Back to the Grind

We got back from Washington DC on Wednesday night. Andrew had a 2 day business meeting there so we decided I would join him and we'd go a few days early for a monument and Smithsonian tour. I must have taken a gazillion photos and now have to process them all, throwing out the rejects and writing up the good ones. It was a great trip with excellent weather. Only a little drizzle on the last day. Now when I see various monuments in the TV news clips I can say "I know exactly where that is". We also went to lots of art galleries and museums. And the metro is awesome! But now we are back to the grind at work - it's mid September and the semester is settling in now. Today I mowed the grass and took the cats on a garden tour. They were very happy that we picked them up from the boarding house yesterday and are thrilled that once again they have their freedom to run and play outdoors in the garden and forest. The mailbox planting has made a bit of a second showing - the russian sage and spirea are blooming again. We got some good rains while we were away and the temperatures are getting a little cooler. It is time to start working on the lawn - getting rid of weeds and overseeding. Unfortunately the lake still hasn't recovered. The beaver dam is holding, but we need a small hurricane to head our way - just a small one, no high winds please (in 2004 Hurricane Ivan took out all 4 bradford pears at the entrance to our subdivision - even this far inland the winds can really be damaging). Our water heater needs an inspection. During the garden tour I heard a dripping sound on the side of the house - it was the outlet pipe for the water heater. So I took a look at the water heater and sure enough, it seems to be dripping quite a bit of water from the pressure valve, so much that the drip pan is completely full and the extra water is exiting out the pipe to the side of the house. What a waste of water! I think the valve must be corroded. Andrew will be contacting the heating guy to take a look at it. Hopefully it won't be too much hassle to get it fixed up. I don't like that the water from the outlet pipe is dripping right on the house foundation so this weekend Andrew will be extending that outlet pipe to water the plants rather than the foundation. A little PVC pipe and glue should take care of that nicely. For dinner tonight I made a stir fry. Lots of fresh, lightly cooked vegetables over rice with some thai chili sauce on top. Andrew put a little shrimp in his. We just bought the new Bob Dylan CD 'Modern Times' from Apple iTunes and we are listening to it right now. Fantastic CD - highly recommended. This weekend should be filled with yard work and boating - the weather will be great, I love fall weather! Andrew is looking forward to watching the Aggies play Army tomorrow night on ESPN2. Gig 'em Aggies whoop!