So I didn’t realize but the tires on the Xterra were really old and the fact that I would need to replace one means that I need to replace them all. I hate having mismatched tires and told myself when I could afford to do so, I’d always replace all 4. I didn’t go top end, I actually went for the $107 tires, but by the time that you add $20 for road hazard, $20 for lifetime maintenance, mounting, balancing, TPMS, disposal & environmental fees and of course tax, it’s $643 out the door. But tires are the most important safety feature on the car, at least according to Phish.

Also today I got around to freezing the ground beef from Sam’s club. I got 90/10 which is leaner than I like but it was like 10 cents more than 80/20 and talked myself into it. Gotta remember that the freezer isn’t a permanent solution and it needs to be used within a year.

And lastly, I’ve solidified the litter box situation with the cats and put the litter robot in the closet where the old litter box was. They seem to have taken to it after I got rid of the ants (don’t ask) and we’ll monitor the use and compliance:)

It’s been a rough week at work and I felt like pushing a little harder so I did a 5k at the gym today, or more appropriately I walked 6200 steps at the gym today which is my best approximation of 3.1 miles. It still takes me 50 minutes which is a bit off of my best time of 18:20 but that was 35 years ago.

Decided to put in the 2TB (drive? chip?) non-ram memory in the computer and reformat. While the BIOS seems to find the drive just fine, Windows 10 doesn’t. Really? I felt like it was back in the 90’s and trying to install NT 4.0. So I booted with the new chip seated to the old drive, it saw it just fine so now I need a driver for the Windows 10 Pro install to see it, grrrrr.

Work is killing me, the Ross job didn’t pan out so I’m stuck for now. I’m beginning to see some desperation in the company, it makes me sad. But that’s why I got the degree and I’m not one to abandon team-mates but I’m also not one that will take a paycheck I don’t earn. It’s time to find the next gig but I’ll still be there for the crew I’ve been with for a decade. Not looking to burn bridges in this act.

I had a coupon for Great Clips that expires tomorrow. And, considering that it’s 109 in the shade, time for a haircut. The coupon is $10 off so $7 and I still paid $20 but most of it went for a tip which makes me happy.

Life is good, water washes dirt away and makes new, according to STP circa 1992… I got caught in a downpour but not made of sugar…

So for better or worse, Sandy is leaving for her new job today and I become a bachelor for two months. I’m not sure this is a good idea but the money will be good and hopefully there will be a trip to visit her.

In the mean time it’ll give me some introspective time and time to get that Linux certification. Also it’s time to start strength training and I’ll have time to do that. Here’s hoping I don’t get too used to being on my own!!!

While I love all animals, I’m currently living with two cats. The dogs will come when I have property. In any case I was sitting in my office and I hear a din from the kitchen, I heard Sandy say something to the cats and then some crashing. As I got up to see what the issue was, a blur blew by my legs on the way into the bedroom, Sandy was trying to catch her breath from laughing and I realized the cat had gotten tangled up in a bag and was blindly running through the house.

She finally came to rest on the cat tree where we were finally able to cut the bag away from her and freed here from the most traumatic experience of her life. It’s okay Sammy, we still love you:)

I wrote about it a while back but today, I finally sent the 31k payoff check and depending on how slow the post office is, I own the truck!!! And to celebrate that (not really) Sandy and Shelly took it to Erie, PA. This means the first time the truck is out of state under my ownership and I’m not even in it. Sigh…

But the good part is she’ll be bringing the extra tank back adding an extra 50 gallons to the capacity giving a total of ~80 gallons and around 800 miles hauling the RV. Part of me really wants to put in a true transfer tank and I could get a 100 gallon for about 1k, but I already own this one and the pump makes sense if I’m going to use it to fill up equipment at a job site.

And with Sandy and the truck in PA, I’m left to my own devices for the 4th of July, lord help us all:)

I’ve begun looking for property. This is a rather daunting task. The old saying that it’s all about location, location, location is rather true. But my needs are simple. I want to find something in Erie or surrounding location that I can put a Bardominium on with a studio and garage.
The premise to this property is northern storage for the RV/Truck with a studio apartment setup. Ideally in the middle of nowhere but, I can see doing this in town also if the property and tax rate presents itself.

While I do want property in the middle of nowhere, I think that is better served in WV, KY, VA because that’s away from everything. While the north property will be around family and friends and for summering to be away from this ungodly heat…

This is the barndo concept I’m thinking of:

• Some horror out of Ohio where a dad killed his three sons.
• Russia now has it’s mercenary faction gunning for the military.
• Bunch of people drown trying to get from Africa to Europe.
• The Titanic claimed another group of rich people.

It’s the last one that has me and the rest of the world captivated as death and destruction is so ubiquitous for the most part, but it’s so much more interesting when it happens to people that have it all. We got to see what 250k will buy you for a trip to the Titanic wreck site, and hubris punished with instantaneous death.

My take-away on it is this: If you have a billion dollars, you have to employ someone who is in charge of making sure you stay alive. This should (ideally) be someone who can either A) speak legally on your behalf or B) have prescribing capabilities, in either case it’s rather imperative that your conversation with them be protected and completely candid. I’ll keep that in mind when I make my first million…

It was actually a really nice spring in Texas, there was ample rain and the temperatures were mostly moderate. That would appear to be over and coinciding with the calendar solstice, the heat is on. And its not just the heat, it’s the humidity, the fox affiliate called it disrespectful humidity, that about covers it.

I am happy to say that the new windows are allowing the HVAC system to hold it’s own against the heat.