention of buying it? They lowered me from $14.50 to $10, then wanted a further reduction for their “client.” I said no. They came back wanting reduction to $8.50, then when i said no they asked for $9 because they wanted to keep the price of the item and shipping at $20. I reminded them about taxes. They said they would ask their boss for an exception. Client? Boss? over a toy that talks back to you? I said that if it is so important to them to find one on ebay that at least comes with the box. Mine is the plastic toy alone. Are there people who are lonely and want someone, anyone to talk to? They said they would buy it and immediately I knew they never will and they haven’t. I told them I’m going on vacation and may shut down the store as early as today. No response.

I’ve removed my grow lights which really aren’t grow lights. things like plant care that are so important to me will go by the wayside until we get back. In fact i’m shutting down my busy life at this house in preparation for a long trip.

haircut at neals with several waiting, including a toddler and a couple of good ole boys. neal is great and always does a good job quickly. he’s owned the barbershop for some 22 years alone. I asked him if he ever gets burnt out and he said no. I noticed from a sign he’s also taking a vacation in May. it will be a cruise to mexico. cruises aren’t his thing but the wife enjoys them. he’s going with family. All the best to you buddy.

FB’s birthday, she got my card with family signatures. Michele dressed up the card with sequins and we try to use different colored ink. i used to put a gift card in but haven’t lately. budget you know.

April 21, 2026 – Transitioning to the laptop for emails, videos, and graphic arts. If there are any bugs with the laptop I want to find them out before the trip. Cleaned out the shop and put away the “death pile” a term used by resellers to describe products they haven’t listed. My pile will be conquered some time in the future. For now, ebay has consumed so much of my time I’m ready to put it aside and focus on other things like a long road trip in which i plan videos, stories, and artwork. we’ll see.

Car washed and vacuumed this morning while i had the house to myself. Michele listed the donated items and i took them to Value Village. Value Village will take practically anything. First things are given the ebay test then marked for donation. We itemize everything for tax reason. This takes a considerable amount of time. Michele did this load in the wee hours of the morning. There were many books and many routers and other electronic junk from estate sales that we don’t sell on ebay. It is written on these devices that they are not to be resold but are the property of the telecommunications company. Also, there are so many on ebay already I don’t want to compete with so many listings at low prices.

Created a post card and video about Salvation Mountain and leonard knight.

April 20, 2026 – The first day in memory that started with the temps at the low 50s. In celebration I wore shorts on my walk this morning. Before starting out I stopped off at the postal office to drop off a box containing a vintage brush for a manual floor sweeper. Coming back home three items sold on ebay. they are 1) a bible from the 1800s so trashed it was missing the title pages. I heard through watching youtube that bibles sell. I thought maybe contemporary ones and bible studies, but thought I’d give antique bibles a shot since they were appearing at estate sales. I’ve sold two in two weeks. I have a couple listed starting at $99. The one today was $14.95 and not in good condition. Interesting to see writing and even handwritten dates from the 1800s.

2) A religious book from the 1940’s. I believe Catholic. 3) A Panamanian Mola oven mitt. We used it once and it hung around the kitchen for awhile. I had it in a box for a good 15 years. They offered about $10 and I took it.

Weeded the front in preparation for our road trip. They’ll be back when we come back. Weeds grow like weeds here. They say to catch them early before their spores create a field of weeds.

Listed Ian Fleming’s You only live twice among others today.

April 19, 2026 – As we traveled today through bellevue, seward, and redmond, i noticed for the first time this year an abundance of flowers. Between the sidewalk and front lawn of many homes are their showy flower gardens and they look good. I’ve worked so hard on this yard and it still looks rough. This week I’ll have to weed eat and uproot weeds along the retaining wall.

Returning home I packed up a sweeper brush sold on ebay at discount. I picked up this brush a couple of weeks ago at an estate sale. It got a lot of activity once listed on ebay. How do i know? Because ebay shows you how many people viewed it and if anyone has saved the listing. They call that a “watch.” I had several watching this vintage brush i’m sure is hard to find.

April 18 2026 – An estate sale in Newport shores where waters from Lake Washington creep into the neighborhood like canal. We picked up several books including ian flemings You Only Live Twice. Also, American Birds from 1907. The owner had very technical taste in books and I picked up several technical books covering navigation.

Publisher will be discontinued as of October 2026. I have an old version but would like to find a newer version. Hard to find a legitimate retail copy.

Preparing for our may trip. We won’t be going to Cleveland after all and because of that we may cut out indiana also. This will shorten the trip by about a week.

April 17, 2026 – Long walk in the morning. Took two packages and several letters to the post office in downtown Bothell. Later created a postcard in publisher. Microsoft is stopping service on publisher this october 2026. They aren’t just not going to service the program, we won’t be able to do anything with the product. It will be dead.

Caught some nice pics of birds on the trail today.

April 16, 2026 – Pathos are an indoor plant that is easy to grow once you figure that a plant needs good soil, sun, and water. I rescued one and as it grew i Propagated it into several plants. To pot plants I take left over soil and mulch. These are used over and over whether I have success with a plant or not. Apparently, an American Chestnut was growing in the planter – in the soil i used for the pathos. So I had pathos growing and this second plant I identified as an American Chestnut.

April 15, 2026 – Caught a great shot of a great blue heron this morning along the same bank as before. This time he was more in the clear and not moving except for a slight jerk of the head. On the way back it was gone. Later I saw and photographed a small bird, perhaps a robin calling out towards the water. I spooked it and it took off and landed on a nearby branch. It again called out, not singing but calling. Then a similar call came out from the opposite side of the river; the bird turned it’s head and off it went. I witnessed two birds who found each other through there calls. I have it on video. Small wonder.

Felt normal today. Good energy. Mind active. Loaded some larger pots to transplant some tomato sprouts. I’m going to focus not on the group but the sprouts that are the strongest. Tomorrow I may set up a new indoor system.

Another plant emerged from the pot containing my Pathos indoor plant. The new plant turns out to be an american Chestnut. The chestnut has a hug seed, how can i miss it? The soil I use is compost I’ve kept and used for years. I’ve purchased many many bags and have made my own. When a plant dies I save the soil. things get all mixed up and nothing is lost. Soil goes from one place to the next. Who knows what seeds get transferred with the soil? I’ve pulled up potatoes.

April 14, 2026 – The secondary leaves on a sprout are it’s true leaves. The first is called cotyledons and they tend to look the same with most plants. The secondary leaves or true leaves look like baby tomato leaves on my sprouts. The sprout is still young and weak. I lifted several pots with these secondary leave high and up close to the light as photosynthesis will work to feed them. Light or the sun’s energy transferred to the plants, but they really need to be up close as my lights are rather weak.

Painted a hanging pot to add color to the shed area. Worked ebay one way or the other. Sold a large trophy. That needed packing. Once I got the dimensions and weight all figured out I looked and to my horror the shipping was twice as much as i figured. Lost two dollars on the deal. It happens. Lesson is to be accurate with the shipping.

April 13, 2026 – Most of the seeds planted a week ago are sprouting. the first leaves to appear are called cotyledons. These are not the plants regular leaves but they do start the photosynthesis process. I’ve got several sprouts with their small true leaves. How long I keep these under the light is my next challenge.

prepared short instructions for CB and MB to follow upon our death. I’ve prepared this because there are so many accounts and subscription, plus the trust.

April 12, 2026 – In the morning I look over the broccoli sprouts I spaced apart in rows in the front yard. There are fewer and fewer of the poor things. They started out life so fast and strong but are no match to the critters who devour their leaves and cut off their ability to grow. The only strategy I have is to grow the seeds indoors under lights and put them outside once they are of substantial size. I’m doing this with tomatoes and lettuce. If I can be successfull with this process I may have a garden with edibles. I’m up against night critters, cool temperatures and soil, and lack of full sun.

CC, MB and I watched a barred owl in the backyard hunting. MB believes it was going after the hummingbirds. There are plenty of birds and squirrels and things for this guy to live on. It was nice to see this owl; i’ve heard them but rarely see them.

April 11, 2026 – Appointments in Redmond, Bellevue, and Lake Forest Park. One garage sale and one estate sale. Nothing came out of the garage sale and we spent $24 on the estate sale. We often don’t realize what we pick up has any real value. Then we look it up and there are tremendous Possibilities. This includes several century old bibles, a commemorative publication on Princess Diana, and a unopened game that is unique because the box it is contained in has the work Boeing on it. This has potential. Kind of silly stuff but that makes up garage sale purchases that end up on ebay and sell. Today a Monster High trading card sold and a model train publication sold. We are Grateful for every item and learn as we go along. My ebay store is just 300 or so items.

Tomatoes under indoor lighting are going well as are lettuce seeds. Outside I planted pumpkin seeds yesterday. I also saw squirrels and a rabbit roaming around. Now that these seeds and plants are in place, I’m going to pull back on filling the bird feeds and spicing things up with suet which attracts the mammals.

April 10, 2026 – All week dry weather. This weekend rain is predicted. Felt a couple of drops on my walk this morning. On that walk along the sammamish river a Great Blue Heron stood in ankle deep water hunting for fish. It was just 15 feet away and i was able to capture it in focus and on video which i uploaded to youtube. I’ve seen them there before and I’ve been looking for them for months. Birds along the river seem to know when you’re looking at them. Maybe it’s because I stop and stare while fumbling for my camera. It gets them nervous and they fly or dart away on the water. There are plenty of places to hide with reeds and vegetation along the river’s edge. Birds i find are nervous and fearful because they feel vulnerable. They have to feel safe before taking a drink or going for the feeder.

I have a bird bath in back that the many birds around this house never use. They’re into the small one in front, mainly i believe because of the nearby trees. They go to and from these trees as they use the bird bath. They use trees and leaves to hide in; the open air is where they can be picked off and they know it.

The birdbath in back got facelift. I borrowed from yet another birdbath that is plastic and i hate it, so do the birds. on this plastic birdbath on filled the top with concrete and embedded rocks into it. Sort of like a platform. I took that concrete piece from the plastic birdbath and placed in on the underused birdbath in back. First i dry-poured Quickrete on the bowel of the birdbath then placed the rock and concrete platform on top. I kept it wet for a day and filled it with water. For the first time the water didn’t leak out. Yesterday I painted it.

To keep the birds feeling safe at the rear birdbath I positioned a couple of large branches on either side and a cross-member branch tied to the other branches with twine. From the songs I heard today, I believe it will be a hit. I think, either I’m crazy or it’s true, they voiced their approval. Here’s the pic.

April 9, 2026 – While watching The masters on prime I ran outside to do several projects. It was a sunny warm day, as beautiful day as I’ve ever seen since moving to washington in 2015. The first project consisted of painting the backyard birdbath a soft purple. It was formerly Kilz primer white. The second project was replenishing the front hummindbird feeder. Then I mounted the walkway lights onto one inch PVC piping. The pVC replaces some cheap plastic tubes that have worked well but were not Permanent.

Added two steps to a walkway. The two steps don’t match and I will replace them next time i buy some large flagstone which may be never. Lastly sold The Joy of Cooking, a book published in 1943. Collectors love this book and mine was in good condition. Priced to sell at $30. On Ebay I walk away with a little over $20 due to fees.

April 8, 2026 – As beautiful a day as any in Southern california. a deep blue covered the domed sky with nary a cloud in sight. Temps reached maybe the 60s. In the northwest days like this are counted on one hand. About this time I’m ready for spring weather. Consider those states east which will experience winter-like weather, cold temps, and snow through may, sometime june. The puget sound and pacific ocean moderates our temperature. It never gets too hot or too cold. We barely got a day of snow this entire winter.

So, today I put the broccoli sprouts in the ground. at least one third are missing their tops or starter leaves. These get eaten by spuirrels and rabbits in the night. all you see in the morning is a stem sticking up. The plant may eventually grow. The solution would be to fence the garden which I prefer not to do at this time. The broccoli were started by seed indoors and transferred outside. I wedged them between the tomatoes and pumpkins, neither of which has been planted yet. I do have tomatoes growing indoors under lights. While broccoli grabbed my attention due to its abundance, it’s tomatoes that I’m trying to grow. Whatever grows takes my attention, like chard. The last couple of years have been great. I’m also working on lettuce and flowers. Our problem here is the lack of sun. It’s up there shining down but our tall cedars block out the rays. I can cut down every tree in my yard and still have no sun even at mid-day at the peak of summer.

April 7, 2026 – See Blog

April 6, 2026 – sold the Nintendo Controller for full price. Packed and mailed it at the mill creek post office. No listings today. Got busy first thing with a long walk along the sammamish river this morning then home depot to pick up quickrete, 2x4s, and some fencing wood. The quickrete gets poured into a bucket with a trashbag lid. It will last for years. But I need it now to put in a fence post and fix up a bird bath.

April 5, 2026 – Exceptional weather day with more to come. I’m talking rising temps, blue skies, and interesting clouds. We welcome the warmth and dry days. As much as i love the weather here, warm dry days are so welcomed. My plants love these days and with the emergence if spring many plants are beginning to come out of Hibernation. Plants that I thought disappeared are slowly coming back. It may appear that winter is behind us. or is more cold weather on the way.

appointments in West seattle and greenwood. No garage sales or estate sales. Sold an author signed herb book for the discounted price of $40, down from $49.99. I’d have liked to box it up but went from the large padded envelope. I bubble wraped the book, small bubble wrap, rather thick white envelope paper, wedged In-between two cardboard pieces. then put it into the padded envelope or as some would call it, a polymailer.

April 4, 2026 – Four stops on our hospice tour today. No estate sales. By early afternoon we were home and my energy came back because I figured out why my seeds that germinate wilt and die when I put them outside. The fact is that it is still too cold for them. When I put them inside they thrive. It’s hardly Noticeable but they like being inside. The key at this time is heat, heat from indoors. I should consider putting a heating pad down. They also need light. It’s too cold and there isn’t enough light. Once they pop out of the soil, the stem and two leaves appear for photosynthesis; this requires light. I built a grow light.

April 3, 2026 – Now that we’re in April I frantically begin to piece together a road trip so vast it dwarfs any I’ve done previously. It will consume a month and encompass some 5,000 miles at 5 hours a day maximum. So far I’ve planned the route and Michele asked me to go over the route this morning. we’re using a large Rand McNally map i’ve had for 40 plus years. It’s an atlas in book form.

With no rain in the forecast I walk up our little hill to where the toppled fence ends. I thought it ended with a 4×4 but it turns out to be a 2×4. I’ll rebuild it one piece at a time. I’m spread too thin to commit to do one project at one time. The best I will do is push it forward one half-step at a time. Because after inspecting the fence from the hill, I weeded the front by the retaining wall and driveway. I raked a portion of the garden where I plan to plant pumpkin. I placed the broccoli sprouts in the garden where the full sun will hit them directly. For some reason my plants like the indoors better than the outdoors. that should change as weather warms. I now have an abundance of seeds in soil on the inside of the house in the family room downstairs. The wilted tomato sproutlets that were near death almost instantly regained their vitality. How can I tell after only a day. You can tell, you can sense it. Little hints of the plants standing more erect. Better color. Happy. When you work and observe them daily you notice or instinctively feel what is right for them and wrong. It’s like the relationship with horse owners. They can read their horse.

Listed several items into ebay. First in a few days. No action on the TVs which are advertised in ebay, facebook marketplace, and craigslist. Got an offer on an inspection book for $10. I counteroffered for $14.50 and they declined. That’s the nickle and dime bartering going on with ebay, but I know the value of that book. For property inspectors like i was it is a treasure of information. i worked for the author’s agency as an independent contractor.

April 2, 2026 – Planned the whole May road trip from a to z. Beginning to end but not what we will see and do. For that, we have to arrive and consider our options. I have a ghost town route up until Kansas.

Planted four potatoes in a large purple plastic planter pot. Was black then I painted it with a Kilz primer then the light purple color. These potatoes were placed above water and put on a window sill. Bad idea to place in indirect sun. They started to green and one oozed black gook. Four looked ok and went into the pot which I placed under a western red cedar on an area of the property i’d like to expand.

Brought in some tomato sprouts that were doing poorly outside. In fact they were wilted with no strength. Bringing them inside may give them knew life. I detected an increase in vitality but could be wrong. I brought more in and planted more tomato and chard seeds indoors.

BB birthday today. brought MB to the dentist at noon. Have an idea to make our box wood plants look better. Uploading a huge file of videos from the old computer to Onedrive.

April 1, 2026 – Testing, photographing and listing the TVs yesterday burnt me out. Today is a day of refocus. Being that we are now in April my mind turns to a road trip Michele and I plan to take at the end of the month. I need to get my house in order and this includes the trust and how it would be handled should we perish on this trip. Talked to a lawyer and got some good answers how to move forward. He’s a local attorney and knows both trusts, wills, and real estate. Twenty-five years in practice. I will talk to at least one other firm and ask for a recommendation/referral from a retired acquaintance i use to do notary work for.

Most all my tomoto plants look wilted and lifeless. These I started indoors and once they sprouted I transplanted to pots and put outside. Their problem appears to be lack of sunlight as they have become leggy. Leggy is the term when they grow too tall and skinny with no strength in their stock. I’ve got to overcome this issue. I prepared another batch by planting seeds stored from last year into my mulch then bringing them in and watering. As soon as they spring up I’m putting them outside. I’m trying to nurture these seedlings from seed to plant. As I mentioned, I was drained today and my priorities kept me indoors mostly. Good thing as it rained all day. Lovely day to be kept indoors by the rain. It’s not actually rain but a heavy sprinkle and I worked outside in it and hardly got wet.

Showed MB where the gas cutoff is on the north side of the house. I then took him into the garage and showed him the water shutoff.

Did some research on ghost towns in Nevada. Sold a pink sweater/hoodie given to me by CB. Made over $20 on that deal.

March 31, 2026 – Beautiful day for the last day of march. Morning walk along the sammamish where I filed three Hooded merganser. Several large boats docked where I’ve never seen them before. Where did they come from and how did they get there. Observed an american robin and noticed how it looks up and around when it stops and then tucks its head down when it scavenges.

Photographed and listed six of the seven TVs I bought yesterday. The seventh and largest had problems. I could not get the display going. I can see that it was on and was responding to the remote, but nothing appeared on the screen only a faint image in the background. Toast.

March 30, 2026 – My seedlings survived the dawn’s 33 degree temps. I trusted the temp would not reach 32 degrees. Plants survived but they are not thriving. Since I transplanted Broccoli, lettuce, and tomato sprouts from flats to individual pots they have not grown. Many have wilted. Some have disappeared. And some are at least upright. It’s touch and go. I’d like to put some in the ground tomorrow.

It’s a rare thing when I wake up with zero on my mind. No zeal to attack my to do list. Nothing on my brain and no direction but will to go in any direction. Then it happened. Scanning Craigslist’s free section an ad popped up offering many free stuff from a commercial space in woodinville. I called the guy and we arranged a meet at 10:30 a.m.

First michele and I dropped off two packages at the mail box down the road. Then to the uPS store for a dropoff and finally to the dollar Tree to pick up shipping supplies. At 10:30 we met at a defunct micro brewery. He was paid $3,000 to clean the place out. A room to the right had all free stuff and we took as we pleased. There was another section by the door and another on the bar. We kept collecting and eventually brought out our treasures to the car. Lastly, we spoke about the seven TVs leaning again the bar. They were all working, flat screen TVS, mostly Roku. We made a deal and I took all seven for $100. That’s $14.29 a piece. I gave him a hundred dollar bill and said we’d back. About an hour later we returned and took the TVs. I gave him my card and I have his number. I can work with this fellow. In any case, we got a lot of free stuff and I blew $100 which I should made back and then some.

March 29, 2026 – A test to see if my seedlings will survive the drop in temperature. We should get down to 33 degrees. That’s not 32 and my plants should handle one night of freezing temperatures.

Three hospice visits today and I wrapped/boxed two sales. One is a map of the gold rush territory in the Sierra’s of California, highway 49. Great detail on this catalog of interesting history with a map. I undercut someone selling this for $16. I did $14.50 then someone offered $11 and I went for it. I’ve held onto that brochure/map for 40 plus years. Glad I did.

March 28, 2026 – Three hospice visits and three estate and moving sales. Brought home a jellyfish lamp, a couple of free books and a screw organizer. It was fun palling around with the wife. Not a great sourcing day.

Temps to drop to low 30’s tonight but no freeze. I’m leaving the plants outside. Tomorrow I may bring them in. That should be it for the winter hopefully. Today we witnessed plenty of blue skies and cumulous clouds that reminded me of thunderheads in Southern California.

Finished listing books from last week including an Ernest book I set for $99. I’m also loading up Amazon as I’ve finally mastered their listing process. Watching another George Raft moving tonight – Rumba with carol lombard.

March 27, 2026 – An early spring day with a cold start. Temps in the low 30’s. On Sunday and Monday, temps will drop requiring me to either put a tarp over my sproutlets or bring them all inside. A single freeze may kill the mostly broccoli plants. I have some tomato plants out their now. They are just a couple of inches high and very delicate. I’d hate to bring them all in. There are several flats consisting of well over a dozen pots. I watered them today.

The garden soil is ready to receive these plants. I’ll wait until after Monday to decide to put them in the ground. It’s been a weird winter and whether we’ll have a freeze in April is unknown. Some wait until may or even june.

All the bird feeders got filled today with a gift of suet throughout. The birds loved it and the squirrels came around. Last night CB saw a bobcat in the backyard. It crossed her sliding glass window twice while looking for something. She moved her arm and it stopped the bobcat in its tracks and it stared in her direction. I reminded her that we saw one of these in Yosemite and she says she remembered it. They look like cats only bigger.

Sold a 1962 buick repair manual and handed it to the mailman at the mailbox. Also sold two measuring wheels for $30 to a couple of guys. The one guy makes me think twice about having people come to the home. I see no problem with it when the price is good.

Cleaned up the yard of leaves and debris around the garden and side of the house. Blew off the driveway with the blower.

March 26, 2026 – Wonderful morning walk along the Sammamish River where I saw two groups of Common Merganser. Beautiful birds. It takes about two hours to drive from my house to downtown Bothell, walk the approx 4 mile path, and return home.

Around 11:30 a.m. got home and soon transplanted some tomato sproutlets into larger individual pots and placed these outside towards the east which will provide a good amount of sunlight. I start the seeds indoors and when they germinate I place them into individual pots. When they germinate indoors they are clustered together and growing several inches tall and langly as they grope for the sun. By placing them outside I’m hoping to harden them up and not make they so tall and stretched out.

Then began to clear the weeds from the garden area located about mid-way between the house and the street out front. I cleared the weeds and raked the soil. A lot of debris fell on the walkway that runs parallel with the garden. This area is separated by red brick upturned at an angle. I cleaned up a lot of the debris. During this time i mentally planned the garden. Not wanting to plant tomatoes in the same place as last year, they will be planted a few feet to the left. Last year I built a structure to help the Tomato plant grow and grab onto something. Tomatoes act like a vine and need help to grow vertically. This structure was placed a few feet to the left and i pounded a wood stake in the center to stabilize it.

I also cleared the area to the left of the garden of weeds. finally I painted a tomato wood lattice thing that I hang on the side of the shed for decoration. It looks to good painted and I don’t want our house to look like an old farm.

March 25, 2026 – In the morning when it’s just getting light we can see the sun rising in the east behind the tall douglas firs. We could tell it’s going to be another beautiful day at least until the afternoon. I stretched and took a walk listening to music. In the afternoon raked a compost bin full of leaves. Work on the yard has started. Windy and rainy late afternoon. My notebook backings arrived and they will work. I may want to go for a 60PTS.

March 24, 2026 – Spent half the day looking for the right backing for my notepads. This is not the first time. My model is a notepad picked up in Nevada years ago. I like their backing. They made the exact product I want to make. The backing is a black mat. Not a chipboard or cardstock but a layered mat. It has to be cheap. I found one on amazon and ordered it. It is 50PTS. These have to be a certain size, cheap, and the wire binding needs to be able to penetrate through by my hand wire binding machine.

Listed some books with Michele’s help. she’s learning. It’s fun to find treasures at estate sales and come home and put them up for sale. It’s fun until it isn’t.

Brought out more broccoli plants to the outside. i have them in small pots laying on the ground. Most of what is out are broccoli. I have tomato sprouts out now.

march 23, 2026 – Fourth day of spring and no rain. Temp this morning getting up is 42. Dark in the morning at 7:00 a.m. At 8:30 went to the sammamish river for a walk. Dark turned to light turned to sunshine once again. Beautiful day. Lots of birds at the feeder. Tomorrow we should have rain so I topped off their food. Transplanted most of the broccoli sprouts to pots then put them outside in slats in front of the windows. I’m hoping they’ll get the full benefit of being outside without getting eaten. We’ll see tomorrow what survived the night.

Michele learned how to price stuff on ebay. This requires searching for the product on ebay and seeing what it’s going for. Maybe comparing with amazon. The key to pricing on ebay is to look at what has actually sold not just what is for sale. She looked at certain books and most all of them we can sell for a profit. Some surprises like an earnest publicity book that is going for well over $100 in both ebay and amazon. we can undercut everyone with a price of $125. We may get it. My experience is celebrity stuff sells. I did put up and sold my earnest press kit received after writing the agent about 35 years ago. The only time I did this.

Put a ladder for sale for $50. This came from a garage sale where they were desperately trying to get rid of stuff. They wanted 50 cents for the ladder. I still bawked but stated i was interested in it. when i went to check out he totalled my stuff to $12 with the ladder or $13 without it. I took the ladder and they were so happy they helped me load it.

MB asked me to fill the bird bath because the water came only slightly up the bird’s legs. They were having trouble bathing.

Listed the first of the norman rockwell plates. This first batch covered a collection about travels in Paris, France; rome, italy; the rhein, germany, and England. Price set at $24.99 for four plates with certificate of authenticity.

March 22, 2026 – Church at 8:00 a.m. watched online then out the door at 10:00 for a hospice visit. Went to an estate sale that wasn’t happening because we got there before it opened at noon. After the hospice visit we went to another estate sale where the guy had everything organized and marked at top dollar. We left empty handed.

finally on the way home we went to yet another estate sale at house and picked up an old wooden ladder pretty much for free, a book or two, shredder, battery charger, cassettes from lake wobegon, and pressure cooker thing which i’ll photograph and list on ebay. it cost $2.50 but should get much more than that.

Home for some Panda express and time on the couch.

Before we left this morning I boxed up another set of 10 auction catalogs sold last night on ebay. we dropped the box off at the post office before heading to the first appointment. The USPS has a huge depository for large packages in the lobby. My box was about as big as you can put in their measuring 17x14x12 or close to that. Box purchased from UHaul.

March 21, 2016 – Two locations visited for hospice work, both in Shoreline. Then off to two estate sales. The first purchased $7.50 of books, a $2 gardening tool, and a $2 radio. Total $11 after discount. Most of the books were seattle themed. Two books were of Dick’s Drive-in after the 40th and then 50th year anniversary. The local chain is still going strong with cheap hamburgers and late night lines for them.

The second estate sale we paid $70 for a collection of 71 collector plates with norman rockwell paintings on them issued back in the 1980’s. These were distributed by the bradford exchange. I can detect the themes of rediscovering women and christmas. I’ve now got to document and photograph each and put them up for sale on ebay local pickup, and facebook marketplace. For $2.50 I picked up a hanging flourescent lamp to replace the one in the garage which has a bad and noisy ballast. You can tell when they’re going out by the noisy ballast. We’ll see about the exchange. Another $2.50 spent on box of camera flash lamps in the box, probably 40 years old. These vintage things eventually sell.

March 20, 2026 – My broccoli seeds planted indoors have sprouted. When they reached two inches it will be time to either plant outdoors or place in pots. They’re close so I sprung into start work on the garden. However, there is prep work to be done before placing a rake to the soil. That soil is covered with leaves and a few weeds.

Left over broccoli seeds inside the package were left off to the side of the tray. The package received some overspray water over time and the seeds inside have started to sprout. They need soil so i put this at top priority gathing another tray, underlaying with aluminum foil, and topping off with soil. I made rows and plante the seeds.

In time the seeds that have sprouted will go outside or into pots. I filled about eight small pots with soil but decided the sproutlets need to firm up, maybe next week I’ll transplant.

Today is the first day of spring. Maybe that’s why I got up shortly after 5:00 a.m. Love getting and early start but tire out too early. Spent the morning outside and in the shop. I looked up to see a few Carmellia flowers on the tree. The rate this tree will create flowers will increase. The flowers bloom and then die almost immediately. They will cover the ground.

March 19, 2026 – I have a treasure trove of thousands of photographs taken over a life time. In reaching back i came across a single one of a monument or memorial or obelisk I came across on one of the main roads near Borrego Springs in the Anza Borrego desert. read about it in the blog section of this website.

Like this week, today was a simple day of going over postcards and trying to create an original. I failed at creating one today but did list a few existing ones from my collection. I shipped out two packages; one of the three mass market books and the other is a set of three 45 vinyl records of Tommy Dorsey.

Spent about an hour at the local pond photographing and taking video of birds. I have a youtube video in mind. It will be different than anything else I’ve done because I plan to narrate it just about scene for scene.

March 18, 2026 – Took another look at that spa equipment. Found where the water drainage went. It traveled through PVC to a corner of the house then down a tube. That’s about all I learned for today. I’m going to remove some of the lattice to access the large area under the deck. I’ll rake out the years of debris, wood scraps, and a hose. Then I’ll power wash the equipment and come up with the next idea.

Created another postcard consisting of four desert plants: Cholla Cactus, Desert Fan Palm, barrel cactus, and desert agave. turned out well but have to knock these out quicker.

sold three books that are part of a series. some type of science fiction or fantasy series. It was part of an estate sale purchase. My research found these books are expense and they’re simply mass market paperback. I listed for $34.99. They offered $21 and I took it. I’ve got too much inventory sitting around so I’ll take it.

In other news; watered the pathos, filled the coolant in the pilot and checked the oil. Also trie to get an outside thermometer working. Cleaned a section of carpet. Small things made up a day of no commitments.

Still watching George Raft movies. Tonight it’s “You and Me” directed by Fritz Lang. Seems to be a romance about a ex-con (raft) who falls for a store clerk. They get married as he’s about to leave for California. It’s very spontaneous. What he doesn’t know is that she is also an ex-con on parole.

March 17, 2026 – St. Patricks Day; dark and drizzly. Rained hard last night according to MB who rides his scooter to work at 1:30 a.m. The drizzle came down light today but all day.

Scanning and listing my personal postcards into ebay. These are cards I’ve had for 20 years and more. Got through a number of Spring valley, California cards. This is an unincorporated area of San Diego County. The postcards that I listed came from the local historical society. They are paper postcards with a vintage picture on them. On the back it looks like any other postcard. In addition, I put up some half-dozen postcards from Panama. I’ve had these for years, will never return to that location again most likely and now I list them for $4.99. I rebelled and did one at $12. From my research none of these cards can be found on the internet. They are one of a kind.

Went under the read deck to photograph the spa equipment under there. From somewhere water entered through a pVC pipe. The pipe goes to a pump, then filter and then heater. I’m still trying to figure out if this system still works, what it all is, and what can I do with it. Been in this house for 11 years and now trying to figure it out.

March 16, 2026 – Nothing on the calendar for the entire week. I relayed some projects on my mind yesterday and overwhelmed those listening. I hadn’t even covered about a third of projects. This is not to brag but to unleash the amount of project energy emitting from my brain. Afterwards I lay on the couch for the night. That’s the trick; either much work or nothing. All in due time.

A snake plant cutting i’ve been nursing for about a year has sprouted something next to it. You expect the cutting to emerge taller but it never did. I tugged on it to feel if there were roots growing, and I always got resistance. about a year ago I raised it up and saw small roots. Now a fresh sprout has emerged and all the work and patience has paid off.

My indoor seeds are in the ground. Not all of them, but some. i wanted to focus on tomatoes because i want grow these at will.

Big surprise; as written about before, i’ve collected and planted american chestnut seeds. These fall off the tree. the seeds are contained in a tennis ball size sack covered with spikes. The drop and open. inside are brown seeds. try to get these before the squirrels. the seeds need to undergo a deep freeze called stratification. I have a bunch in the freezer now. I also have some outside in a cold frame. they also say these can be kept indoors as long as the temperature stays above something like 55 degrees and kept slightly moist. I gave it a tray and a little sprout has shown.

March 15, 2026 – Chilly morning and late start for three visits in: Kirkland, Queen Anne, and Shoreline. No estate sales and no rain or snow. Home to plant indoor seeds; two types of tomatoes and broccoli. The first day of spring is friday. More than likely we just experienced our last frost. It will rain all week as we have an atmospheric river running through the region. Snowfall will be in the higher elevations.

March 14, 2026 – Didn’t expect snow this morning either did anyone else. Went on Windy.com and a narrow band of snowy weather stretched to the pacific. A winter advistory was put out. Big flakes started to fall and accumulate on the road. We left quickly to do two hospice visits in Kirkland and redmond. The redmond location reached the hills but the roads were clear. The band drifted through and blue skies appeared. Winter arrived and departed. I think to myself, “why go through winter without a little snow.” we go it and it was beautiful.

received four ebay orders, the last one cancelled. tomorrow i’ll drop the packages at the bothell post office. the items that sold were, my camera, a book from 1980 about trains, and a military electronics book from 1945. Not bad, i’m beginning to understand ebay. It’s about visibility.

examined a tree that had leaned over from the snow, it was bent to the ground. when the snow melted it erected itself. Yesterday during the snow a tree bent over the driveway and MB mentioned it to me. I grabbed the snippers and a tree saw and chopped a few branches down. That tree also re-erected. and the bird’s nest that is in it remains. I wonder if the bird will be back.

March 13, 2026 – On my blog today I wrote about my Honeywell pentax spotmatic 35mm film camera I bought when i was 18 and looking to advance in photograph. that camera went everywhere with me. i was using up until about 2000 when i transitioned to digital and never looked back. the camera has been in a box for decades. today i took it out and dusted it off, photographed it and listed it and lenses on ebay. sold same day. I’ll pack it up tomorrow.

woke up to snow beautiful snow falling in large flakes and sticking. in the afternoon the snow mixed with rain washed the roads clean though white accumulation remained in the trees and in the front yards. so beautiful. we had our winter. after this weekend we should be clear to plant outside because the last frost would have passed hopefully. They say the last frost here is march 25 but it’s never exact and some people wait until april or even may to plant. Washington state has a short growing season and i’m always too early. My trays are filled and positioned by the window down here in the family room, waiting for seeds.

March 12, 2026 – Rare day; went straight to the computer to move forward on some projects surrounding ebay. I decided to keep my second account yet only feed my first and more well established account. That way I can keep momentum going and hopefully increase sales because the ebay Algorithm likes such activity. The other account will go dormant.

I purchased two trade names; Post trading and Abstracts Today for $5 each on the Washington Department of Revenue sight. They charged me a $10 processing fee plus $1 because I used a debit card, total $21.

Rain has been steady all day. It’s the typical washington drizzle more light than heavy. It trickled from the sky all day. We just came off a wind advisory and now snow is predicted, pretty much assured. I topped off the bird feeder due to the inclement weather. They appreciate that I just know it.

Sold a Pamphlet from 1970 about an appearance of Spanish bullfighter El Cordobés. Sold for under $10 and I made just under $4. and two books by winston churchill. After all fees and shipping I netted just over $15.

March 11, 2026 – If this day passed without Incident, I’d be so Grateful. Winds over 20 mph with gusts 45 to 50. I’d enjoy it if we were in the desert amongst the Chaparral. Here there are 200 foot douglas fir trees within striking distance all around. Though I cut many of the threatening trees down, I still have neighbors. And when you cut a tree down inadvertent things happen. The wind will strike new trees and cause unexpected problems. Best to leave things where they’re at. I pray that the lord protects this house and puts a shield around us. then I pray for the neighborhood.

Spent the day working on ebay as usual. I didn’t close the other account, but I did open a store on my own account and created two categories; one for postcards and one for books. I made a banner and uploaded it along with my picture. I then wrote a small blurb about myself. Sales are so slow.

The wind came and went and we’re still here. The electricity didn’t even blink off and on. Around 3pm sB called me to tell me that he locked himself out of the car. I drove to kirkland and handed him the key. hit the commute traffic on the way back.

March 10, 2026 – Early morning temp at 33 degrees with a high of 44 this afternoon. Rain combined with a gently breeze that moved the trees. These are western red cedars and tall douglas firs. When the breeze turns to wind, there is the threat of a tree falling.

No excersize, no walk, went right to it. Listed continuously for hours mostly to ebay, some to amazon. I’m going to shut my second account down on ebay. this account was meant for postcards and ephemora only. My plan is to purchase a store on ebay called a subscription and create categories. The categories will provide exclusive showing of my postcard collection. I won’t have to manage two accounts and I’ll build on the success of the first one started in 2002. It lay dormant for the last 10 years. I didn’t get to that work today.

Primered the 50 gallon pot and washed out the brush plus three others that were in bags. The bags keep the brushes somewhat moist and they cleaned up nice. These are cheap brushes, but do the job. The two were in the bags for months.

I will use my deWalt orbiter sander to buff my car someday. Just need the polishing pads. The paint is faded and the car is looking old. When i parked it in the enterprise used car lot it looked like a jalopy. I’ll wash and polish it to spruce it up. That’s the plan.

march 9, 2026 – We had lost an hour on sunday; i gained it back by oversleeping this morning. Long walk along the Sammamish and fill up for gas at just under $5.

The headline for today is that I socialized with the family for some time. SB came over and all five of us chatted in the living room. I think retirement agrees with me. Napped and listed some reason items.

More and more i’m seeing the common merganser in the river. it started as one and now there are many. caught a group of commerants flying over with some landing in the water. They are funny birds that get separated and then go looking for each other until they group up. there is a large tree that they congregate on. They’re up on the tree about 60 feet with clear views of the river where it elbows. love seeing a variety of exotic bird life here.

March 8, 2026 – back to queen anne today, then sodo, and finally burien on hospice business. Back home around 1:30. Organized about half of the postcards purchased and an estate sale for $12. Some ok, mostly touristy stuff. It’s necessary to wade into a purchase to move forward. Started my second ebay account called post-trading. I hate the name but I remember it at will.

Published a new video yesterday. Trying to get feeback. I’ll blog the link.

March 7, 2026 – Hospice visits today in Burien and two in Queen anne. Stopped off at three sales. Picked up some books, an old camera, and some lamps for the house. Yes, we have lamps but these match. we bought four for 20 bucks. I got a free rake, some books, knee pads, and a couple of pairs of good snow gloves.

Cost of goods today was $12.50. That included two hard cover books ($3.00), two softcover Pamphlets ($1.00), and the camera ($7.50). What happened with the other $1.00? One of the books with a first edition of Zane Grey’s The Thundering Herd, hardcover, no dust jacket. The camera is small in the box Kodak Bantam f.8. i paid $7.50. On ebay, these run $19.99 and up.

March 6, 2026 – Buds appearing on many trees. Hydrangeas which have been leafless for months are showing green. There are signs of plant life everywhere. Still we’re in the throes of winter with chilly wet days with overcast skies. Winter has finally arrived in March. There is talk of snow on the mountains and much colder temps with plenty of Precipitation. Skiing season may not be over. At this time snowpack is down well over 50% in places.

March 5, 2026 – Half walk along the sammamish then drop off at the uPS Store. Took care of a backlog of listings to amazon. of all the books i can list on amazon, only one was actually listed. This is because there were hundreds of the same book on sale. I’d rather use my time to list those books on ebay which I did. Listed a few postcard on ebay – post-trading.

March 4, 2026 – Finally responded back via email to my aunt and uncle. This friendly family email was overdue by about two months. SB came over and picked up fishing gear. When I handed over two rods with reels I realized these were his and his brother. We went fishing years ago.

Lowest blood sugar score ever. Must be doing something right. Trying to walk daily as I did today and feel great.

Business tax paid $6 to the dOR.

Created second ebay account dedicated to postcards and Ephemera which are things like tickets and postcards that are used once and tossed.

March 3, 2026 – Backed up on computer work. I owe an email to my uncle and a letter to my aunt, both about three months overdue. And still overdue. Two items sold on ebay today, these included a vintage coleman camping stand and an unusual cookbook having to do with the ancient craft of sourdough baking.

An unusual find outside while preparing large tubs to plant potatoes. First they needed to be primered white than painted. when I dumped the mulch out of one of them I noticed chestnut seeds had germinated. how did that happen. I figure that a squirrel grabbed onto the nuts and put them into the pots and forgot about them. there were at least half dozen seeds that germinated. I have pots with these seeds all over the place and here the squirrels have done the work for me. Also some small potatoes got in there too. I put it all back together and slid the pot back into place. Hopefully each sprout will turn into a tree or more potatoes.

March 2, 2026 – Walk along the sammamish river produced 9,186 steps. And the day begins, starting with packing the swiss army watch.

Possibly last of the blue sky winter days. Rain is expected for the rest of the week. Total lunar eclipse tonight between 2am and 4 am. Cold this morning with the home monitor reading 36 degrees. With no clouds and sun up, the air warmed to over 60. I was in the middle of my walk when I had to take my beanie off. Later in the day did some work outside. I’m slow and unmotivated but got some things done.

Finally, snipped the branches off the small dead tree that fell. It had a Circumference of about 7 inches. The branches broke showing me that the tree had died some time ago and the wood is dry and aged. I used the sawzall to cut down the trunk. I put it all in my large tote for camping wood.

On sunday on our way to a hospice visit, we ran into a traffic jam. The light ahead stayed on red for the longest time. Then we looked and a draw bridge went up. This is by UW and I’d been over that bridge many times. I had no idea it was a draw bridge.

March 1, 2026 – Just accepted a $20 offer on a swiss army watch. In just a couple of days, I had 117 views of this watch on ebay. Sold for $20; it had scratches.

WB birthday today. Texted happy birthday. i usually call but we were up and out for a hospice visit. Did three visits today; one in sammamish, one in seattle, and one in shoreline. came home and took a nap then scanned some postcards; took out the trash, filled the bird bath with water. Rain is scarce, days are beautiful. a blue dome above and we see far off mountains capped with snow.

SB and D are looking to go fishing. I’m lending them fishing gear, most all of it. Except my backpackers fishing pole which is dear to me; caught a rainbow trout in the backcountry of yosemite 44 years ago with my buddy curt.

February 28, 2026 – One admission in Sammamish and afterwards we attended an estate sale in Carnation where I bought two totes of books for $10 and two fishing poles with reels for $5 each. Afterwards, at home, could not accomplish much of anything. What little i did consisted of doing the kitty littler and in the process cleaned and replaced the rubber belt on my kirby. Then vacuumed the kitty area.

Yesterday spotted two varied thrush in the bird bath. Called out to michele so she could see them from above. They are common here at least to me. They’ve been coming around lately always to the bath. It sits in the bath. Yesterday, another came along and the first one chased it off. i was watching the dark eyed juncos and they are either sharing the bird feeder or chasing each other away from it. I’m not sure is they are chasing away a cousin from another tribe and being territorial or trying to keep the feed for themselves. It all has to do with the bird seed, but they share so well. Why the aggression? More squirrels coming around since I’m keeping up the feed so well.

Beautiful sunny day like spring. Certain trees are beginning to bud. I’m getting my trays in order to seed indoors. Spring will come early. If I plant seeds to early and have to transplant outside, there must be no threat of frost. One frost will kill everything. Best to wait until mid-april to plant the seedlings outdoors after the last frost.

February 27, 2026 – A major mistake today. SB and I went to Enterprise used cars on aurora in seattle. it wasn’t hard to find the right car and even test drive it. The problem came down to things like monthly payment, down payment, and interest rates. All too high. We had to walk out. Lesson learned; don’t shoot high for a car and allow your hopes to get dashed. Hope deferred makes a heart sick. Let’s just say things went bad. There is such a good side to all this that to me it was worth seeing the issues about credit, paying high interest rates, and aiming for a car far outside your ability to pay. If you want to live independently with cash in your pocket, get a modest car and maybe you can afford that apartment you so desire.

February 26, 2026 – 9442 steps along the sammamish river by 11:00 a.m. the walked turned unusual when i realized i forgot my earbuds. I did the walk between me, my thoughts, a Cormorant on a log, and an unusual looking duck in the water. With no ear buds there was no reason to bring the phone. It was locked in my glove compartment. Still, an enjoyable walk. Spent the rest of the day doing minor chores such as listing several watches. There were two watches that required batteries which i did not have. They came in yesterday and today they went in. Both backs came right off and snapped back on with just my fingers, what a relief. An order came in for 10 auction catalogs. the order was the result of a promotion i paid 2% for. The catalogs are boxed up and ready to go. As I right this another offer for 10 catalogs just came in. I want $21.99 and they are offering $18.50. I’ll accept the offer. I really pack these books well. They were free, given to me from a neighbor having a moving sale.

Still considering a second store on ebay.

February 25, 2026 – Research and list with ebay. The research portion of the day found me planning the first, second, and possibly third day of our planned may roadtrip. Our first venture may be Multnomah Falls off I84 heading east. Then there is the Elowah Falls. On the way to our stay at the dalles, we plan to hit bonneville dam with tours at 10:30, 1:30, and 3:30 daily. That should be it for the first day. The second day we’ll visit a museum and a day’s excursion to several ghost towns including dufur.

At 6pm I met up with a Facebook seller and bought a fujitsu s1500 scanner for $40. Took it home and it works perfectly. There was some doubt whether it would work. The unit was sold for about $500 a dozen years ago. The unit is no longer supported and wasn’t expected to work with the Windows 11 operating system. there is a workaround which I tried successfully. got my first postcard scan. on the way home i realized this unit will work great at digitizing the family photo albums.

February 24, 2026 – Photographing and listing morning noon and night to ebay. Mostly books, maps, and brochures from far past travels. I’ve held onto everything. Now it’s time to part. A Boquete Panama book, Calico ghost town book, Castle Dome brochure, highway 49 California map. Yesterday I listed a set of 8 books obtained from an estate sale attended on Sunday. The author is Arthur Payson Terhune. He wrote books about heroic an exceptional dogs with title like My Friend the Dog, Wolf, A dog named chips, lad of sunnybank, treve, lochinvar luck, The faith of collie and buff a collie. These were Children’s books but well written with a lot of dog insight. One thinks of Lassie and rin tin tin.

Took a short walk after stretching and some calisthenics. Only outside work was to fix an umbrella over a bird feeder and MB and I played around with a large branch that had fallen. I thought it was a small tree, but MB showed that it was just a branch that had broken off a fallen tree. I will plant a Euonymus in the spot it once Occupied on the hillside.

February 23, 2026 – It’ looking like winter with overcast skies and cold, no rain today but rained heavy last night. Spent the day filling the filing cabinet with brochures, maps, and other travel paperwork from years of road trips and further. I threw away nothing, now I have it all in one place.

Recently I sold a brochure I picked up for $19.99. I’ve come across several other brochures that are “vintage” and for sale on ebay. In my travels I picked up booklets from places like El Rosario, Baja, and Boquete, Panama. Then there is the little booklet from Calico Ghost Town in California. All to be put up for sale on Ebay.

february 22, 2026 – Four hospice visits and an estate sale put on by a family operation called bednobs and broomsticks. Picked up some old books, mostly about dogs like lassie. Good find. Also, bought a scale, tape measure which I gave to MB, a foot massager, and $12 worth of postcards. I will probably start a second ebay store dedicated to postcards.

filled the bird feeders but let the suet go empty. the birds have no learned how to enter the squirrel proof cage and munch down suet at a rate of just a few days to clean it out. Months ago I placed umbrellas over a couple of bird feeders, silly as it sounds. They need repairing once in a while. I re-strapped one down this afternoon.

The filing cabinet is getting organized. at the estate sale today i bought 25 hanging folders for $1.

February 21, 2026 – A day spent mostly on hospice visits; two in the morning and one by UW in the afternoon. After the morning visits, we located an estate sale conducted by grasons in redmend. Grasons is a auction company that also manages estate sales. This was the third day of the sale and everything was 50% off. I picked up some cheap souvenir spoons for $1.50 each, a Merc medical book, two VHS tapes, and a 4-drawer filing cabinet. The two VHS tapes were of dumbo and babe. These I got for $1.00. The filing cabinet started at $75 and we would have paid half of that but decided to bargain them down to $20 dollars. I also bought a rubber rain coat, my size, for $15. I also bought a nice sturdy tape measure and a book, “Call of the wild.” It’s a hard cover first edition made for children.

February 20, 2026 – Yesterday, I accepted an assignment to photograph a car as part of an insurance/appraisal situation. The insured apparently ran over something that completely knocked out their undercarriage. The car has a protective plastic shield underneath where the muffler is and tail pipe. the shield runs the length of the car. What was one piece turned into many pieces and based on their story they ran over something. From the thrashing that car took, they are a poor driver. The vehicle is a sporty Subaru. None of this was learned from the assignment info, but from the body shop manager. I was thankful for the information because I had to take pictures of the damage. The damage was subtle scrapes and hardly noticeable dents here and there. The car was on lifts so the job of photographing was made easy because the car was up in the air. He moved it out so I got shots of the front, back, sides, engine, tires, VIN number, and odometer. All done with the help of this kind gentleman.

back on board with amazon. I’ll be feeding the beast as best I can. I listed a couple of books. By far most of my books go to ebay. also dealing with corebridge financial (AIG) to get a refund on a life insurance policy that they we cancelled yet they kept taking money out on October, November, and december of 2025.

SB has coverage for his car. That means that he is not dependent on the person whose fault it was and their insurance. Having his own insurance through uSAA means he has great coverage including rental car; we get our car back. He told me today that someone ran into the back of the car because he noticed some dents. I told him not to worry about it.

February 19, 2026 – Our first sprinkling of snow. Not much of an accumulation though quite present this morning on the roof of the gazebo and along the street. On my walk along the Sammamish River today I got some frozen rain which are little round pellets of snow.

On the walk saw canadian goose in the water. One or two are added each time I take this walk. My watch calculated just under 10,000 steps. Working on watches to list. Accepted a job assignment where I take pictures of cars for a company in Texas. Easy money supposedly. So much for being retired. Got out property tax bill and in April the bill is over $4,000, $8,000 for the year. God has provided.

Many american robins foraging on the path. They scat as I approach.

February 18, 2026 – Finally planted my pathos cutting into soil. I’ve had these cuttings in various water containers. After time they will grow roots in the water. Mine had grown roots in the water 2″ and 3″ long. It was time to place them into soil.

February 17, 2026 – Slight chance of wintry weather all week, no snow has dropped from the sky, until this morning. Small, tiny flakes appeared amidst the rain. I saw one small snowflake float and hit the ground where it held on to it’s form for about two seconds than turned to water on the blacktop. And so ends our wintry weather for Tuesday, tomorrow a new story of possible snow. We’ll see.

Spend the morning and afternoon in Maple Valley doing an admission. We actually travelled new roads, saw wild rivers never seen before, and entered a community foreign to us. Much of the day spend for that one event. Returned home to list a few things on ebay and made an attempt to create a hanging plant holder from rope and twine. I consider it a failure to have to buy this device from Amazon. Are we that helpless?

My pathos have been thriving in water. Roots have appeared and extend out at the bottom of the glass. New leaves have appeared and old ones are looking healthy again. It’s time to place them into soil. Only, I prefer to hang the plants versus places the leaky pots on window sills and counter space. They need to be hung. Pathos cannot grow outside.

February 16, 2026 – No snow in the lowlands despite the wintry forecast. Just as well as we’re doing some mid-week driving. With the friday the 13th accident that totaled his car, SP is without wheels. Today I lent him Michele’s car to get to work. Bad news about insurance and relationships added to the problems. But good comes from these issues. More and more is coming out about his accident and the fact that SB is still tells us that god had his hands on SB and not to look at the negative. we’ll get through this. He has become my priority since I worry about him. Setbacks, regrets, and problems are part of life. Don’t let the big setbacks weigh you down, it could always be worse. When you want to be delivered from your predicament, go to the one who holds this power. I’ve come along side SB to comfort and support. But these circumstances are tough on him. I can’t give him the hope and joy I have in trusting my savior. They are his as well, but he has take his eyes off the circumstances and put his hope where is should be, in christ.

the cold air and threat of snow brings the birds back in droves, mostly the juncos, chickadees, and anna’s hummingbird. I can look at any one of the three hummingbird feeders and see one feeding within five minute. Late yesterday I added more suet and seed to the bird feeders. let them feast during the cold season when nothing grows.

February 15, 2016 – A 4-fold mostly black and white brochure sold for $19.99 plus shipping on ebay. What made it worth keeping for over 30 years is the historic opera house it advertised and the lady who performed there. She owned and operated the Amargosa Opera House and Hotel. Her name was marta becket and she hand wrote the rates to the rooms on the brochure and gave it to me.

Michele and I were driving through that region which is near death valley. we were coming in through the back way when I spotted this unusual building with arches and walkways. It looked deserted. Once we walked the exterior we came to the front office and ticket booth with posters and advertisement. I could not understand if what I was seeing was old from a bygone era or current. It appeared to be current. A woman who I know now to be marta becket approached us. She was somewhat in a hurry or had a presence of being forceful. I believe she first said, “ofcourse we still have shows here, and rooms to rent.” Then she softened up and wrote the rates on the brochure. we talked for a moment more and moved on. I told myself I want to come back and stay there and watch a show, but it was so remote.

she has passed now and fond memories of her are kept by those who knew here. She did a one-woman show. She’s on the internet and youtube. After fees and shipping, I made a little more than $14. And now after 30 years I’m separated from this brochure. A brochure that captured my imagination, touched a bit of history, and obviously has some value to someone out there who knows the story.

February 14, 2026 – A mild winter continues. Even forecasts of rain produce sprinkles. We get the dark clouds and temps in the 30s, but little rain and snow is a rumor. There are 4 inches of new snow on snoqualmie with many of the lifts operating. After 10 years of good winters we’ve entered a mild year where more blue skies and sunshine with cold temps are the norm.

We did two hospice visits and an excursion to an estate sale managed by grasons who do auctions and liquidations. Everything was half off. I bought four remote controls which i listed on ebay. Remotes sell. I bought a window alarm double pack new in the box. Also a coleman vintage camping stand to put a table on or our ice chest. The product is probably 70 years old and I found it sealed in the box. I paid $5 and put it on ebay for $49.99.

February 13, 2026 – At 7:15 received news that SB got into a car accident. His car is Totaled, he’s ok. He had the green light. The person ran right into him. The firefighter said he was good to go home, no need to go to the hospital. I told him we’ll get through it and that this type of thing happens.

We did hospice work in Redmond. On the way home we went to a moving sale in Kirkland. Picked up a sterling silver watch, a couple of lights, and about five RCA Victor Musical Smart Sets. These sets have vinyl 45s and were produced in the 1950s. I put one up on Ebay for $19.99.

February 12, 2026 – Filled the bird feeders. I’m filling them twice a week. Mostly dark-eyed juncos, but many tiny chestnut-backed chickadees. They all know me watch carefully. They scatter when I come by but some creep back along the branches, sometimes just a few feet away. I can look up and see their color pattern and little heads darting left and right, up and down.

Low energy day with a nap around 2:00 p.m. Finally got my amazon seller account reactivated and posted a listing for practice using my phone. I see great potential. Amazon is very competitive.

this morning went back to the Uhaul store and picked up some small boxes roughly the size of a bankers box. Based on online measurements these boxes should slip tightly under my 12 inch high shelves. when i got the boxes home and taped up, I measured and they are exactly 13 inches, not the 12 5/8 advertised online. I bought 10 at $1.56 each plus $1.61 tax for a total of $17.21.

February 11, 2026 – Getting back into the routine of walking every day. Did a 3.5 mile walk along the Sammamish River. Yesterday, I had stepped into a thrift Store and made a $2.19 purchase. The gal cashier was obviously sick with a cold and wore a mask. I feel I got the cold this morning while waking up. Took some meds and did the walk. Felt great by the afternoon.

Took a call from a nutritionist offered by the VA. We spoke about KETO, carbs, and protein. We talked about a light breakfast to get the Metabolism going and suggestions for lunch and dinner. For some people it’s best to prepare Meals on a sunday for example and then grab the meal during the work week. The one goal here is to stay off the quick snacks and have a sensible meal. Also, don’t neglect carbs as they are fuel.

Along the river saw many ducts including several flying straight down the river. That is the most beautiful sight. In this case they were canadian geese.

Listed on ebay after a short nap. Worked until 9:00 p.m.

February 10, 2026 – We’ve begun to plan a May road trip, just Michele and I. We’ll take my car and stay at hotels. We’ll visit national parks as a primary goal. This road trip will take the entire month of may 2026.

Half of this day was spent talking to Amazon to get my seller account active. apparently it’s been successful since my products are active and showing up in the listing. I will add more product as time allows. Ebay is my primary.

Visited Neal’s barbershop for an overdue haircut. He last cut my hair in August of 2025. It was good to see neal and he did a great job. I like whitewalls on the side and tapered in the back like my navy days.

February 9, 2026 – Time given to others. Two hospice visits in west seattle. Later listed 10 books on ebay. No sales. Working to organize garage. Reducing tool storage. for example, i no longer need straight and philips screw drivers. I have one tool with interchangeable heads. Pliers can be hung on peg board. This allows more counter space.

Pathos cuttings that were placed in water have grown roots and are prospering. The roots are long enough to be put into soil after they’ve grown a couple of inches. All mine has reached this stage. It does take some planning as to where the plants will go. They need a window and flat surfaces to place the pots require scrutiny. I prefer to hang pathos. Thus, I may spend money on a macrome dangling pot holder.

February 8, 2026 – Brought the family home from seatac. MB ordered mexican and we had lunch before the superbowl started. Michele hung out with me for the first half of the game. The kids came down for the half-time show. I watched the seahawks win alone. SP is at friends house watching the game yet no understanding what he’s seeing.

Investigated the tree that fell last night. A small one on a hilly portion with little stability. Above it are huge trees that can damage the house. It’s what we live with. Soon I’ll cut up the tree and dry the wood.

February 7, 2026 – My last day alone here at the house, and what a day. Didn’t do much but kept busy. Listed a book on ebay that I’ve had around for several years. Probably paid about $2.99 at Value Village. It’s going for over $100 on ebay and the same on Amazon. In fact Amazon has one with tabs going for over $300. I can find the exact book for under $20, but ebay has it consistently over $100 by many different sellers. Then there are a few who have it down below $100. I looked at the sold list and people are paying close to and exceeding $100 for this landscaping book. I set my price at $49.99 and got an offer for $25 within the hour. I countered for $35 and sold the book within a couple of hours. Later, I packed it and drove around until I found a mail truck and handed it to them. I was gone for about 10 minutes.

In that 10 minutes of time got a visit from SB. We drove to McDonalds and went home and chatted. I had a great time talking to him.

My light switch came in and I installed it. In the four days the family was gone I switched out four light switches to rocker style. No one will notice but me.

We spotted a varied thrush at the bird bath and i got a bunch of photos from it.

February 6, 2026 – Time is continuous, unstoppable. January progresses. Today, alone again, did a Home Depot run for light switches, garage floor cleaner, light bulbs, and carpet shampoo solution. Took the car for a wash and cleaned the inside. No listings. Shipped out a disney product bought on ebay. Declined an offer for a book because after shipping and fees, I’d probably loose money.

Monkey Puzzle Tree keeps putting down seeds, hundreds at time. The squirrels eat them immediately. I find no good ones to plant.

February 5, 2026 – A day alone here at the house. After my quiet time and a neighborhood walk, I spent most of the day switching out light switches, something I had planned to do. I’m changing all light switches to rocker type. These are flat and more stylish. In the process I have most of the house pinned down as to what switch is turned off by which circuit breaker. The job isn’t complete, but the main panel is matched to the various switches and outlets. it’s not perfect as the former owner was an electrical engineer and there was a second breaker box tied in to heavy workshop equipment and a jacuzzi. The jacuzzi from the 1980’s is still under the deck out back. Some day I’ll remove it.

February 4, 2026 – We’ve watched this day coming for a long time. Michele and two kids head to Ohio for a family visit. I’m home alone until Sunday, Superbowl Sunday. So far my routine continues though the house is a different place. I want to get things done and started with the least desirable which was to locate a leak in a toilet and fix it. The leak may very well be condensation. In any case, I tightened a bolt that holds the tank. I put down some paper towels to catch any hint of moisture. None so far.

Sat out back for awhile and took the birds by surprise. I could tell they were not used to a human presence. I brought my DSLR but the birds were scattered. It’s quiet out there but distant neighbor’s and their projects echo through the holler.

Ribs and rice for dinner. Furnace turned down and fireplace on keeping this one room warm.

February 3, 2026 – spent most of this day listing on ebay. First i packed and shipped a barometer sold for $19.99. Listings included a couple of Sunset landscaping books and two watches. The watches it turned out were nice but not worth more that $20 each. I replaced the battery and set the time on one in order to check its accuracy. Watches when photographed are set to 10 minutes after 10:00 a.m. I’ve heard. I’ll have to double check that.

Tonight, watching a fred Astaire movie.

February 2, 2026 – Age 64 and a day. Early morning celebration with a walk along the sammamish, just me and the ducks. I’m appreciating the overlooked mallards, what a beautiful bird. At the bend near where the path approaches UW, I followed a double-breasted Cormorant in the air. It landed on a branch of a tall tree with wide stretching branches. the bird saddled up next to another bird, the mate. About 10 feet away on another branch was yet another of the bird that took off on it’s own journey. Up the river where construction continues on the new overpasses, I ran into several goldeneye mixing it up with another Cormorant. Later spied a canadian goose floating in the water. I aimed my camera and videotaped it when another splashed to the left. They floated away together. A beautiful scene.

During this walk I had ear buds and ordered christian instrumental music. What played was strange hypnotic sounds along with familiar melodies. I guess christian music comes in all types these days. Very enjoyable all the same.

February 1, 2026 – All five of us together for my birthday. Turned 64 today. Food was ordered from a local mexican restaurant. We had cake and ice cream, then opened gifts. The big gift to me was a new desktop computer. Writing on it now and will make it my prime computer. my old Dell will go in the garage shop for ebay Usage. The laptop will be excess.

Experimented with monkey puzzle tree seeds. Found some fresh ones. These get eaten up in a day if left out. But who is eating them? what critter. I set the smart birdfeeder camera low and placed some seeds in front. the camera was triggered overnight and i reviewed the capture this morning. Turns out to be a squirrel, as suspected. I may turn this into a blog post.

January 31, 2026 – Today we say so long to a good adventuresome month of January in the year 2026. I look back to this month as the start of this daily journal. It keeps me writing and I’m doing what I started this Abstracts today blog for which is disseminating information. What information? every day will tell. This daily journal called “today’s abstracts” has taken over this blog. I can hardly get to a featured article.

This journal is simple and quick; a featured article has a clear subject and a subject matter worth publishing. this here journal is a daily recap. nothing much goes here but the doings of an ordinary day. and maybe, in a subtle way, each day is extraordinary.

However, i typically do not get personal in this here journal. There must be a notable event …at least for now.

january 30, 2026 – Dressed and headed out the door when I realized it was sprinkles. The sprinkles turned to rain and I’m glad to have remained home. After camping the two nights ago, in the rain, in the dark, without proper bed padding; all I can say is there is no place like home.

Camping in the old days was a lot of fun, adventurous, and life changing. Either it’s me being older or the cold rainy nights here, but I find it challenging to enjoy a night out camping. I like being alone, but miss the family. I’ve also been absentminded and forget things like a chair or cooking pans. I have a long way to work the kinks out of my solo camping excursions. I learned a lot on this last trip: get back to camp before nightfall, good weather is ideal, a routine must be developed, and simple things like brushing your teeth need to be incorporated properly. Sleep is vital and a good mattress is essential. Need space to sleep. My 2007 Honda Pilot isn’t ideal, it could work, but more thought is needed before I go back out there. No place like home.

sold an old TI-10 calculator and mailed it off today. The box doesn’t fit out mailbox so I wait for the postal person. I missed them today and had to go to the post office as there were no trucks to flag down. there were but not in the right place. One was parked by a small eatery. I’m not going to go in there and give the person my package. Took a nice drive and started my mileage log for 2026.

January 29, 2026 – yesterday I photographed and videotaped a small sandpiper type bird feeding in a flock on muddy farmland. As a group they rose and twirled as if synchronized. Sometimes they’d circle go off a hundred yards and sometimes they’d return to the exact same spot. Not sure if I spooked them; I believe I did. There were probably 50 to 100 in a flock.

now that I’m home and had a chance to crop a nice focused shot of the bird and put it through Merlin ID, I find this is not a Western Sandpiper, but a Dunlin. What is a dunlin? I look forward to the research.

January 28, 2026 – Spent the day out bird watching in Skagit County then camping along the skagit river. Learned a lot on the trip. Did great birdwatching at the Wiley slough and fir island reserve. Next went to the abandoned sanitorium east of sedro-wooley. Camped at Rasar.

At rasar it was rain and got dark quickly. Realized I forgot my chair and cooking pans. Rainy, wet, dark, and took numerous attempts to get a fire started. Setting up my bed in the back of the 2007 Honda Pilot took up the remaining light. Ended up with a good fire and cooking a frozen Chimichanga and burrito over aluminum foil. The firepit had a grill. That night, I bumped a nozzle on the air cushion and all the air went out. Slept directly on the hard back of the car. Long night of the soul.

Next time camping need to go by a list. Will there be a next time? am I trying to recreate my youth? Need comfort items at each step. The car, tent, firepit setup is too primitive for me anymore. I also need to plan to have more daylight in camp. Many lessons learned. Not the best experience. There is no place like home.

January 27, 2026 – tuesday with temperature rising into the 40s. Late evening rain for the first time in weeks. The rain will persist for the next few days.

Many birds at the feeder and our Leucistic Dark-Eyed Junco is back. We’re getting mostly juncos and chickadees. Gone are the nuthatches and stellers jays. I do see american robin along the sammamish river.

preparing for an overnight camping venture to the skagit tomorrow. car is packed. A few details to deal with. plan to bird watch at the various sloughs along the south fork of the skagit.

Received my 1099 from aMN today. That was the last doc needed to complete our taxes.

January 26, 2026 – After much procrastination, I worked on the Bissell Revolution carpet cleaning machine. Confirmed the roller movement is weak and I can stop the motion with my finger. No spray either. Discovered a second belt to the roller which had a break in it and was stretched out. Ordered one of these from Amazon. It should come in today. I also cleaned the machine but didn’t address the no spray issue. Paid over $200 for this unit and though we have one good one and one in the box (paid $20 for it at an estate sale), I really want to learn to fix these things and have a back up. This home has nearly 3,000 sf and most of it is carpet. The biggest problem with the carpet were the dogs but they are gone now. the cats bring their own issues onto the carpet. we’ve learned how to work out a stain pretty good. spray the stain, let it soak, then run the bissell over it. If that doesn’t work keep attacking it. some stains have taken years to disappear, or so it seems.

keeping my blood sugar down. well below 120 consistently. blood pressure and pulse are ok.

January 25, 2026 – Clocked the first hummingbird to the feeder at 7:59 a.m. (i have a camera that notifies me of any activity). The temperature measured 26 degrees when I got up and around this morning at 6:30 a.m. The high was 38 around 2:00 p.m. We have a light blue sky with a white hue of clouds. Rain predicted next week and temps will then rise into the 40’s. I have not heard of any snow on the mountains for some time. It has rained in weeks. My plants are loving the sun and in the sun there is warmth.

Water freezes and does not melt. I feel the pain of our yard birds; no place to bathe or drink. So I filled up a gallon jug and poured the water into the bath. It filled the bath and covered the ice frozen to the base. I looked out and a happy bird took a dip, splashing itself like it didn’t mind the coldness.

Five birds seen at the feeder and bath today: Spotted Towhee, Dark-Eyed junco, Varied thrush, chestnut backed chickadee, and anna’s hummingbird.

January 24, 2026 – The sky is a deeper blue than I’ve seen since moving to washington state in february of 2015. Cloudless skies. Temps stayed in the 30’s and maybe reached the 40’s or 50’s in some places. Down in deep bellevue I felt the warmth of the sun. It’s not hot, but warm. The sun is low on the horizon and at one point we drove straight towards it, the light blinding us as we entered interstate 405 south. Keep in mind the sun would be directly overhead except we are on a tilt. That tilt away from the sun brings on winter. We are further from the sun than at any time during the year. But hear comes spring and summer. like a correction to the earth’s wobble in its rotation around the sun.

Collected the raked leaves and put the compost dumpster to the street. Listed the huffy bicycle on ebay local pickup only. then listed it on facebook and craigslist. SB paid $20 for it. I’m asking $99.

Set the smart bird feeder closer to a hummingbird feeder. This did not disturb the hummingbirds from feeding. Definitely Anna’s Hummingbird. The make has a ruby red throat and crown. the female is green mostly. Both came up to the feeder. As night falls they’re gone as is the case now at 3:20 p.m. in the morning I can see feed at daybreak, but not before.

January 23, 2026 – My VA blood test results came and everything from iron to chloresterol fell in good. Blood pressure and pulse fine today and my blood sugar was in the 123 range. Really dialing these things in. Much of what I take in is sugar free or keto.

Walked the long 3.5 mile jaunt up and down the Sammamish River today. Cold, in the 30’s. Hardly anyone out. In fact, I’m beginning to see the same people. Video taped some mallards and canadian geese. Photographed a gull to see if I can identify it. they’re called gulls i’ve learned. There’s no such thing as a “sea” gull. They are found inland just as well as along the coast. I like the sound of seagull I admit.

Shipped the books sold on ebay and listed a few more plus a knife that cuts linoleum. The knife is vintage in its original box. Unfortunately, many others on ebay have the exact same item. ebay is the country’s garage sale and things go dirt cheep.

January 22, 2026 – Conflict within to either go camping on my own or stay at home. I stayed and enjoyed conversations with the family and did some projects. Michele and CB went to costco. MB stays over a friends house about every Thursday. The house is quiet with CB at work and Michele in bed and it’s only 4:30 p.m.

Completed the second cold frame. Raked the yard of some fall leaves. They say leave the leaves. Well I did. But the leaves are pale and appear to have expended any nutritious value. I could be wrong. I do have a lot of leaves still on the ground for erosion control. I look up and the American Chestnut trees is barren of leaves. So is the maple and the weeping cherry. I can see deep within the trees and I know there’s an owl up there. A large bird crossed our window this morning. MB and I saw it. It may have been the owl, perhaps going after the cat behind the sliding door.

Another last minute project that I’ve been thinking about. for christmas I got a smart bird feeder. It has a ring camera on it. It’s like a ring camera and activates when there is movement. I set it up a couple of weeks ago and as predicted I’m seeing the same birds I see in my downstairs window. The smart bird feeder offers nothing that I don’t see already. in fact it tries to identify a bird and comes up wrong. It will tell there is activity from a bird that doesn’t even belong in this hemisphere.

I took the smart bird feeder and placed in on a pole. The pole is from a closet not in use anymore. At the base I screwed in a square piece of wood. The wood is laminated shelving. I didn’t account for the large screw head at the bottom of the base so i fastened two piece of wood parallel with each other at the thing will stand on these. I mounted the smart birdfeeder onto the pole and used a block of wood to secure the belt that came with the product used to attached the feeder to tree trunks. the block of wood allows some girth to fasten the belt tightly.

sold a set of fish books; four in the set and got full price of $49.99. For packing used 5 sheets of small bubble wrap; two across and three around. I have a large stash of used boxes, mostly amazon. for heavy books I avoid amazon entirely. Found a 12x9x9 strong box and laid heavy on the packing tape to secure the bottom. then added peanuts like a cushion on the bottom. I placed the bubble wrapped books on top of the cushion of peanuts and added more peanuts on every side and on top. I always include a packing slip. Sealed the box and weighed it, rounding up. then measured it and rounding up those figures also. Best to round up. this box weighed 6.8 pounds and I still had to tape it up and tape the shipping label. I went ahead and called it seven pounds. it did not go over seven pounds. if it had i would have rounded up. Being that i’m sending books, i’m going uSPS media mail. Cost just over $8 shipping. I’ll send it off somehow tomorrow.

january 21, 2026 – Early morning temperature at 32 degrees. MB said it was 31 when he went to work at 3:00 a.m. We are till experiencing beautiful clear blue sky days and no clouds. Temps went into the 50’s. Woke up at 5:00 a.m., about two hours early. Went for the 3.5 mile walk along the Sammamish River. By the apartment buildings near the foot bridge saw about five canadian geese. Later saw and photographed for the first time Hooded Mergansers, a male and female.

Months ago we found a couple of windows in front of a house and I picked them up to make a cold frame. Today I finally made the cold frame and put the monkey puzzle seeds in it along with some parsnip, tomato, and chard seeds, just to see what happens. How useful is a cold frame? At the least it should keep the squirrels from eating the monkey puzzle tree seeds which are rich in nutrients. I may put my american chestnut tree seeds in the box as well. Currently i have those seeds, gathered from their pods on the ground, in pots with wire mesh over them.

Cleaned up SB’s bike and will advertise it for sale. It’s a huffy. Cleaned up a Sentia kirby vacuum cleaner that i’ve had for sale. I want to update the pictures since the metal got oxidized and I’m not going to clean the thing again. I’ll cut the price in half just to get rid of it.

January 20, 2026 – In the morning I get up and take a seat on the couch with a hot cup of coffee. I take my blood pessure, pulse, and blood sugar. At some point I look left to two hummingbird feeders. I know in moments a hummingbird will appear and have a drink as they did this morning. This tells me my sugar water mixture is good and that they, the hummingbirds, are still around during the winter; they didn’t migrate.

One visit for an admission in south seattle. Stretched and Exercised, but no walk today. Binging on Boris Karloff movies. Did not take a single photograph today.

January 19, 2026 – Free day, no demands and no priorities. Mostly spent it in the shop with the heater on. Cleared out a work bench area and made a plan to remove all screw drivers both strait and philips. These will be exchanged for a single tool in which you change the head to whatever you need. As it is now I have a mess of hanging screwdrivers on tool shelf. the shelf will be removed or cut.

Since my Monkey Puzzle Tree Seeds need to go through a winter and break their domancy, this is called stritification, I’m building a cold frame from a window I found free in front of a home not far from here. Though I collected the seeds and planted them, I have to keep them inside because the squirrels will eat them if I put them outside. But keeping them in the warm indoors doesn’t allow for stratification thus the germination rate goes way down. The cold frame should allow the seeds to be outside yet not be eaten. And it will allow the seeds to go through stratification. I want to do this for my chestnut seeds and think about growing douglas fir. The potential is awesome.

January 18, 2026 – Much of the day lising on ebay and watching NFL playoffs. stretched, light workout, and walk doing some 2,900 steps. sold 9 Sotheby art books and got them boxed up to be taken to the post office tomorrow. Updated the three hummingbird feeders with much sugar. Came two feet from an anna’s hummingbird. we were eye to eye. The ruby colored neck stood out like it was illuminated. Added suet to the birdfeeder. Trashcans to the street.

January 17, 2026 – Is this winter? Cloudless blue skies in January? There have been years where we’ve had overcast and cold for months on end, nine months with little breaks. Imagine, no sun. This last summer was extended, fall was an extension of that, and now this winter is mild. It is chilly. When I started my walk, the temp was 37 degrees but fading because of the clear sky and sun beaming through. when i reached the river, a mist hovered over the water. Snap photograph.

More people are at the river on the weekend. This one was no exception so I tried to start out at daylight, about 8:15 a.m. to avoid the crowd. Photographed a fly fisherman in the center of the river casting downstream with the line reflecting back from the sunlight. The graceful arc of the line is picturesque. I can see why this scene makes for a great picture. snap.

Also, videotaped a great blue heron who was doing nothing. it stood like a statue. nearby were canadian geese in the water, just feet away from the crane. snap. plural. On the way back captured some goldeneye.

I’ve wondered what birds are in the bushes. You hear them and even see them, but to identify them is tricky. This morning I photographed the american robin, a ground forager, and a song sparrow. There are more than these in the bush and smaller.

My smart watch knockoff registered 9,236 steps made in about 3.5 miles. I probably averaged about 2.5 miles an hour walking. Before heading out I couldn’t find my ear buds, still can’t find them. Took a back up and tried not to use them. I’ve depended on music mostly to keep me moving. Today, I managed to take the hint and went silent using my own thoughts in place of rock music or a book. This is Very unusual for me but I’m glad I did. Broke down towards the end and iistened to a few songs.

the ideas flowed while I enjoyed the silence and ambient noice; birds, cars in the distance, and the faint sound of water flowing. I learned that for bird watching, you can hear the little guys before you see them. I hear the rustling in the bushes and the sounds of waterfowl along the river’s edge Unnoticeable except for their audibles giving them away. Birds flying up river make sounds and birds yelp when you spook them. maybe the ear buds aren’t necessary?

January 16, 2026 – Temps this morning 40 degrees. Later, no clouds with a deep blue sky. We’ve enjoyed lots of blue skies in the last year, and sun. “it’s like normal weather,” I said. So livable here during these great days.

This morning, Stretched, light workout, and neighborhood walk. Returned for driving work south of Seattle.

Watched Corridor of Mirrors, a british movie from 1948. Christopher Lee’s first movie. I’ve seen before, i think. Sad that I would sit through such a slow moving picture twice.

January 15, 2026 – About ready to do a post on the Monkey puzzle tree seed Propagation. This week I discovered where my tree had let go of a round coconut looking thing that hit the ground and dispersed seed. After a day or two the squirrels and critters came and ate them. I collected just one ahead of the feast and a few afterwards. but today I was on the roof blowing tree debris with a blower and came to the corner near the monkey puzzle tree. It dropped a coconut on the corner of the roof. The squirrels apparently missed this spot. I picked up many good seeds and planted them. If I put these outside the squirrels will decimate them. I potted about 60 and put them inside. I’m still not sure if the seeds need stratification, but I’m not at this time. The inside temp will also keep them at a steady warm temp as they would be where they originated in the andes that connects Argentina and chile. As usual, I’m not very hopeful any of these will germinate. The potted soil consisted of compost and perlite.

While visiting a patient in tukwila, we came to where the vA hospital is and I stopped in and got blood work done, routine. Later, my rod Serling autographed book sold so I packaged it and dropped it off to FedEx paying bucks for two day shipping and extra insurance. Still netted good money.

this morning had a Quit Claim Deed notarized and mailed off to put this house into the trust. I hired Legal Zoom to facilitate this task.

January 14, 2026 – Cleared some time to gather the monkey puzzle tree seeds that fell on the ground. I’m a day late on these. What was healthy, full, and plantable seeds yesterday are dried up and gutted today. Out of hundreds of seeds I selected four that were worth planting. three of the four look hopeless. The one i rescued from the driveway yesterday is the only healthy one of the bunch. These seeds were eaten by the indiginous people and are very nutricious. little critters around here feast on these and clearly that’s what happened to some of these. They looked ripped apart with the innards removed. I gathered what I can of the scraps and plated them in a pot with some dirt. It’s my way of taking a chance that something might grow. The four that I believe have a chance were potted in compost and brought inside. They are to be planted with the pointy end down and at a 45 degree angle. These also require stratification which I have not done.

January 13, 2026 – A day half spent inside at the computer and the afternoon in the garage listing for ebay and troubleshooting my smart birdfeeder given to me for christmas.

On the ground, by the trashcans, are dozens of seeds resembling Dinosaur claws. The epicenter appears to be this large pile that is so thick with these seeds that they’ve clumped together. From this point they have scattered or splattered across the right corner of the driveway. The only source of these seeds would be the monkey puzzle tree. I didn’t think they laid down seeds. Now I know and will be collecting them to grow in pots.

January 12, 2026 – A colorless winter day; gray skies and stark barren trees with some drizzle. Plenty of goldeneye ducks in the sammamish river this morning. Amazing creatures that can cruise downstream with the current then suddenly turn upstream and remain in place. I saw one do this then duck underwater. While underwater it remained in place. They are masters of the current. I believe I was witnessing one who went downstream then turned to wait for their partner.

on sunday, happened upon an estate sale and made $25 worth of purchases including a bissell steam cleaner in the box for $20. We made a pile and he said $25. Inside that pile was a spool of wire, a TI-10 calculator, nice card set, table cloths, a multi-meter from sears in the box, and a box of paint that when applied to glass looks like stained glass. these paints are unopened. they had a free section of books, I took them all. they helped load my car which I backed up to their garage on their invitation. Mostly mass market paperbacks. I found one gem so far. A 1963 copy of The Twilight Zone, first edition! And signed by Rod Serling. his signature is worth good money. Very interesting man.

Setup the smart bird feeder in back. Apparently, the wi-fi is reaching that far outside.

January 11, 2026 – Stretches and a workout that seemingly is Becoming easier and easier, Put in 3,418 steps with the usual neighborhood walk. We have one admission in shoreline for Michele’s work. sold another remote at $12.95 and already boxed it for USPS Ground Advantage.

Birds converging upon my feeder system. Running low on seeds. I think we went through 40 pounds in a month. I get these from fred Meyer for $19.99 or under if a sale.

Last year, 2025, I planted pumpkins from seeds collected in 2024. I’m doing the same this year, collecting in october, washing the seeds and putting them out to dry for over a month. Today i put the seeds in an envelope and put the envelope in a dark drawer and forget about it. I’d like to get these in the ground by early summer, if I can remember to check the drawers.

january 10, 2026 – Visits in Sammamish and two in bellevue. Dropped off packages to the USPS and caught an estate sale on the way back. Picked up a bissel steamer, quality cards, about 100 free books, TI-10 calculator, wire, ax, paint for glass, and sheets. Michele very happy about the lot. Guess i’m back in the book selling business.

Sold a remote priced at $12.95, shipping $7,67, and net $9.32.

January 9, 2026 – Sold the Kenmore dryer for $25. He came over at 3:00 p.m. we couldn’t get my square to work so I gave it to him for free. He works at the ridge, a church up the street. Nice kid. Sold a remote and a “lot” of 10 auction catalogs.

12,190 steps with 9,191 steps taken at the Sammamish trail.

CB brought up a cabinet door from the kitchen with both screws ripped out of the frame. One of the screws had been loose for some time. This is not a surprise. I’ll put a larger screw in like I’ve done before.

January 8, 2026 – Taking blood pressure, pulse, and blood sugar. Today, all within good range, including blood sugar. Stretched, did leg lifts, and worked out upper body. Next to attack the broken vacuum cleaners.

The Kirby has a broken belt, an easy fix. Michele’s personal vacuum cleaner needed a good cleaning.

Noticed more hummingbirds using the feeders front and back. I have three set up with fresh water / sugar mix. These are annas I believe because I see so much green. Could be wrong.

Late in the afternoon, I poured dry concrete onto the base of the feeders. That required me to disrupt the feeding of the birds and the hummingbirds. The hummingbirds buzzed me several times. They were annoyed at me but went to the feeder despite the fact I was only a few feet away. They are so comfortable at the feeder, they sit and hang out enjoying a drink and rest. I stared and watched one just sit there with its back to me. After about two minutes it popped up and joined another in mid-air. I saw them both fly away together as a pair flying as one.

Plenty of dark-eyed juncos squaking their complaint that I got in the way of the feeder. I believe they know me. Keep in mind that the feeders do need to be kept up especially during winter. They’re depending on it to some degree. Hummingbirds typically migrate south unless they have a steady food source. What the birds don’t know is I’m not only making their feeder more Permanent in the ground but adding wood to line the cold hard rebar. The wood will bring a more natural look though it will look odd. The real reason I’m adding wood up the feeder stand is to pictures I take has a natural element. Taking pictures of birds at a feeder is nice but capturing them in a natural environment is better. the wood lining the rebar feeder stand will help accomplish this.

January 7, 2026 – My new realization on keeping a journal; it is very difficult to the point of impossibility to reconstruct yesterday.

Yesterday was a tuesday. No agenda but the first totally free day i’ve had since last thursday. the reason being I was required to be the driver on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Even when working I feel free. However, i get backed up on projects and on Tuesday I completed my goal.

1. Measure and drill holes in the large kitchen cabinet downstairs. I measured by using a 15 inche 2×4. Each shelf will have a space of 15 inches. the 2×4 comes in handy over a tape measure which bends, twists, and is generally uncooperative. The shelves are left over from other shelving projects around the house. They are laminated rectangular boards from Home depot. They are 10 inches wide which was perfect. Using the miter saw I cut the length down to 23 inches. I put up four shelves. It went like this, measure, drill 3/16th inch hole, input metal “l” shaped dowel. cut and place shelf.

2. A seemingly simple project of moving two bird feeders closer to the front, ground floor window. The trick is that these feeders hang from heavy metal yard art stands made from rebar. they are heavy and if not fastened to the ground correctly can tip over and break a window. That’s how close I was putting these to the house, close enough to break a window if they fall. I took a concrete block with a center hole and buried it into the ground. I placed the bottom end into the hole, added rocks, dirt and two large nails to secure it. The nails come along side the rebar to add support. The other feeder didn’t have a concrete block. I placed it in a broken brick with a large hole in the center. Then filled the hole with rocks. I’m uneasy about this setup and may dry pour some cement on both.

january 7, 2026 – Cleaned the shark vacuum and ordered belts for my Kirby. Grabbed 2×4 from shed to stain. This will be the stand for the smart feeder I received from CB for christmas. carefully trying to understand how to get this puppy hooked up.

January 6, 2026 – For years we’ve kept an American General Life Insurance policy on Michele, I’m the beneficiary. The premium increased to the point we needed to cancel. Increase due to age. Cancellation turned out to be a debacle and not necessarily AGLI’s fault. Resolved this morning with a surrender form which is in the mail today. We had to do the mailing because they had our old address and we weren’t receiving the letters. Otherwise we could easily have done this over the phone. Send to two different po boxes in Cleveland.

January 4, 2026 – Hospice visits to West Seattle, Shoreline, and Tukwila. Surprised by the amount of traffic on a Sunday morning before 10:00 a.m. Finished work at about 1:00 p.m. and worked on new office situation in family room. Watching football.

Outside projects to wait.

January 3, 2026 – third day into the new year. worked with Michele until about noon visiting patients in West seattle, Ballard, and Shoreline. heavy rain in the morning on the way to Seattle. by noon we were seeing blue sky. Moved the Exercise equipment to a corner and created a yet smaller place for my office in the family room downstairs. The exercise equipment consists of a gym and treadmill.

January 2, 2026 – Hardly left the house today. No walk. Michele was not called out to do a visit or admission. We stayed home. I worked below with the door shut. Cut a 2×4 bookshelf in two to fit behind the bar. See photos below. Replaced books and organized them into areas of interest, hiking and local history, ghost towns, Christian, garden, and home repair. Small sections include music and writing.

Continued to move the entire ebay store into the garage shop.

Psalm 138:6 – He regards the lowly.

Psalm 138:8 The Lord will perfect that which concerns me.

Psalm 138:7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you will revive me.

January 1, 2026 – Another absolutely free day. Got up at 6:00 p.m. took a shower, went up stairs, took my vitals, had a quiet time, then went back to sleep until 9:00 a.m. Got up too early after going to bed at 11:57 p.m.

Worked on relocating my books and moving my ebay store into the garage completely. The ebay store is moved. The books will wait.

This basket was purchased in Baja California in the guadalupe valley. Hand made by Indigenous peoples. There is a small museum there where they sell trinkets and whatnot. When I brought this across the border, the guard and I spent several minutes talking. He made it clear to me that bringing in organics such as this may introduce pests into the U.S. He let me keep it and I thanked him. today, after keeping it for 15 years or more I was about to toss it. I actually through it into the compost bin. Then I imagined a bird taking it for its nest. I retrieved it and I’ll place it within a tree and see what happens. I figure if any bird takes to it, it will be in the spring.

December 31, 2025 – Last day of the year and completely uncommitted. Called Verizon to ask why my bill is $211. This is due to my upgrade to the Galaxy S25 Ultra and inferior camera to the S23, mainly because there is no bluetooth with the stylus.

I’m daily taking my blood pressure and pulse (Beats per minute). I’m also taking a daily look at my blood sugar. These I do in the morning before my quiet time. What causes change with BP, pulse, and blood sugar. Focus on diet and health for 2026.

With all three kids out of the house for the night and Michele asleep, I watched marathon movies. None worth noting.

December 30, 2025 – Second donation run of the week. Put down approx 9,937 steps as of 3:00 p.m. MB took down the christmas tree including the lights. Michele took down the ornaments earlier this morning. As blue a sky as in California today. Cold though; I’m layered up, ready to head outside for an hour or so, change the hummingbird feeder water and add ing seed to the feeders. Take a look behind the shed for a future project. Need to look at the fence and outdoor sink. The sun is up and out but we are totally in the shade.

Several people came to the house across the street and looked it over. Either they are there to rent or maybe the owners got new agents. the house is listed for rent for $3,500 with fees and a $4,800 deposit. The folks there today look like they can afford it. I’m assuming they are renters. I figure they picked up keys from the agent and checked out the place themselves. House has A/C; I didn’t know that.

As a reward to MB for taking down teh tree and stowing the boxes, I took him to Chipotle for p/u. Tonight is more turkey sandwich for me.

10,824 steps by 4:20 P.M.

December 29, 2025 – High of just over 40 degrees. Stretched and did workout before taking donations to Value Village with Michele. Went to pond and photographed birds for about an hour and chased down mail truck to drop off package. The package was an ebay sale of a Panasonic remote that netted me $18 which is not bad.

Much of what was taken to donation were ebay products that haven’t sold including restaurant menus, cups, and beanie boos. These were removed from ebay and listed for tax deduction. I forgot to load a bunch of art books i’ve been selling so have to go back tomorrow.

Wrote a letter to a former teacher and included my book San Diego Sojourns.

Inspected retaining wall. I’m going to get a second opinion from the contractor who did the wall.

December 28 – A full day starting with visits to the same three patients in Redwood, Bellevue, and Shoreline. Temps started out at 38 degrees in the morning. The partial blue skies of yesterday turned into a full sky of blue today. By mid-morning I felt the heat of the sun through the car’s front windshield. We, Michele and I, acknowledge our enjoyment of the blue skies, every time. Better than overcast. High altitude clouds called cirrus appeared like a mat above with the sun trying to peer through.

Came home to no internet and problems getting SB his $100 Nintendo gift card promised at christmas. We needed his address to send the card through amazon using yet another gift card purchased earlier. The reason I had to get him a new gift card was because his Christmas wish list stated Nintendo. I bought him Playstation.

The internet situation came from our provider. I was suspended for non-pay. Shocking and unusual. Apparently the auto pay didn’t go through three times thus they stopped my service. Only I didn’t know the auto pay didn’t work.

Sold a $22 remote and boxed it tonight. Also sold my 5 person Intex 5 raft with trolling motor, mount, and accessories for $180. The buyer came with his son in a truck. It was the son’s birthday and he paid half. As usual, I had everything displayed at the top of the garage. The guy came in his truck and tried to back up the driveway. Halfway up he skidded and stopped. Then the truck lurched forward and he drifted to the right. The truck went down the driveway towards the left. I watched. His right front fender made contact with my retaining wall knocking a large rock out of place.

We made the deal and he told me I didn’t have to worry about his truck because it was old. My worry was about my wall. He displaced a large rock and a second rock next to it. Both are on the close end next to the driveway. Unfortunately, that’s where a drainage ditch it. The rocks moved right close or nearly on top of the drainage ditch which is cared for by the city. Also my drainage pipe for the retaining wall comes out right there. I cannot move the rock back into place. Tomorrow, in the light, I’ll see about tying a rope and moving the rocks with the car. I have the rope and my SUV has a large hook attachment.

December 27, 2025 – christmas passed two days ago. It’s Saturday and Michele and I saw three hospice patients; in redmond, Bellevue, and Shoreline. Cecilia said she saw heavy snowflakes come down last night about 11:00 p.m. I missed it. Today in the car we saw expansive blue skies and clouds all around yet staying close to the horizon. Most years the overcast can last for months. We’ve seen more blue sky this year than all the other 10 years and it’s been warm.

Winter official start is December 21; that marks the shortest day of the year, just 8 hours and 27 minutes. Now, It’s the 27th and our day is 8 hours 21 minutes which is actually a shorter day. Don’t tell anyone. In January we will start gaining 2 to 3 minutes a day. In June we will work up to the longest day of the year during the summer solstice.

At the winter solstice the earth is 91.4 million miles close, in fact the closest the two bodies will come to each other. And during the summer solstice on June 21 the distance is 94.5 million miles, the farthest they will come to each other. Now calculate an additional distance with the axial tilt. the earth tilts away from the sun’s heat thus we have winter. The axial tile towards the sun brings on summer, at least in our northern hemisphere.

In the forties and feeling like it’s in the low 30’s. Cold out there. But clear skies.