Dad and I almost missed the Christmas Program at St Josephs. I knew it was today but not the time. Dad knew the time but the entire thing slipped his mind. We arrived just as it started. Mom came directly from work and saved us two spots at the corner of the stage. . . . continues
Bob is excited about the Thunderbirds at the Grand Forks Air Force Base in May. I went looking for a ‘set list’ but couldn’t find a detailed list of maneuvers like I did for the Blue Angels. I did load up with Thunderbird trivia to dazzle Bob at lunch. I also noticed the Blue Angels are scheduled for St. Cloud in June- this sound very doable. I left early so I had time to buy some AA batteries at CNV. Bob met me at Taco Bell. I managed to dump my water over myself on the way to the table. But it was cold outside and I was dress in nylon shell pants and coat- the water rolled right off. Bob really seemed to like the idea of attending the St Cloud air show. I showed him my new Vivitar DF-383 flash.
Backlit F4U Corsair With Fill Flash
Across the street I stroll into the Fargo Air Museum. There is no one there to check my ID. Instead I wander over to the F4U Corsair and take some photos one week before Winter Solstice. The light is strong and pouring back half way into the museum. I photo some low angle shots, some backlit shots and then some fill flash shots with my new Vivitar flash. Outside I pulled up to the DC-3 parked to the north of the museum, and trudged through the snow to photograph ‘Duggy’ under the cold Dakota sky.
Paul bought a replacement Canon S550 digital camera on eBay for $30. He handed me the CF card from Saturday’s day at the lake. I could see the striping and color shifting that plagued their last S550. I had to break the news to Suzanne, “Your camera is dying.” She was upbeat about it, “Well, I’ll tell Paul. Christmas is coming.” I’ve been doing some research on the Internet for inexpensive P&S digital cameras. . . . continues
Sean called yesterday inviting me to see “A Christmas Story” tonight. I declined but asked if he wanted to see “2012″ today. Paul was taking him ice skating but he thought we could find a time to go see it. I suggested late afternoon would work well for me and give them time to skate. . . . continues
Saturday (12/5), Marilyn West called she got notification from Qwest that her Internet is on. I told her to call Qwest and ask for her login information. (I thought she would get it in the mail.) She ended talking to a ‘nice man’ in India who helped her sign up.
Monday (12/7) I had her Gmail all set up, but she couldn’t get in today. Two problems: she couldn’t get the password login to be accepted and her Gmail account had been frozen. I asked Google to unfreeze it. Not sure why it was froze in the first place. . . . continues
Sean called this morning, “Clare has a request. She wants to play outside so dress warm.” . . . continues
I returned Paul Dobbins’ call. He wants to finish putting the Christmas lights up to the peak of the house. “I’m in the neighborhood. I’ll be right over.” When I pulled up, Paul was setting up the ladder. It was windy but Paul claimed it wasn’t too bad. It was his ass up on the thirty-foot ladder so I didn’t mind. Clare was watching Paul climb up and down the ladder. Clare was making funny faces at me; I was making faces back. Paul told me the timer had failed, which is why the lights didn’t work last time. While putting up the final strand of lights, we broke some lamps on the lower strands and blew the fuse too. Sean came out to help, but was content to run around and cause trouble. Paul replaced the lamps and fuse. The project was done and Paul didn’t fall off the ladder. He did manage to pinch his finger in the ladder while we hung it back on the wall. . . . continues
Char decided to invite Dorothy and Bob Nelson over for Thanksgiving. I think this is the first time we’ve had company outside the family for Thanksgiving. Sean, Tim and Clare enjoy seeing Bob but soon split up. Tim played video games on my computer. Sean loaded songs onto his iPod, and Clare was underfoot in the kitchen. Paul carved the turkey and Dorothy brought some Norwegian treats. After the turkey dinner: Paul, Sean, Clare, Bob, and myself watched the football game. Sean brought out the football, and roughhousing ensued.
Craig and Bob: Best Friends
I’ve been tired and run down lately. I thought it was time to start running again. I hope to run three times a week. It’s hard to schedule a run. It makes the most sense to run in the morning. Historically I have zero energy in the morning but lately I’ve noticed I’ve become more alert in morning. I thought I would give it a try. I was actually excited this morning. I’m not interested in running fast or far, just enough to get the heart rate up and improve my oxygen update. It was 20 degrees this morning, but once I start moving it will be fine. I was listening to “Pride and Prejudice” on my iPod. This is much better than music. The book forces more concentration from me, which distracts me from the discomfort of running. I have the version read by Jenny Agutter. She reads each of the many characters in different voices. I quite like it. I need a map to keep the characters straight. Early Thanksgiving morning- there is little traffic. I’m running in the neighborhood to the east where everything is pretty residential. I didn’t measure the distance but it must be close to a mile and a half. A good distance as I ran out of steam by the time I got home.
Saturday (11/28) It is 28 degrees this morning but humid. I made some adjustments. I put on lounge pants under my warm up pants and wore mittens. The lounge pants worked well, but the mittens were too hot. My knees were sore from the last run so I added two Ace Knee Braces. This helped a lot. I also took one aspirin and a glass of water before I run. I take the cell phone in case I drop dead. I ran slightly faster and ended up having to walk half a block at the halfway point to catch my breath.
Sunday (11/29) Two days in a row wasn’t my plan but I was curious how my body would react. I exchanged the mittens for gloves- it is still 30 degrees outside. I ran the other way around and had to walk half a block twice. I was pleased with this first week of runs, but worry I will lose interest. [I did]
I was surprised to find all my joints felt better than they have in years. I don’t know if it is the exercise, the aspirin or both.
