Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Hump Day Has Passed; Downhill From Here

“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” 

Off and walking but alas, I made it only four blocks before having to limp back home. The ol’ sciatic nerve in the leg was giving me fits. So, after consultation with my bride, she suggested driving to Ralph’s to get the cards for Aunt Kaye. She was quite correct, half way through the market the sciatic nerved let me know it was there…in spades.

On my way to the market, I snapped a photo of our apple tree…the blossoms are fantastic. Apples harvested from an average tree can fill 20 boxes that weigh 42 pounds each. I may count and weigh the crop this year!

Wow! The fertilizer seems to have worked!

The rest of the morning, I spent in the office trying to figure out how to update by Honda Odyssey Navigation System. I received the update disks but alas, every time I put the disk the blasted device delighted in giving me the following message on the screen… “Reading….” and then it ejected the DVD! After ten attempts, I was feeling “rejected!!”.

To the telly I dashed and called the company that provides the updates to Honda…I read them all the identifying information and they sheepishly said… “Oopie, we sent you the wrong one!”. They are sending another set of DVD’s and I am returning their ole ones. Being a good guy, I went to the local UPS office and was SHOCKED to have to spend $30.11 to send 11 ounces of DVD’s and paper from here to Tennessee! Next time, USPS will be my choice as it would have been $7.00!

Random Thoughts:  My father was a driver…he loved to drive…we would go from LA to Arkansas in 2 1/2 days… 5am to 7pm…he was amazing.  We would drive for two hours after getting up and then look for someplace to eat.

I often wonder, if I had told him that one day a Satellite flying in medium Earth orbit (MEO) at an altitude of approximately 20,200 km (12,550 miles) would provide a precise map on the dashboard identifying traffic conditions, hotels, motels, etc….would he have believed me or had me locked up???

I can see it now…. “Hey, Dad, there is an American Grill located 7.5 miles ahead on the right.”  No more looking and hoping there was a place to eat in the next 100 miles!  Wow, things have changed!

The 55 Buick Special was a hot rod…Cruising the road at 70-80 mph all across Texas! (Oh, the license plate was KCL210…how’s that for a memory??)

We sure like the Echo Show! We talk/see the kids/grandkids/great grandkids all the time now! To get the lighting correct, I recently bought a clip-on LED lamp with varying temperatures and two intensity settings. Now our video conferences are “picture perfect”…thank you Amazon!

Clip on behind the Alexa Show and you look like you are professionally lit!

We worked the puzzle for a while and then I took a short nap to rest my leg before dancing. We took off to the Phoenix Club about 6:15 PM arriving at 7:00 PM for two hours of great music and dancing!

Upon arriving at the Phoenix Club we stopped to talk to Jan M. to get “the latest”. We were really shocked to find out Pan Brant had passed. Pam was a beautiful lady who we have known for years. We do not know what happened but it was unexpected.

Pam and Joe at the November Starlighters dinner dance

We enjoyed the evening and watched some TV before crashing at 11:15 PM. Of course, we had out tookies. Again, I only had one tookie as I am watching my weight.

Did You Know? We put on weight when excess carbohydrates and proteins that we’ve eaten are converted into triglycerides (compounds made up of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen) and are then stored in lipid droplets inside fat cells.

To lose weight, you need to break down those triglycerides to access their carbon.

The results showed that in order to completely breakdown 22 pounds (10 kg) of human fat, we need to inhale 64 pounds (29 kg) of oxygen (and somewhere along the way, burn 94,000 calories). This reaction produces 62 pounds (28 kg) of CO2 and 24 pounds (11 kg) of water.

84 percent of a fat molecule’s atoms are exhaled as carbon dioxide, and the remaining 16 percent ending up as water. Meaning, I am going to start walking more and eating less.  200 pounds, here I come!

About Paul

Just an old retired guy trying to finish out my last years on this planet. I lost my best friend and wife in early 2020. I was blessed again by reconnecting with Dr. Mary Côté, a long-time friend. Mary and I got married July 28th, 2021, and are enjoying life together and plan to spend the rest of our lives being a blessing to our friends and family.
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