Winter 2015 March 18 Wednesday (Snowflakes, Raindrops and Memory)

52 degrees this morning, 46:07 minutes walked.

Light rain this morning.  Almost cut my walk short, but didn’t, it remained light rain.  It did start raining harder after I completed my walk.  

Since today is a “Field Day”, I was hoping the rain would hold off, but, that’s one of those things I can’t control.

“Does the rain remember what it was like to be a snowflake”?  That is an intriguing question and obviously no one really knows the answer.

I asked Kali and Katherine and there answer surprised me, that rain and snow had the same structure!  Actually a very good answer and I was surprised that they would think of it that way.

This does emphasize the environment we live in and it’s effect on our basic structure.  A raindrop would not be a snowflake in some areas since it wouldn’t be cold enough, while a raindrop may be nothing but a snowflake in other areas.

I have always been fascinated by the effect of our environment on our lives.  For example, someone who lives surrounded by mountains will have a much different reaction than someone who grows up on the plains or on a small island etc.  

I’m not sure how it affects traits such as your career, personality etc., but I’m sure it does.  I wonder if growing up in a rainy climate makes you more depressed, or does moving from a sunny climate to a rainy climate the reason for depression.

That is, if rainy weather does bring on depression.

Certainly there is no way I could live in the northeast states with all that snow, but if I grew up there and was used to it, it maybe different, anymore than I don’t mind a very hot summer and in fact prefer it.  

Maybe people who grow up in cold, snowy weather prefer that, although it is hard for me to believe it. 

On the other hand, I know people who like rainy climates, I believe the question is if most people like it because they grew up there or if they like it for other reasons.

I think positive reinforcement makes a big difference, so maybe if you have pleasant experiences even in the worst of weather, you prefer that type of weather since you associate pleasant experiences with certain types of weather.  

Of course, while I was in the Air Force, I spent over a year at Goose Bay, Labrador, where it snows, snows, snows and is cold, cold, cold.  

I actually liked it, but I certainly don’t like snow and cold here.  Of course, there it was a fact of life so you just learned to deal with it.

Maybe that is the answer.

Working on income tax returns.  The combination of changing states, moving expenses etc.  and some other things make it really unique.  I at least have the basics done and now I need to go back and review it.

I know I have over a month, but time goes so fast, especially when it is something I want to avoid doing!

That’s it for now, Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Winter 2015 March 17 Tuesday

62  degrees this morning, 44:57 minutes walk

62 degrees and a light wind (for here) is difficult to dress for. I continued to wear the thing around my neck and mouth (I never can remember how to spell it).  

St. Patricks Day.  I always hated getting pinched and I still do!

It also means Spring is almost here, at least by the calendar!  Yesterday was a great day weather wise and hopefully more are coming!  

The new house is in progress.  Of course a lot could go wrong between now and closing, but we expect it should go through.  We are looking forward to owing our own house again.  Nothing against the house we are in now, but it will be nice to be able to personalize the house etc.  

Also, hopefully, the house mortgage, etc. will help on our taxes and get something instead of just paying rent.  I think in the end the money is about the same (unless your house appreciates in value a lot), it is the realization that you can personalize your house all you want  and you know what the payment will be is the deciding factor.  

Some of the property managers last year were acting like 4% to 10% increases were “normal” and I hardly would agree with that.  

It is now well past the middle of March, the 3rd month of 2015.  The passage of time marches to a fast drummer!  It seems like a long time we have been here, but a short time also.

I gave a speech on our China trip to Toastmasters last night.  I found I tried to say way too much in the time allowed!  It was a good lesson.

Since my China trip, I am amazed at what I didn’t know about China, and what I am learning, both the good and the bad.  

Baseball season is almost here, actually the pre-season is here.  We will miss our Memphis Redbirds, it was something we really enjoyed.  We have tickets to some of the games here, and we hope it is as good.  

The good thing about the Memphis Redbirds was it was the farm team for the St. Louis Cardinals, so it was easy for us to follow the (many) Memphis Redbirds we saw start out and then make it big in the “big leagues”.  

Here the baseball team is the farm team for an MLB team a lot ways away, unlikely that we will ever go in person and unlikely that there will be much local television coverage.

Today is going to be an “office day” after a very busy “field day” yesterday.  I made several major advances on a couple of accounts, which is always good.  

My accounts are very much like some people talk about guests- They are glad to see them come, but they are also glad to see them leave!

I love getting new accounts, but I like to get them worked and get them off my list!  Some hang around forever, (it seems) stalled by some technical or legal step, others are completed in a day or two.

Looking forward to a wonderful day today!

That’s it for now, Tuesday, March 17, 2015. 

Winter 2015 March 16 Monday

52 degrees this morning. 45:15 minutes walking

Overall, a good weekend.  Saturday was a little cool, Sunday was great.  Funny, I see a lot of Bradford Pears blooming, but no Crocus of similar flowers yet.  Maybe they are more savvy than Bradford Pears and they know there is another freeze looming before Spring comes.

I am looking forward to walking in the morning by just tossing on shorts and a t-shirt.  Currently I wear a number of items that takes time to put on and take off, and is difficult to gauge how to dress for this kind of weather.  Summer, there normally isn’t any  question, although it may be a little different here than in Memphis due to the wind.

We have discovered the pleasures of eating at the “Buffalo Wild Wings” which is near our (hopefullyI) new house.  The new house is only about 4 miles from our existing house, so it won’t be a major move, in the sense that we will basically be in the same area.  We can keep our Doctors, our shopping patterns etc. without any problems. 

Actually, we will also be closer to a regular breakfast place “Katies Country Griddle” where Aliene can get gluten free pancakes and french toast, which is a treat for her.  

We have excellent neighbors here and hope we are lucky with our neighbors in our new house.  I am sure there will be some challenges in moving, there always is, but we think we will enjoy the house.

Of course, now all of the stuff starts about getting the loan approved etc.  It can be tedious, but is understandable.

The best thing is we are about a 2 miles (roughly five minutes) from a wonderful YMCA complex.  While I enjoy swimming outside in the summer, it will be nice to be able to swim on a regular basis.  

I may have to find a new place to ride my bike, since the construction in the area will not make bike riding very fun.  I may take the bike to the YMCA where there are abundant riding trails.

The only problem with that YMCA is I think it is so nice it is very crowded, but I may be able to adjust when I do when it isn’t super busy.

I debated about which book to start this morning, actually two books I have just read, one on China and one on U.S. Grant.  I finally started the one on Grant.  

At least a single book is about a one month commitment (depending on the time).  The Grant book will be about a two month commitment, I think it is 19 hours.  I figure a ten hour book takes about a month to listen to if I I list approximately 50 minutes per day and walk 28 days per month.

I almost always walk every day unless it is raining (or snowing).  It is one of the little pleasures (like my nap after my walk) that I look forward to. 

I will be glad when I can add bike riding and a swim to my daily  routine. 

I thought it was ironic, the book on U.S. Grant mentioned that Texas was originally settled by illegal immigrants INTO Mexico, from the United States!  No matter how you feel about the issues involved now, that is truly ironic and I will get a little laugh out of that when I think about it today!

A busy week at work planned.  A lot of my accounts are approaching the “nagging” period when I bug them about actions they need to take.  Then the enforcement period starts.  This week still has some new visits.

That’s it for now, Monday, March 16, 2015.

Winter 2015 March 15 Sunday

Winter 2015 March 15 Sunday

42  degrees this morning 46:01 minutes walk

Looks like at least the original step in purchasing a house have been completed, although there are still some phases we need to complete before we actually own the house.  We think we will really like it, at least it is one of the best ones we have looked at, if not one of the best ones to look at.

It was at the place where we could make some changes that will make it more livable for us.

it is becoming more and more like Spring.  I see a lot of Bradford Pears, but no crocus or other flowers, which is rather strange.  At least 42 degrees now seems cool rather than warm!

This wasn’t really a pleasant day, but it is like a Spring Day, with a chill and cloudy.  

I have enjoyed listening to a trilogy since probably in November.  I finished the final part “Edge of Eternity” this morning.   It will be quite a change to start listening to smoothing else when I walk in the morning!  

I have really enjoyed listening to it, even though he spent too much time on some events and got carried away with the fiction part of the “historical fiction”  when I think his imagination got a little too carried away.  

The book finished right as I started my walk, so I listened to some Spanish lessons and then some music during my walk.  It was nice to hear Joan Baez again, she has such a clear, wonderful voice.  

I am listening to books, podcasts etc. so much any more I just realized I almost never listen to music, although I do while I’m reading and working on my computer, especially early in the morning.  

I have been carefully considering my next book to listen to.  I have to spend a month with it  (assuming it is in the normal range of 10 to 12 hours), so I pick carefully.  I haven’t decided if I’ll go with fiction or non-fiction.  

The dreams I can remember when I wake up have not reason to why I can remember some so distinctly and can’t remember anything about the other dreams.  I’ll try to figure that out also.  Maybe the more intense the dream, the better I remember it.

Speaking of dreams, I had a vivid intense dream right after I went to sleep last night.  I woke up about 15 minutes after going to sleep and decided to record it.

Dream:  3-14-15

I was n a high room in a hotel or perhaps a very high office building.  I went out to visit someone as part of my (current) job.  

For some reason I decided to walk, but decided it was too long, so I returned.  

Strangely enough even though I had seen miles of lights out my window in the motel room, I was walking on a deserted street.  It reminded me of the vacant land by the school in Waldo, Kansas, where I went to 8th, 9th and 10th grades.

The next thing I remember I was  in a factory and I was walking around a factory. For some reason I wan’t wearing a shirt.

No one paid any attention to me and I just wandered around the factory like a ghost.

Just as I was leaving, I saw my sport coat on the floor but didn’t see a shirt.

The foreman /Supervisor came out and said they were missing something so I needed to be inspected.   (Some kind of card).

I thought I didn’t have my badge with me (on my job I carry a badge, but show it only if necessary) and I got worried that I didn’t have my badge.

He ran some kind of machine over me to see if I had eaten whatever they were mission.g

I don’t recall what happened, but then I was then up in a motel room, high above a city.  There were a lot of lights below. It seemed like a hotel room with a big room attached to it. 

Someone came in to see me.  At first I thought it was the factory person and then I realized it was someone with the Oklahoma Municipal League (someone from my time in Harrah, Oklahoma)

I couldn’t get the the lights on and they were dim. I realized they were the “emergency lights”  I looked out and all over the city the lights were either out or dim.

It was an enormous city, probably Shanghai, or like Shanghai.

The lights started to come back on and I woke up.

That’s it for now, Sunday, March 15, 2015

Winter 2015 March 14 Saturday (House?, Social Media Privacy, Dream)

52 degrees this morning, 46:40 minute walk

We think we have found our house.  While it isn’t perfect, it is about as perfect as we expect to get for our budget.  It is a little beyond traditional, but traditional enough to be comfortable.  It has a nice office (with a window I can look out of, like my current office has) and, best of all, probably (for us anyway) permanent open space (and trees) in the back.  

It’s not a forest like it was in Lakeland, they  don’t really have forests like that here, but it will be much nicer than looking at the backs of hordes of houses.  However, nice the houses may be, trees and open space are much better!  

Best of all, we have some say in some changes, although not colors etc.  We can get an extended patio etc.

Anyway, we are going to take one more look at it and (barring someone buying it like the other houses), we will sign a contract on it and then see about the mortgage and etc.  Hopefully our ages won’t prevent us from getting a mortgage, but we have found age discrimination stereotypes about aging are wildly prevalent.  Noting surprises us anymore about age discrimination and stereotypes.  

Aliene keeps getting these creepy messages from Facebook, “do  you  know…? “  It is really creepy.  Somehow I shut such messages from mine (or they gave up).  Google does the same thing, as do other “Social Media” such as Tumblr, Yelp etc.

I read they base their revenue on numbers so they do anything to trick you into getting more numbers.  

I learned never to “sign in with Facebook” or Google etc. when I read when you “sign in with Facebook” or do any of the Facebook stuff you give them all rights to your information (probably some exceptions.)

I read this morning about a group that act like it is the IRS and they have literally scammed billions our of people who should know better because of the information the scammers obtained from social media sites.  

It also sounds like they may have a mole in the IRS, but it could be just information that is available.  They even use Google to tell people the ATM’s to deposit the money into etc.

You think you would never be taken in by it, but….  

Of course, anytime I receive a call like that I just hang up. I figure if it is legit they will call back of notify me in another way.

Grand Prix racing season has started again.  Now sure why I follow it, but I do and enjoy it.  Maybe some day I will go to the Austin Grand Prix, or, better yet, the Shanghai Grand Prix event.

Another dream to record, this is a short one, during one of my relatively short (11 minutes or so) naps:

Dream 3 13 15

in some house, appearing to be like a city and house I grew up in  Didn’t have shoes on.  

Aliene and I were going someplace.  I drove (in what I recognized as my current Camry) and realized I still didn’t have my shoes on and I had forgotten my iPhone.

I turned at an intersection.  I saw a road crew working on the road to the right.

As I turned the car went into a ditch and I narrowly missed a concrete truck that was parked along the side of the road, but I got out of the ditch ok.

Went back and realized  was going to be late and I still didn’t have my shoes on or my iPhone..

Don’t recall what doing in house prior to this.  Woke up at this point, almost went out to see if the car was damaged, the dream was so real.

We see what happens today and    see if we have a contract on a house tonight.  We are going to look at refrigerators early so we can put the type we want in the contract.

That’s it for now, Saturday, March 14, 2015.

Winter 2015 March 13 Friday

51 degrees this morning  45:06 minutes walking

Only a week from Spring!  

Actually I saw some Bartlett Pears blooming yesterday, which means there will probably be one more freeze (or two just to make a point) and then it will be Spring!

Actually, usually I see the yellow flowers first, but not this year.  Maybe they are smart to stay low.  I call them Crocus, but they may be a variety, but they are normally the first signs of Spring I see. 

We decided the house we were interested in had too many things we didn’t like, so we are looking again.  It was a very nice house in a lot of ways. We decided the items we didn’t like, we might as well stay here and rent.  We miss the tax advantages, but here also are advantages in renting.

Busy day yesterday.  I had a day in the field and it kept me busy.  Every day is a new adventure, which is what I really like about it.

It always makes me admire the persons who start their own business.  They may not always be successful, but at least they are trying.  I enjoy observing the people attempt to fulfill their dreams, which is one reason I try my best to help rather than just be an enforcer.  Of course, sometimes that is all you can do, but at least I know I tried to help where I could.

We went out last night looking at houses and Aliene saw a house she REALLY liked.  Then we checked the price.  At least she has good taste, but it is a little above what we wanted to spend on a  house.  

We are not looking forward to moving, if it comes to that, which is one reason we are being so careful about a house.  We really don’t want to  move any more than we have to, so we want to make sure we have the best location we can and have a house with as few trade-off’s as possible.  

I”ll go ahead and get into my dream yesterday morning.  Again, this was at the end of the nap I take after my walk and before breakfast. 

Dream 3 -21-13

Dreamed I was in a wheel chair and trying to take it back.  At the first of the dream I carried it, during the middle of the dream I was actually in it, at the last I was carrying it again.  

I vaguely am aware of a downtown area, somewhat similar to Liberal, Kansas, which was my first full-time job

For some reason i was trying to leave the wheelchair at what I thought was Lakeland City Hall, but it kept changing

First I tried to just sneak in the back of the building and leave it, but I couldn’t find a place to leave it

Then I was in the back yard (not really a yard, it had pavement on it, so probably a parking lot).  

I drove first  in a little car and almost could’t get out.  I didn’t want to be seen 

Then I was on my wheelchair in the back parking lot and I had this thought that if I couldn’t find a space large enough to get out, I could collapse the wheel chair an get out.  (I never did experience how I got the car back out to the street parking.)

Then I was in the wheel chair wheeling it around.  I couldn’t get out one area because of a large door that was partly closed

Then I thought if I came in, I could go out the same way

I wheeled the wheel chair out to the curb (back to the  Liberal type street) and got out of the wheel chair and started to put it back in the car, thinking “they never said when they needed it back,so it really doesn’t matter”

Than I woke up.

Strange dream.  

That’s it for now, Friday, March 13, 2015.

Winter 2015 March 12 Thursday (Houses, Charges & Dreams)

47 degrees this morning, 45:07 minute walk.

Saw a house we liked tonight.  Not necessarily our dream house, but has a lot of things we want regarding location and overall designed right. We’re still in the process of deciding.  It is reasonably affordable, just a matter of looking at the tradeoffs.

The location is almost exactly want we want, and some of  the design is close to what we want.  There are a few things we don’t like, and we will just have to decide.  

Sometimes the things you don’t like become like grains of sand in your shoe and much worse than the big things you don’t like. 

On another subject, I am always amazed at at some people and groups -especially hospitals and medical offices and drug companies, can charge so much with somewhat of a straight face (or perhaps, a face contorted with greed) as they charge unbelievable prices for basic services.

The drug manufacturers are even worse with their astounding  charges.     

The reason I thought about this was the cost of something like the Apple watch or other such purchase (home repairs, auto, books etc.) seems relatively expensive until compared with the high profits of the medical establishment when they seem cheap.

You can spend enough to buy a house for the cost of an operation or you can compare it either way.  Of course, in many cases it is food for the children etc., although we are fortunate there.

It’s not even what they charge as it is the complete un-relatively (so to speak) of any relationship between cost and what is charged.  It is some figure they pull out of the air.

Sometimes I think about what persons from an improvised nation who is starving would think if they walked into a Sams etc.  and saw all of the food.  At times, I am startled myself at how little (again, “un-relatively”) food costs compared to other products.  

In relation to the income  most persons  food is cheap.  Medical costs are high in comparison to income.  Even computers are relatively cheap in relation to income now and even homeless people have a “smart phone”.  (And well they should, they probably need it more than anyone.)  

Another dream to relate.  I try to keep my daily ramblings short, so I’m going to relate it now:

Dream 3 -11-15 (morning nap after walk)

In hotel.  Was seeing a Doctor in the hotel, not sure why. After the Doctor was done, wasn’t sure if I was supposed to leave or not.

Got up and went  the lobby where I carried a newspaper with me (don’t recall reading it).  I sat in a chair in the lobby.  I looked at the snack area etc. in the lobby for a free USA Today, but don’t see one.

Went up and asked the Desk Clerk, I thought I had a mailbox here. the Desk Clerk was in a small area like an old bank or post office.  The lobby was very small, as opposed to yesterday when it was a very large lobby.  The desk clerk had a white goatee.

I asked the desk clerk if I could look at my mail box.  I thought I had gotten a mail box here a lot time ago and hadn’t checked the mail for a long time.

He asked  an attendant to take me to my mailbox.

I went down an narrow able to a small room.  The attendant opened a big box.  I wondered why he could open it and I didn’t have a key with me.

 I thought at first it was a mail box with a bunch of mail in it but then saw it was a safe deposit box with foam rubber strips in in, somewhat like a bunch of small Christmas trees.

The attendant made a comment, something like “that happens to mail after awhile”.

I woke up.

Comments about the dream.  

This is my 4th dream about a hotel, at least that I can remember  No elevator in this one.

Not sure why the Doctor. 

Woke with an intensive dream this morning, but didn’t get it down in time to remember it.

That’s it for now, Thursday, March 12, 2015.

Winter 2015 March 11 Wednesday

45  degrees this morning. 44:54 minute walk

Wonderful day yesterday.  I hope this means Spring is here.

It is that time of year when it is so hard to decide what to wear for my walk in the morning.  It is either too hot or too cold, although I have generally adapted to knowing how to dress.  The kicker is always if the wind is blowing here or not.  

To illustrate the demand for houses around here, we saw a house on Zillow we liked over the weekend, it sold on the first day it was listed!  

I believe this is the third time that we were going to look at a house and it sold before we looked  and it and we haven’t looked at that many houses!   

Apparently everyone is looking for the same kind of house we are, and in approximately the same location!  

I have found one problem with the using the Library here, is the limit of time on reading the book.  There is a limit on how often you can renew it and if it is a “popular” book, you can’ only keep it for two weeks, and if there is a “hold” on it by someone else wanting it, I can’t recheck it. 

From someone who used to read a book in one day, that sounds strange, but (especially for non-fiction books), I enjoy taking my time reading them.  I guess I”ll have to take the time to look a the book and make sure I want to buy it. 

 It isn’t the money as much as it is the burden of having a book to worry about.  As long as I commit to donating it it will be ok.  

There are books that took me over  a year to read and I throughly enjoyed having the time to read it!  Anyway, at least the fact I can get it at the Library, I will have a good idea if I want to make the commitment to buy it and read it.

“Field Day” yesterday in a different area than I normally work, which is always interesting.  A lot of paperwork to catch up today.

It seems like I was just commenting on how the second month of the year (February) was gone, and now it is almost the middle of March!!!

Anyway, don’t want this to be too long, so I’m going to note my dream from my nap from yesterday morning:

Dream:  3-10-15

Alien and I were at a hotel in a big city.. It was early morning and I want down stairs for some reason.

Somehow, I forgot the time andI lost track of what happened from the time I walked downstairs and was in the lobby.

Suddenly I couldn’t find the elevator.  I kept walking around trying to find the elevator but couldn’t  seem to find it.

I went into a swimming pool with very hot, steam water  It really wasn’t so much like a swimming pool as an indoor  lake, with a rocky bottom.It was very hot ad steamy.

I saw the elevator and got out to go to it, but a couple was blocking my way.  They were just sitting in lounge chairs blocking the aisle I needed to walk in.

I started to walk around the pool, but got lost and ended up behind the front desk.

I looked for a grey jacket, but but saw two of them.  I talked with someone and said, I “didn’t”  want to get the wrong jacket”.  I knew it was mine because it was frayed and thin.

I wondered what I was going to tell Aliene since I couldn’t remember where I had been that morning until I  remembered  I was looking for the elevator.

Summary:  Again a very intense dream, although I was like a figure where no one really interacted with me, kind of like it may happen in a hotel in the early morning.

Strange, this is the third dream I have recorded with an elevator and a hotel in it.  

There seemed to be a lot of people in the lobby (in a vague way), just sitting about, not in a hurry like they normally are in a hotel in the morning.

The hotel seed to be in a  downtown area, I vaguely recall tall buildings about.

That’s it for now, Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Winter 2015 March 10 Tuesday

47 degrees this morning. No walk, light rain.

I always wonder where the time goes when I can’t walk.  It seems to go by without me getting all of the things done I plan on doing when I can’t walk!

Apple Watch?  Yes I want one!  I don’t know if I actually “need” one, but I”m sure I could find many good uses for one!  I was amazed at the number of things that could be done with the watch.

I think, just like the iPhone, it will do things that we haven’t even thought of yet. 

I also liked the new Macbook, I really like my Macbook Air, and I understand the new Macbook than the Macbook Air.  If nothing else, the existing  MacBook Air is cheaper.  

Also, it means I can start going to the “1 to 1” sessions again where I can continue learning about computer programs.  

Thinking some more about Algorithm’s.  

I think it goes back to the only “garbage in, garbage out”.  An Algorithm can be used for good or bad.  By itself, it isn’t good or bad, it is how you use it.

I think that is what is important is who is in charge of and designs the Algorithm.  For example, I find it very disquieting that Algorithm’s are used to write stories without some type of disclosure that a machine is writing the story and may not consider many aspects of the situation.  Admittedly a sports story, it probably  doesn’t matter, but others it could make a major difference.   

I took journalism in college and one of the big (if  not the biggest) ethical foundations was “opinions below on the opinion pages” or at least be clearly labeled as opinion and news was reported without bias.  It may not have happened that often, but at least the attempt and ethical guidelines were clear.  

I am still stunned when I hear “news stories” which are really just an attempt to present the writers opinion rather than an actual news story. 

I feel this has become epidemic, to the point you really can’t trust reporters to give you”just the facts”.  

Today, you really need to look to find a story that is truly unbiased. 

The change in news reporting, from unbiased (except when there was a byline and obviously opinion) to pure bias was rather surprising and I think is one reason for the polarization of opinions and extremist positions.

People watch or read only what support their belief, so the diversity of opinion is not considered when someone considers their position on something.

Not that I”m any different than anyone.  I like to read/hear/watch what supports my opinion  It is harder to seriously read something that doesn’t support your existing belief, at least without looking for reasons to find fault with what you disagree with.

I noticed the change in local government some years ago, when the persons running for office changed from running for office as a civic function to running for office for either a single project or an extreme position, normally a position they maintain for selfish reasons and not for the good of the community.  

The same actions also have spread (or started at) persons running private businesses.

Obviously not true of everyone, but the “single issue” candidates greatly increased.  

Started raining shortly at the end of  my walk this morning.  Rained all day.  Much prefer the rain to the snow of last week!  Hope that was the last snow of the winter!

That’s it for now, Tuesday, March 10, 2015.