Where is That?

You know that place where the weather is always around 80 degrees and sunny? Low humidity and a light breeze?

Neither do I.

But I sure have enjoyed it here the last couple of days.

Over-doing It

 There are many forms of the same advice:

There is only one way to eat an elephant: one bite at a time.

The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.

Take it bird by bird.

And in general, I try to live my life that way, acknowledging that any small offering is better than none. But on a perfect summer day in June, with sSY2021in the rear view and the windows wide open? It was hard not to gorge on the elephant, run a thousand miles, and fly with all the birds.

So, boy! Are my wings tired.

For a Rainy Day

Today, for the first time since March of 2020, I... 

wait for it... 

went to the gym!

It was cool and rainy, and with no comfortable outdoor options, I drove on over, scanned my key tag, and had a pretty decent workout.

Can the movies be far behind?

Please Forward

Since we moved into our cozy little condo in 1999, it's been mostly us and our pets. (The pets? Well... That's another blog post, but there have been many: 5 cats, 2 dogs, 3 turtles, 2 hamsters, 2 gerbils, and countless fish.) There have been periods, though, when we have had a couple of temporary co-residents, first our godson, Josh, and then my cousin Elaine. Both moved on years ago, though, so imagine our surprise this afternoon when, turning the key on the mailbox, we found correspondence addressed to both.

Door Number Two

When the FaceTime ringtone jangled my phone last night at around 9:30, Heidi and I exchanged glances. "It's Bill!" I said. "He's calling both me and Courtney." I shook my head and tapped join. "This is going to be either really bad or really random."

When the call connected, the screen was dark and jerky, like a scene from the Blair Witch Project. "Hello? Hello?" I called.

"Tracey?" my brother's voice answered, and I could just make out his shadowy figure somewhere in the night, surrounded by trees. "I'm crossing a swaying bridge at Gary's farm, and the bouncing must have butt dialed you. Sorry!"

"No problem!" I replied. "As long as everything is okay, I'll talk to you soon."

"Really random," I reported to Heidi.

"Much better than really bad," she agreed.

Setting the Tone

In their enthusiasm and love of the outdoors, our cats have scratched the hell out of the screen doors leading out to the decks. In recent weeks I have been on the hunt for a replacement, without much luck. It seems that all the local hardware and big box home improvement stores are out of stock on the item we need. 

And so, in a spurt of handiness, I decided to order a repair kit instead, and try to replace the screen myself. The first day of summer vacation dawned quiet and warm, and when I stepped outside to water the plants, I knew that the time was right to DIM. 

Flathead screwdriver, razor knife, and roller tool in hand, I pried a corner of the old screen up and zipped out the 35-year-old spline and torn aluminum netting. Then I rolled out my new, fiberglass pet-proof mesh and pushed it into the channel at the top. Heidi came over to assist as I stretched and rolled the new spline into place, then trimmed the extra screen with my utility knife. 

Unlike so many superficially simple but practically complicated projects, this one went off without a hitch, and it turned out great! Every time I look out and see the perfect expanse completely unmarred by claws, I am as pleased and proud as can be. 

Call me overly optimistic, but I have to think that's a sign-- it's going to be a very good summer.

What I Learned in School Today

1.  How to draw an English muffin:

2. How to draw a cat:

3. It was harder than I thought it would be to say good bye to these kids. 

What a year!