{"id":95596,"date":"2026-04-12T08:55:49","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T15:55:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/?p=95596"},"modified":"2026-04-13T07:41:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T14:41:52","slug":"lucky-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lilesnet.com\/dailydiary\/?p=95596","title":{"rendered":"Lucky Me!"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Oh, so very true!<\/p><\/div>\n

Yep, it was “raining” when we got up, so we had our coffee, watched the rain, and planned the day.\u00a0 I enjoy planning so much that I sometimes forget to do the thing.<\/span><\/p>\n

As the title says, I was lucky.\u00a0 When Mary and I got together, she had a Precor Elliptical Cross-Trainer machine, which we moved to the new house.<\/p>\n

“Why does the elliptical have handles?\u00a0 So I can hold on while it reminds me how out of shape I am.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Precor EFX 556\/556i is a commercial-grade total-body elliptical trainer (approx. 80″ L x 30-32″ W x 64-68″ H, 326 lbs) featuring moving handlebars, 20 resistance levels, and a fixed 20\u00b0\u201325\u00b0 incline ramp.\u00a0 It includes 6\u201310 workout programs, SmartRate\u00ae heart rate monitoring, and a 350-lb user capacity.<\/p>\n

It was a professional unit she bought from someone who was closing his studio.\u00a0 We used it on occasion, but decided to move it upstairs to be with the stationary bike.\u00a0 That would enable us to exercise together on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, which are the days we do NOT go to the gym.\u00a0 When we turned it on, we got an Error-5, key stuck message.<\/p>\n

We called PreCor; they said that the model was discontinued and that they had no parts, but they did say what might fix it.\u00a0 I tried, but to no avail.\u00a0 So, I got online, and I found a replacement board!<\/p>\n

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The list price on a REFURBISHED model was $3,995!<\/p><\/div>\n

The replacement was about $400, and it had a “money-back guarantee,\u00a0 so I bought it, and it will be here this week.\u00a0 \u00a0If it works, we will have some professional movers put it upstairs.\u00a0 They wanted $300, but that is cheap at half the price.<\/p>\n

The day began with us in the nice, warm office, looking at the cold, cold rain.\u00a0 We called Joe and got an “Amy-Check”.\u00a0 The plans remain the same; she should be released later on this afternoon.\u00a0 \u00a0Charlie had a great prom, BUT Joe was checking on him using the iPhone, and at 3:00 m it showed Charlie being in La Habra???<\/p>\n

Joe was getting ready to get in his car and make sure everything was OK, and as he passed Charlie’s bedroom, Charlie was snoring up a storm.\u00a0 Yes, you guessed it… the iPhone did not update.\u00a0 When Joe refreshed the page, it showed that Charlie was at home.\u00a0 \u00a0We will get a full report later in the day.<\/p>\n

We did get a picture,<\/p>\n

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Yep!\u00a0 Just like his grandpa (except for the beard).<\/p><\/div>\n

And he is one handsome dude; he takes after his grandpa!!!<\/p>\n

We spent two hours plus in the yard with Mary deadheading her roses,s and I worked in the HeShed and replaced the burner in one of the two spa standup heaters.\u00a0 If I were about half my age, I could have done it in 5 minutes, but at 81, it took almost 45 minutes because I had to put the entire heater at an angle where I could a) see and b) get my hands inside without twisting my back out of shape.<\/p>\n

The rain finally stopped, and I wandered outside looking for problems, and all I found was a rose bush limb lying over due to the weight of the water.\u00a0 I tied it up, and all is well.<\/p>\n

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Just us in our gardening uniforms.<\/p><\/div>\n

The vertical planters are going very well, and we rotate them about 90 degrees every day, making sure everyone gets sun<\/p>\n

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The rain made everything shine.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Swiss chard is doing well, and I found a recipe in AllRecipes magazine that features Swiss chard, so tomorrow we will be chowing down on these little fellows.<\/p>\n

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Tomorrow’s dinner awaits.<\/p><\/div>\n

Cantaloupes are supposed to be trimmed after six side shoots show up\u2014because apparently that’s when they decide to “commit” to the mission.\u00a0 The trimming helps the plant get stronger and nudges the blooms into becoming actual fruit instead of, you know, decorative flowers.<\/p>\n

Tomorrow I’m putting them on a wire trellis and getting them off the ground\u2014because I refuse to share my cantaloupes with some sneaky varmint who thinks they’re running a produce buffet.<\/p>\n

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We are about to prune the thornless as they have six branches already!<\/p><\/div>\n

Looking north reveals an angry sky!\u00a0 Sure enough, it began to rain again, making today’s total just one inch!<\/p>\n

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The rain was supposed to be gone at 2:00 pm, but it looks suspicious<\/p><\/div>\n

Mary trimmed the west wall roses, then returned to the center wall roses to give them a haircut.\u00a0 The white roses are especially bright this year.<\/p>\n

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We love our roses.<\/p><\/div>\n

I removed about 15 small apples as they needed to be thinned out to make the others grow.\u00a0 The apple tree is coming on strong.<\/p>\n

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The apples are going berserk.<\/p><\/div>\n

After coming inside, I offered Mary a deal she could NOT refuse.\u00a0 I cleaned the vegetable drawers at the bottom of the refrigerator.\u00a0 It was unknown to us, but “someone” has been using the bottom storage bins for their science projects.\u00a0 I saw several types of mold\/fungus\/unknown growths in the veggie bags, and the old mushrooms walked out on their own and jumped hary-kary style into the garbage disposal.\u00a0 For a moment or two, I seriously thought about trying to make penicillin, but wisely, I avoided that rabbit hole.<\/p>\n

After several trips to the trash can and with Mary’s wonderful help, we have a new refrigerator which we will promptly fill!<\/p>\n

Mary was cooking, and she asked me to get some carrots and other garden goodies.\u00a0 When I returned and showed her my findings, she had a strange reaction<\/strong> after she looked at my effort.<\/p>\n