To Early To Say Winter Is Over???

Since I last posted we have experienced a little bit of everything. Good and bad weather, a head cold, temps that were single digits as highs then almost 60° a week later. All of us did a lot of sleeping, a little eating and recently more book reading. So really, not a lot going on. Everything is normal.

Looking at the 10-day forecast it shows the normal temperature range for this area at the most southwestern area of Indiana. What is funny, but something I saw before I decided to move in 2021, the lows in the 30s and highs in the mid to high 50's is the same here as in Sierra Vista Arizona. It is not always like that though because that sun out there is hotter than hot by mid afternoon.

Seeing ten days of good weather ahead though, I had to wonder if just maybe ... winter might be over for the year. I know it can snow a lot in March but I'll take my chances. A friend even noticed the same weather pattern and we both agreed that winter just might be over. Let's hope so.

Walter turned four years old while we were away. In my 37 years of owning hounds and now a dog included, I have never dressed mine up with party hats, serve them ice cream cake when they have a birthday. Maybe an extra bone treat to chew, but that's it. 

A few weeks ago while watching the NFL Playoff game on a Sunday night, I "thought" I felt a cold coming on. I don't get them every winter but I have had more than a few of them over the last 50 years of my adult life. So I am pretty good at recognizing when the cold is about to hit me. Only one person asked if I had COVID and I chuckled. Why does every cold or flu have to be COVID??? I've never had COVID but I have had the flu during the winter months over the past 50 years.

I self medicate with Tylenol Extra Strength, Simple Orange orange juice, my sinus tablets when needed, Ibuprofen, and a small bottle of Vick's Vapor Rub. I do NOT take all of those at the same time but what I take is based on what is going on and how I feel. They all work for what they are designed to do and I don't take more than the prescribed units on the bottle ... except the orange juice. I drink that like water and since I live alone, I drink it right from the bottle. Tastes great. A good cup of hot green tea also helps.

Like all the other colds, it starts in my forehead, then to each eye individually. After that clears up it's in the broncial tubes and based on the color of the phlegm I know if I have a cold, bronchitis or pneumonia. I had pneumonia at 19 years old while sleeping in USMC boot camp quonset huts in February. I had bronchitis years later but I have not had that recently ... mostly colds. It took about five to six days as I predicted, to clear up to where I now have an occasional cough.

As much as I like that crimson color wall ... I've been thinking lately of painting it a different color. Maybe a Pacific Northwest Green. I am not sure I could handle the dark blue color that was in the living room. I am up for suggestions so let me know in the comments section what colors you think would look nice with the tan walls. As you can see Henry and Walter enjoyed the NFL Playoff game I watched.

Usually at night it is movie time. Between Amazon Prime, Peacock and Apple TV you would think I would find a lot of choices in movies or documentaries. Most of the ones I want to watch are now a subscription or a rental. I don't pay to watch any kind of movies. Nor have I paid the extra $2.99 to stop the commercials on Amazon Prime. So far they have not bothered me. When I don't find anything to watch, I read books or go to bed early.

When the heater is on, this is Henry's favorite position. 

This is normal spot for them mid morning, after they have eaten, explored the backyard. Before I let them out after their breakfast the other morning I saw two squirrels in the yard INSIDE the fence. I tapped on the patio door window for them to make their escape before I let Watson outside. I barely had the patio door open when he sprinted right to the place in the fence where the squirrels made their escape. His tailed curled up and the hair on his spine raised as he look around the area of the berm ... but they were long gone by that time.

As I was unloading my dishwasher the other day, this was laying down by the filter. I have no idea what it is nor where it came from. I looked at all four sides, top and bottom inside the dishwasher to see where it might have come from. Nothing looked out of place or that it was missing what you see here. So I went to Google search and captured this image to see what might come up. Nothing did. I know there is an app on my phone that will identify plants or weeds and I thought there was something similar to identify things like this. It will sit on the counter until I find the answer. 

To prove I am still a hermit like I was years ago in the small house up north ... I drove only 63 miles in January. 10 days of that month I was sick, still I had 20 days to drive somewhere and never left the house. People find that strange. I don't at all. I have all I need within the confines of my house and the neighborhood. 

That's the latest update from 'the tropics' of Southern Indiana.