Yes I Calmed Down Today

I'll be brief tonight and no ranting or raving. It was a nice day. I did get out in public, driving on public streets, walking into stores without any hassles or arguments with idiots. After waking up at 1am and then every hour on the hour until 5:10am ... to let Heidi outside to pee ... the sunrise was a bonus as I sat outside waiting for my coffee to finish. I needed coffee in the worst way this morning. Those are the Mule Mountains over there towards the Bisbee area.

A few hours later I looked around the computer room, the living room and the bedroom ... Stella had disappeared. It was good to see actually, that she had decide it was safe and did not have to follow me everywhere I go ... she was taking some early sunshine in this morning.

Clear skies for the Aerostat.

That pink thing might come off for good sometime Friday afternoon at 3:40pm. She and I are hoping it will and hear the words that we can resume our daily morning walks again by sunrise Saturday morning.

I had to spend all morning at home. I had a FedEx delivery that required a signature receipt so I wanted to stay until they showed up. They showed up a little before noon. The hounds had been fed and were sleeping when he arrived, they didn't hear a thing.

I needed to make a trip to town to buy more fresh caught Pacific Salmon and a little more of that Halibut, as I try not to look at the price per pound for that stuff. It tastes great. Riding 4-5 days per week now I need another pair of riding shorts so I stopped by the M&M Cycling Shop. They had a new shipment of Pearl iZumi shorts in stock and in my size. I also picked up a shop t-shirt since I never have enough t-shirts and a pair of cycling gloves since the ones I have been wearing are about wore out.

That was all I was looking for so I headed to the cashier counter. Leaned up against the counter was a red LeMond bike that I thought was just a display. I always wanted a LeMond bicycle but didn't want to spend the money they wanted to have one. As I was looking the bike over and admiring the craftsmanship built into the frame ... I see a tag "For Sale". Really ???

I asked Mike what size the bike was. My custom made Romic is a 56cm and yes the builder actually took measurements of the length of my leg, the distance between my thumb and finger to the middle of my shoulder and the distance from the outside of my knee to the the outside of my ankle. He asked if I rode hills or mountains sitting down or standing up and pedaling. That was in 1984 when those measurements took place.

The LeMond is 57cm ... you may be thinking how much difference can 1cm make? Well in bicycling it can mean a lot depending on the angles of those frame tubes. For example in 1982 I was having severe lower back and sciatica nerve problems thinking I was on the way to back surgery ... when I found out the top tube of the bike I was riding at the time was too long. Years later when one of my cleats on my shoes that lock into the pedals, was only a couple of degrees off ... it caused me to have so much pain in my knee that I could not ride.

So ... 1cm more ... I needed to test ride it ... they let me take it around the parking lot and that was enough area to figure out if this bike and me could find some enjoyment riding. The test ride was great, the bike was very responsive based on how the frame was made. It had new wheels, new freewheel, tuned up, and it was a consignment sale.

Now years ago when I was looking at LeMond bikes they were $2,500 and up ... now days this kids are racing on bikes that are $4,000 and up. I was in luck today though .. $500. They had just sat the bike out a few hours before I got there. I knew just by the condition of the 'used' bike it would be sold fast.

Just like t-shirts ... as long as I am riding on a regular basis ... you can never have enough bikes. Although for most of my life I have gotten by with having only ONE.  :)

I came home, changed into bike gear and took off to see what it would do. After 17 miles we decided both of us had had enough fun and finished the ride. Our top speed was 27 mph and that was NOT because I was going downhill. This bike could fly as long as I could pedal. LOL

Better mood today from the start even with the lack of sleep. I believe Heidi has decided I need to train her like a puppy since we didn't get that experience when she was a puppy. When I got her from GABR, they thought she was a year and half years old, maybe two years at the most. So yes, while she is outside in the middle of the night squatting in the rock yard ... I am standing on the patio looking at all the stars ... there must be a million of them at that time of night with clear skies.

I need to go ... I hear the first NFL game is on tv for the past 2 hours 25 minutes while I have been guzzling ice water, writing blogs plus answering a few texts. Only a few of us still email anymore.

Don't worry about Heidi ... she is back to her old self of running sprints in the house, rolling on the living room rug while she growls at herself and knows every day at 4pm or soon after that it is time for her and Stella's afternoon dog treat. She never misses and always comes to get me if I forget.

She is due for annual shots this month so while we are at the vet, I'll have them check out that bladder problem she seems to have ... unless she is getting some sort of sick enjoyment waking me up every hour on the hour, every night this past week ... she might.

It was a 'calm' day here in the Wild West.

The Week Flies By For The Hounds

I am anxious to see these photos today because I did something different than I usually do. Before the walk I read an article my Feedly account about digital photography. The writer was talking about better quality of photos with a standard lens such as a 35mm or the 55mm instead of a zoom lens. So I tried taking most of these photos today with a 55mm setting on my zoom lens, a few at 35mm and some at 70mm ... so I could also find out if I can survive on a hound walk with a zoom lens that has a range of 35mm-70mm or will a single 55mm lens work okay?

As you see my glove below, Stella was out in the burrs before I could step into the backyard. Before we took another step I pulled all of the burrs off of her only to find them attached to my glove afterward.

She was happy with all of the burrs off her neck, sides and a few on the side of her face. She started with a nice fast run just long enough to run in front of me and then walk as slow as a crawl or about a half step short of my normal stride. 7 acres to walk and she has to walk directly in front of me slow enough that I have to stutter step. If I stopped she stopped.

I added a little color saturation to the fall leaves that are left. I like that option, otherwise it was be a blog full of drab, dull and dying colors.

Most of these are being taken with the 55mm setting. I am surprised that I may not need anything more than 70mm. I guess now that I think about it, Sadie was the one usually running way ahead or leading the chase after deer where a 200mm came in handy. Yes, I still think about her every single day.

It felt colder than the temperature showed. This was the first morning where the cold air could "cut through you like a knife" ... the wind, nothing else, just so I am political correct.

Not a bird, not a cardinal, just a bright red wilted leaf still left at the edge of the wooded area.

By the way the photos look you may think my memory is shot but I took this first one at 35mm.

This one was at 55mm.

And believe it or not ...  this next one was at 70mm.

I had some shopping plans for today. I needed to finally replace my wool ski cap that was 29 years old ... yes honestly it was that old.

I also needed some new wool socks. Not only do they keep my feet warm on the winter walks but warm inside the house with the indoor temp 64° or lower. Nothing worse to me than a house that has the heater set to high.

I also wanted to check on a 4-Port USB Hub. I am out of ports on the back of my iMac since I added an external drive for the photos, an external CD/DVD drive that will be connected full time. I need a port for my phone cable to download the photos to my hard drive, recharge the phone and backup the phone hard drive to my iMac. I won't and never will do that over the cloud or by wifi.

Hat and socks were on sale at drastically reduced prices at Orscheln Farm and Home store. I struck out finding a new USB hub. The new ones on the Walmart rack were only 2.0 instead of 3.0. Since I already have a 2.0 that works but is just slow transferring files ... I didn't buy it.

I wasn't able to catch it with my camera but Stella pressed her nose right up against that old 80 yr old metal fence. She couldn't quit identify what she was smelling. She looked confused and walked away.

We stepped outside for a few short minutes after their lunch. The winds had picked up and it felt colder than it was in the morning, although the needle on the carport thermometer had climbed about 4° warmer. Stella didn't have any motivation to step into the driveway or yard.

Heidi was out and back, heading toward the door within minutes. I am pretty sure that the Azalea you see is not going to make another Midwestern winter. All of them are set too far back from the edge of the roof overhang and rarely get the rain water. I water them by hand most of the summer. I know myself well enough that I will not be going out in the winter every other day to water plants. In fact that outdoor faucet will be shut down for the winter.

I have watched NFL football since I was a young boy, during the 1960's. Until the past 2-3 years I watched all the games I could, no matter who was playing. I love football that much. While I still watch college football nonstop these past few years my NFL viewership has decreased to watching just the Indianapolis Colt games, the NFL Playoffs and the Super Bowl (minus the halftime show).

This might be my last season to watch any regular season game if I even make it through the regular season until the Super Bowl.

Why?

Well as it was explained on the NFL channel the other day by an ex-NFL Quarterback, the league office changed the rules to the touchdown celebrations "to attract the younger crowd" .... UN-$*&#)*##^ believable !!!!

With that rule change players can choreograph their celebrations after a touchdown. With fewer NFL games being played on my tv on Sunday's, Monday and Thursday nights where I do not tune in, I have found there are plenty of other things I can do besides watching touchdown celebrations that have turned into multiple player dance routines or comedy acts. They can do whatever they please but I won't be watching that crap.

What else can I complain about before I go ... hmmmm

Oh yes, how about more Daylight Savings complaints ... with the new time of moving the clocks back, Stella and Heidi see no reason to sleep past 6:15am every morning, while it is dark outside. Their 'inner' clocks are still an hour ahead with no plans to change. Does that turn me into a complaining grump?????  LOL

Other than that, it was a great Friday here in 'the tropics' of Southern Indiana. IU basketball game tonight at 8pm local and that's a good thing.

Stella Yelps In Pain

We had just finished our afternoon walk on Saturday when Stella stopped in the north part of the backyard, normal for her. I had not noticed anything different than other afternoon walks where she walks slower than she does in the mornings. Nor had I heard anything up to that time during the day. As I rubbed the top of her lower back on top near her left hip, she let out a loud yelp ... then started wagging her tail a little. I thought that was strange but she is taking hip/joint supplements and has shown signs in the past that her hips bother her at times.

What wasn't normal was when she tried to raise her left front leg to step up on the couch, she couldn't do it. I thought she might walk away and lay on the floor but bloodhounds are stubborn and if they want to do something they are going to find a way to do it, no matter what I say or what I do. A few minutes later she climbed on the couch like every night, circled and laid next to Heidi to sleep.

Around 10:30pm while I was still watching football games, Heidi hopped off the couch and either stepped on Stella's front foot or brushed her left rear hip ... whatever she did Stella let out another loud yelp obviously in pain. It wasn't continuous, just a short few seconds.

Looking a little closer I could see a difference between her left and right front leg. That left leg area was where she had three staples taken out last month after they had removed a growth. When I squeezed it to see if what she would do, she did nothing. I remembered it was her hip I had touched in the afternoon that made her yelp.

An hour later she was able to stand up enough to make a turn so she could sleep on her left side instead of the right and did not make a sound of any kind. I normally would have given her some Buffered Aspirin but had ran out last summer, forgetting to buy more. A long time ago a vet prescribe that for my first basset hound that had sprained his knee ligaments ... so I have always used Buffered Aspirin for any kind of sprains or back problems. 5-10mg per pound of dog weight is what they recommend for dosage.

The interesting thing was as she was getting ready to step off of the couch and head to bed, she hesitated. I put my hands under her stomach and front shoulders to kind help her for a soft landing and she yelped again when I put my hand under her front armpit. Maybe that swollen front leg has something to do with it?? If so, why was she yelping when I touched her left hip earlier in the afternoon?

So today I was going to keep a close eye on her, probably cancel any walking for her and keep her still as much as possible. But remember, she's a bloodhound and has a mind of her own. Around 9am, she starts that now familiar sound of whining letting me know she wants to go for a walk. She TROTTED outside like her back and leg were perfect ... what was going on?

That is until she heard rain drops hitting the big leaves of the Sycamore trees and then a roll of thunder. She stopped in her tracks and lost interest in walking.

What was different, it was raining lightly and I could hear thunder in the distance but to the south the skies were blue and the sun was out.

To the west there was a little blue sky trying to creep in ... but it was raining.

When we went back inside ... the rain stopped. I put on a light Columbia rain jacket over my fleece jacket and once Stella saw me grab the ball cap from the door hinge she wagged her tail and whined her way to the door. It wasn't raining ... really wasn't sprinkling ... just a few drops of sporadic rain drops.

Stella wasn't sure whether to go on or come back to the house.

Then here was the SHOCKER of the day .... I turned around to see what she was doing ... SHE'S RUNNING !!!

She proceeded to finish the half mile walk like nothing was wrong with her and trotted a few times along the way.

Just like older people, there are some aches and pains that never go away. Some days are better than others. I am hoping it was just a bad few hours where she might have tweaked her back during the day changing sleeping positions. I'll keep an eye out for the next few days and see what else she will do or not do.

These photos do not show a bloodhound that is in any pain.

High winds are in the forecast today ... 30-40mph, mixed with rain.

She can smell that large field cat that lives in the neighbors wooded area.

She was actually tracking a scent today.

After stopping and thinking about what her nose was telling her, she was sure whatever it was had walked through the yard.

With this pose I am thinking field cat.

With this pose I am thinking deer.

With this pose I am thinking field cat again.

What a difference a couple of hours make when it comes to weather. It barely rained as much as they predicted, although it's windy and the skies are now blue. Not only did Heidi make those steps, which are taller than her legs ... she hopped off the other side for her path to the front yard.

Sunny and blue to the west.

Sunny and blue to the northeast.

Heidi's normal after lunch routine. She follows this exact path through the front yard back to the house. If rains or snows of course that path changes to less than a minute and no further than 6" from the side of the house.

When I think back to what my fall Saturdays use to be like when watching college football ... I used to eat a TON of food from 10am all the way through 2am.  The day would usually start with eggs, waffles, peanut butter and a lot of maple syrup. Soon after, chips and salsa, sandwiches throughout the day and burritos during the night games. I didn't drink a lot of beer if any at all but I would drink liters of Pepsi during those 14 hours .... Over the past few years someway my mind and body have adapted to drinking ice cold water and instead of chips by the large bag ... I eat raw carrots during the games. My sandwiches are no longer beef or even meat based but avocado, sliced tomatoes and mayo.

When you are a sports addict and there are too many games being played at the same time you have no choice but to do this to your tv screen. The top screens have a banner at the bottom showing scores of other games. That is Washington State and Stanford on the left, Washington and Cal game on the right.

After numerous trips off and on the couch, Stella never made a sound like yesterday afternoon and last night. Heidi decided she would play like a puppy but for her to do that I had to get on the floor as low as a basset hound. Stella stood and watched and no clue what was going on. After about 5 laps, back and from me to around the living room she decided she had all the excitement she needed for one day. I spent this afternoon inside reading while the hounds slept.

The winds are howling from the west/southwest and blowing all leaves out into the field away from the yard. With that and Stella back to her old self, all was good today in 'the tropics' of Southern Indiana.