Getting Old

Andrew surprised me and came home around 6:00pm last night. He said he was all partied out from the night before. He is looking forward to getting the beamer back. Recently I had my yearly eye appointment and now I am wearing bi-focal contact lenses. I didn't know such things existed but they are working great. Previously I had always backed off on the strength to see long distance clearly so I would be able to still see close up (which is critical for all the reading and computer work I do each day). So it is really great to now be able to see crystal clear long distance and also close up. I also finally got myself a new pair of regular glasses (not bi-focal, just regular). My last pair were from about 16 years ago and were too weak. Strange though - I can read and see long distance with the glasses, so I don't know why I need bi-focal contacts yet can have regular glasses. Anyways, now I can wear these on the long flight over to Italy so I won't have to sleep in my contacts which I hate doing.

Forest Walk

So Andrew isn't going to make it home tomorrow, he says he has meetings lined up so he must stay in Savannah through Sunday. Hmm, I bet he just wants to party with his eyetracking friends! It was a mostly cloudy and windy day after work, but no rain so I took the cats on a forest walk. This winter we have been clearing the righthand side of the forest from our dock to make a new path to walk on. Basically we just use the natural lay of the land and take advantage of deer trails, cutting and pruning the odd limb here and there, and moving downed logs to make path edges. After a few walks on the path, it seems to get settled in. I think all the animals take advantage of it too, since it sure gets worn in quickly. I think I am in essence just inviting the deer into my yard - fool!! The cats really do enjoy the walks and stick close just like dogs would. And just like dogs, they roll around in "whatever" is on the ground but luckily they haven't come across a skunk yet. Cats are most definitely better smelling than dogs, I have to say. The beaver pond is shrinking a bit, but it doesn't matter because beyond the dam there is no water. We are still about 10ft below "full pool" (as the Corps call it), so we have a ways to go. I hope we get a ton of good spring rains, otherwise this beaver pond is going to be prime mosquito breeding territory and that will suck! I didn't get the tomatoes planted after work since I was out walking and garden inspecting with the cats. I like to see the daily changes in the yard now that spring is here. So tomorrow I hope to get on with the planting and I'll postpone the shopping until Sunday. I am not really into shopping anyways, so perhaps this is just a delay tactic. But I do need a few things for Italy so a half day might be enough, the stores don't open until 1:30pm here on Sundays.

Gorgeous Day

Absolutely gorgeous day today after work. From my cube, I see no windows, and now that I don't smoke there is no need to go outside. So it is a nice pleasure to come home to 76 degrees and sunny on the deck. Time for a Peroni! The weekend after next we are off to Florence so I am trying to read up on the town to maximize my days there. Clearly there is too much to see in just one short week so I will have to pick and choose carefully. I am so excited - Florence is the art mecca of the world.

The garden is beginning to bloom now. The Yoshino cherries are out and just gorgeous. And of course the creeping/moss phlox, I have both pink and emerald blue. My tomatoes, peppers, basil and parsley are doing well in the greenhouse but with this increase in temps I think I need to get them all planted outside. I have ordered some tomato cages online and hopefully they show up next week before we take off. But regardless, I hope to get off my lazy butt and put them in the ground tomorrow. I did manage to not be lazy for the last few days and successfully saved 2 hydrangeas from a late frost by covering them up with an old sheet. I only had enough old sheets for 2, so my other 6 or so will most likely not have any blooms again, just like last year, when I had none! Saturday is forecast a chance of rain, so I think I'll go shopping in Greenville for some new clothes.

Ski Movies

I made a few ski movies from our Squaw Valley trip: one, two, three and four. Andrew is away again, this time in Savannah so here's a shot of Harley getting settled into Sidney's chair.