Date Night

Our daughter headed off to Outdoor Education today so we had a free evening tonight. We decided to go out for dinner to Red Lobster (haven't been there in a long time). Then, we went to the movie "21", which was about the MIT students who tried to beat Vegas a few years ago. It was a good movie, and a great evening out with my wife!

Third Mowing of the Season

Well, the third mowing of the season is under wraps. Another 200 gallons of yard clippings. Wow, can't believe my yard is growing so much. Well, the lower notch on the mower helps too! I emptied the mower bag 34 times today. Basically the same as last time, one pass down the yard and about half way back and I'd have to empty the bag. On about half of those dumpings, the blade was bound up with clippings, so I'd have to tilt the mower up to dig them out. The yard looks pretty good though. There's still a lot of dead thatch though, really wishing I would have gotten the chance to dethatch earlier this year. So, the yard, when mowed, still looks a little yellow due to the dead thatch. But, it looks great when the grass grows over it.

On a side note, my landscaper came late last week and remulched the beds. It looks great! It was a little pricey, just over $200, but it saved me the hassle of getting the mulch and doing it myself. I don't have a truck anymore to get it, so would have had to pay a delivery fee anyway. Money well spent, since I didn't really have the time to get it done.

I also got my sprinkler system fixed. Indeed, the backflow valve had broken. That repair was $85, but no way to avoid it. Things break, and if you don't fix it, you can't use it.

Storm Chasing

A couple of days ago on April 24th, I had the opportunity to do some storm chasing in northwest Kansas. I had the day off from work, and thought if something did develop in my own area, I wouldn't be needed. I left home around 1030 am, after a fitful night's sleep the night before. I guess I was just giddy about the first chase of the season. All data continued to point to severe development across southwest Nebraska or northwest Kansas. There was some debate among chasers that southern Kansas would be the hotspot. Indeed, the weather parameters were off the charts there, but alas, it remained capped, and nothing happened down there.

I arrived in Arapahoe, NE by mid afternoon, about 4 hours in advance of anticipated development. This was also the first chance I had to use my new data connection through Alltel. It worked great. Upon arrival, I analyzed the mesoanalysis data for about an hour, and decided that I needed to shift further south toward, Norton, KS. Upon arriving in Norton, KS, I waited for another hour, and started to drive to Hill City, KS, but stopped and decided to head west. This proved to be the right choice as I intercepted the second warned cell of the day, which would eventually develop into a moster supercell that would roll eastward across Kansas for the next 5 to 6 hours.

I encountered a couple of hail cores, both about 1" in diameter, and also was able to position myself directly under the wall cloud. It was very cool. I also was blasted with rear flank downdraft winds in excess of 60 mph, which created a horrendous amount of blowing dust. I also heard this weird, howling sound, which was likely the RFD, but it almost sounded as if a sound engineer were somehow adding the sound effects from Twister.

After chasing the supercell storm for about an hour, darkness fell, and I realized I couldn't see the character of the dirt roads anymore. I couldn't tell if they were wet or dry, couldn't see the ruts, etc. I attribute this to my recent LASIK surgery. I may never have "good" nighttime vision again I'm afraid. So, I decided to get back onto paved roads and follow the storm east. The storm actually followed Highway 24 exactly, so was able to follow behind one or two miles for another couple of hours.

By late evening, I was very tired, and decided to let the storm go. In another one to two hours, it produced a 15 mile long tornado after midnight. I doubt I would have been able to follow it as it veered off the main highway, given my poor nighttime eyesight.

All in all, it was a great day. I put about 825 miles on the car, had a great chase opportunity, and overall had an awesome time. My equipment worked well, and I estimate that I had a cell phone data connection 95% of the day. The new mobile computer desk worked great. I do need to gery-rig some supports to keep the laptop from sliding off, but that's an easy fix.

Sigh, I'm Still Fat

After working very hard over the previous 7 months, having lost 43 lbs, I realized today that I'm still fat. My body fat percentage is still in the lower 20s despite my best efforts to make it go any lower. I still have love handles that hang over the side of my shorts, and I have moobs' (man boobs). Overall, I've reduced my clothing size from a size 36/38 to a size 31/33 and have lost 43 lbs, but I've still got the same old trouble spots that I had before, it's just that they're in slightly different proportions, but nevertheless still there. Needless to say, it was a real downer. I guess I just need to accept the fact that I'll never be that buff dude that is smokin' hot. I never have been, so not sure why I've got this delusion that I ever would be.

Nothing is Ever Easy

I dusted off my bicycle last night in hopes of getting out and getting some great exercise. The tires were flat, and the batteries were dead on the tail light and the cyclo computer. I did have new batteries, but the screws were so small in the Specialized Elite computer that I had to go to the store to buy a jeweler's set. Thankfully, it was only 94 cents at Walmart. LOL. But, one of the screws is set so tight, I've stripped the heads. Damn. Now I'm stuck, and have no way to get that stupid screw out. Ugh. Nothing is ever easy.

I also got a call from the guy that aerates my yard each spring and fall. He's coming tomorrow so I had to flag the sprinkler heads so he doesn't run them over. Typically, I just run the sprinklers on each zone for a couple minutes so I can drop the flags. This was the first time I've opened up the valves this year, and upon doing so, saw a huge stream of water flowing down the check back-flow valve. Crap. Have to get it replaced. I have no idea (let alone time) how to replace it, so will call the sprinkler guys tomorrow to get them out for a service call. Nothing is ever easy.

Then, after walking in the house, my wife said she couldn't access the part of her website that sends out her weekly newsletter. Upon some quick debugging, it appears my web provider is having trouble with their MySQL server. I opened a trouble ticket, but they have no idea when it will be fixed. Nothing is ever easy.

And, I've been having a tooth ache off and on for the last month. The pain is actually coming from the tooth that I had the root canal and subsequent crown put on at the beginning of the year. It must be referred pain from the tooth next to it, so I need to call the dentist to have it check. Nothing is ever easy.

The moral of the story? I guess Murphy was right. If there's any chance that something can go wrong, it usually will.

Hate, Hate, Hate Yard Work

The saga continues today. After getting off work at 4pm, I decided to get the remainder of the yard work done this evening since it might rain tomorrow. I quickly regretted lowering my mower one notch, as I had to literally change the back with each single pass through the yard. My back yard is about 100 feet out, and the bag was full of clippings at the end of a single pass. Yowza, that was a lot of work. When I normally mow my yard, I'll create about 100 gallons of clippings. Tonight, about 200 gallons were produced. And, with every bag dump, I had to flip the mower up to clean out the grass that was binding the mower blade. Ugh. It was a horrible job.

Then, I decided to move re-arrange my reed grass. I moved 4 clumps from the back yard to a huge bed I have in the front yard. It previously had 3 clumps, but now it has 7. I need to grab 2 more clumps from the side of the house. This was no easy job. The reed grass is 5 years old, and about 18" in diameter. I had to dig up the clump, then carry it to the front yard. Each bunch weighed about 75lbs. And, I had to relocated the existing 3 bunches in the front yard. Needless to say, it was a LOT of work, and I'm not done. But, it should improve that bed in the long run.

Yard Work, That Time of Year

A couple weeks ago, I started to get the yard prepared for spring. I cut down all of the reed grass, trimmed the dead branches from the rose bushes, raked the leaves away from the foundation of the house, and blew leaves out from under the bushes, from under the deck, etc. I also mowed for the first time, and then put down spring fertilizer and crab grass preventer. Over the last week, especially after the last rain, the grass started to green up.

This afternoon and evening, I spent about 4 hours in the yard and pulled grass from all the mulch, and also decided to pull up all the brick edging and re-seat it. Wow, that was a hard job. But, it looks much better, and I feel better and the overall front yard appearance. I also mowed the front yard again, and will finish the back yard tomorrow. I decided to move the mower lower one notch this year. Wow, that created a lot of grass clippings, but I think overall the yard will look a lot neater.

I'm not really happy with the overall landscaping scheme in the front yard, but am likely stuck with it in the meantime. I do need to re-arrange some reed grass tomorrow as well, and re-arrange some of the boulders we have strewn about the landscaping. I do have some perennials in the bush beds, and also plant some annuals as well. But, it's nothing special, I wish I had more of a green thumb and the time and patience to take care of it all.

I've also got a commercial flagpole that I need to install, but can't really decided if I want to put it on the left or right corner of the house. Supposedly, our covenants prevent the installation of flag poles, but a neighbor on the next street over has installed a flag pole, so if he can do it, I will too.

While raking the grass in the front yard, I uncovered no less than a half-dozen cigarette butts in the stripe of grass next to the street. Nothing peeves me more than someone throwing out their cigarette butts on my property. I assume they came from folks driving by and tossing out their butts. I'd like to pop anyone in the mouth if I catch them doing it. Smokers can be so rude sometimes. You see it all the time, especially at stop lights, just take a look on the ground. You'll often see hundreds of cigarette butts. Disgusting.

Anyhow, my back aches, my legs hurt, and my hands look and feel like hamburger. I imagine in a few years, I'll just say to hell with it and hire a professional lawn service and just sit back on the deck and drink a cold beverage instead. In fact, that option is sounding better and better. I used to love yard work, but unfortunately, my age is starting to show.

Maintaining My Weight

Well, 3 months after the end of the Biggest Loser Competition, I'm holding steady around 162 lbs (not unless you count the day that I gained 4 lbs from eating Thai food). I feel great, and really feel this is where I want my weight to be. I can't believe, when looking back, that I felt healthy when I weighed 205, and hopefully will never go back to that point. In fact, we went clothes shopping tonight (with a 30% Kohl's coupon), and I bought size 32 shorts and medium shirts. Even the size 32 was big, and I probably should have bought a size 31. I've never worn a size 32 in anything, and have never worn a medium shirt. It's just surreal. Or if I have worn clothes that size, it may be been during my junior/senior year in college, I can't remember.

Seeing Things Like I've Never Seen Before

Today, we visited Coco Key Water resort here in Omaha. Essentially, it's an indoor water park attached to the Holiday Inn Convention Center, similar to the Great Wolf Lodge resorts. This was the first time that I've had the chance to swim in a public place since my LASIK eye surgery. Wow is all I can say. It's the first time in my life that I've actually been able to see everyone and everything while swimming, and was actually able to keep track of my daughter. Previously, I'd always wear sunglasses, but with such poor eyesight, was basically blind, and could never see anything more than a foot or two in front of me. Losing track of my daughter at the water park before was a common occurrence. Now, I could see her from across the complex. In other words, I love, love, love my new vision and have no regrets. Even though my vision is occasionally blurry or fuzzy, it sure beats what I had before, and the slight inconvenience is OK with me. I'm now 4 months past surgery, and I assume this is probably as good as it's going to get. I do see 20/15, with about 1/4 of a diopter. The optometrist indicated that it would be too risky to do a surgical enhancement, so I may just have to settle for what I've got. We'll see if things change in another 2 months.

Gearing up for Severe Storm Season

It's now April 1st and the first severe storm warnings of the season were issued yesterday morning. That means it's time to start gearing up for storm chasing as well. With that in mind, I've changed my equipment slightly. I recently purchased a new Dell 1525 widescreen laptop (sold my old Dell 600m laptop on Craigslist in a couple of days). The new laptop can now handle my weather software with ease and also draw 3D renderings of thunderstorms, etc. I also changed cell phone carriers and now have a data plan with Alltel (last year, I had AT&T). I believe Alltel has much better data service, mainly in rural areas. I also purchased a mobile desk to use in the car to hold the laptop. Other than than, not much has changed, and I intend to chase a few severe storms here and there. If you recall, last year, I chased a few storms, most notably the Greensburg, KS EF5 tornado. I've thought about purchasing a Kestrel 3000 wind/temperature/dewpoint meter, and may still do so before the heart of the severe weather season arrives. Bring on the storms! I also need to get my "chase" manual up to snuff with updated maps, charts, diagrams, and references, and get my "go" box ready to go also. Essentially, I want things to be ready that I could leave within a moments notice if necessary. Of course, chasing thunderstorms for fun revolves around my work schedule, and I'm not willing to drive extreme distances since my car already has 170,000 miles on it, but nevertheless, I will be out at least one more year. If I eventually get a new vehicle, I imagine it would severely limit my abilities to core-punch a severe storm.