Hummingbird on a wire

Heard some other birds making noise so I got the camera out, but they flew away too quickly. Then I saw this one on the fence just outside the window so I used the camera's zoom feature and got the best shot I could.

(click to enlarge)

Chores, Weed killing, and doll picture

(clicking enlarges)
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All I can think to write at the moment is that I've gotten two loads of laundry washed and hung out on the line, taken a shower, shaved, started the dish washing machine, burned the trash, played a game of pool, watched the George Lopez show, the Price is right game show, a few minutes of Ellen DeGeneres, and have done the usual computer stuff (email, on-line socialization site called Gather, and now journaling). Also, I've spayed the latest round of weed killing solution to, well, some bunch-grass and other weeds. The 'solution' I speak of is from an idea a good friend uses, it's called bleach. If you recall, and even if you don't, I did start using white vinegar and was told about the bleach as a money saving idea which I've been using for a couple of weeks, off and on, mostly off because of it raining every couple to a few days. In fact it rained last night. The forecast was for only a 30 percent chance of showers today, hence my getting some clothes hung out.
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A couple of months ago when I returned from Colorado I had brought a bag containing crossword puzzle and word-find books that my parents used to do. There were several of the word-find ones that for some reason (probably because they were mom's) I really got into them and finished finding all the words in the all of the puzzle books. I pretty much worked on them every chance I got, especially when there were commercials on the television. Unfortunately I finished the last one several days ago so haven't had any puzzles to work on. There is one in the bathroom, but that's for those who are going to be spending an undetermined amount of time visiting 'John' and need something to do besides just sitting there. LOL. Payday is only a few days away though, and I definitely want to get more word-find books. I do want to get those that give you a 'hidden' words to figure out after all the words on the list are found and there are unused letters remaining. I also brought home some crossword books for Rain. Dad was really good at those and so is Rain, so I figured she'd appreciate them, which she has and continues to do.
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P.S. The reason I chose the picture at the top is because I wanted to include a picture but didn't know which one. So since I mentioned my parents, mom specifically, I thought the one of most of her dolls would work.

Not just for Hummingbirds

Just because it's a hummingbird feeder doesn't mean other types of birds won't drink from it. *smile*
We've also seen bees and wasps get drinks from them too.

(click to enlarge)
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3 videos made into one from 4-24-09

I took three separate videos of the fireworks we watched last nigh, combined them to make one video, and am showing you now. The reason they were shooting them off last night was so that Dallas County, MO representatives could see what vendors who want to do the 4th of July show have to put the show on with.

Homemade ramps and stuff

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Spent quite a lot of time yesterday placing and setting-up these ramps for my elec. chair. The ramp on the left was *originally* on the outside of the other door because there's an actual step when you walk out. That bench with the cat on it replaced a much longer sofa (hide-a-bed) that made it impossible for the chair to even get to the ramp. The kitchen is sunk-in so there's a step that the chair can't go up without a ramp even if I could get down into it. Since the bathroom door is too small for the chair anyway, I put the ramp here instead. Up the ramp and to the right is another door leading to the porch outside, that doesn't have a step, which leads down the porch to the ramp on the right. Now I need to build a ramp to go in and out of the van that's not too long, but strong enough to support a 300 pound-ISH chair with me in it. I have a plywood sheet that I'm thinking I could add 2-by-4's to the underside of to strengthen it. Not sure I have any 2-by-4's left TO use. Hmm... Ideas anyone?
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Fringe Pool?

Me playing pool by myself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwcuBQXonBI

Animal shelter, applications, appointment

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Today we took Hedwig and Galux to the animal shelter. It was so sad when I walked around and said, "Hi" to all the dogs, cats, and kittens already there. Not only did I say hi, but I also apologized for the having to be put there in the first place. That being said, this particular shelter has a pretty good adoption rate. The two cats we took in last month were adopted in about two weeks after we dropped them off. YAY!
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From there we got gas because we'll be driving to an appointment with a doctor/nurse an hour from here tomorrow. Stopped into Wally World to get a few things, and Rain attempted to fill-out an application for work on one of their touch-screen things. She stopped before finishing because the screen wasn't cooperating with her touches and it frustrated the hell out of her. I told her if it's getting to her that badly, quit and do it later, or stop in to customer service and get one she could fill-out at home (we didn't). Before Wally World we stopped into Lowe's and found out she could apply for work on-line, so that's what she'll be doing next. We're hoping that wherever she gets hired will give her a proof-of-employment note so she can qualify for a car-loan so she won't have to drive the gas guzzling van very long.
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I started uploading the 7-minute video to YouTube an hour and a half ago - it's 47% done.

Movie upload (not), laundry, brick path

I tried a couple of times to upload a short, 7 minute video with the size of 640X480 screen-size after I edited it with Windows Movie Maker. Pre-edit it's only 292 MB, but after the edit it is 656 MB. 656 megabytes takes a very long time to upload to YouTube even with our 'up-to' 1.5 MBps DSL. So long in fact that after starting the upload and waiting for an hour (twice) I canceled because it still hadn't finished and there's no way that I know of to see how much has uploaded and/or what the estimated time remaining is. My reasoning for not uploading the original is because I personally don't think anyone would watch 7 minutes of one person playing a game of pool by himself. Even if there was a little dancing and singing along with the music. But of course that is probably just my low self-esteem talking. *sigh* Besides, I changed the video settings on the camera to 380X240 so I may take another video because it should be fewer megabytes. If I do, it'll be tomorrow or later.
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There are two washer loads of clothes hanging on the line that need to be brought in. Last time I checked, about half an hour ago, the first load was still a little damp. The sun is shining though, and the wind is breezing, so they may be dry enough by now. On the other hand, the only reason I did laundry is 1) Rain suggested it, 2) it's forecast to rain either tomorrow or the next day.
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I did start a brick-path from the porch to the swimming pool deck, but there isn't even enough to make steps of 4-apiece (making a square) of 'steps' all the way over. So now I'm not sure what to do with them. Hmm...
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Leak continues (updated: 4-11-09)

Just an update for those who are following our leak-conundrum, we bought a couple of rubber O-rings today and installed one, then the other, but they didn't do the trick. Tried making a flat gasket to go on top of the filter-housing, with electrical & duct tape combined (only had a tiny bit of electrical tape), but that didn't work either. I did find out however that the bucket spout works. *smile*
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I still haven't been able to get the water filter in the pumphouse to stop leaking. A few days ago I put more thread-tape on the fittings that attach the intake and output hoses on the housing and I thought it was fixed permanently. A couple of days later I decided to check and make sure. That's when I noticed the bucket we had below it to catch any water that leaks, was full... AGAIN. *crap* So I was checking the fitting again and noticed that the water wasn't dripping out of those. It was leaking because the filter cover screwed on to the housing wasn't sealing. It's as tight as it can be. I attempted to put filter tape on those threads, but they are too widely spread apart for such skinny tape. Since I don't have any kind of gasket to use on top of the casing to seal it, something else needed to be done. Before falling asleep last night it occurred to me to put an overflow attachment and hose on the bucket. That way I hopefully won't have to empty the bucket every day.
==The picture (above) is of my invention before taking it out to the pumphouse that has the water filter in it.
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This (above) is just a top-view of the overflow extension piping. Hopefully when the water gets to the level of that fitting, it'll start running through that and the pipe leading out of the pumhouse door so that manual bucket emptying is no longer necessary.
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Even if this works the way I want it to, I will buy a gasket to put between the filter-housing and flow device so that the inside of the pumphouse can dry-out.
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P.S. I love PVC pipe and the fittings that the previous owner left for me to play with!
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Mowing, weed killing, and eggs

The weather is finally warm and the ground dry enough to mow. I got the front mowed out to the Rose of Sharons to the north, over to the Redbud tree on the east, and over to the fence on the other side of Angelica's room. Also did the back yard from the house to the other side of the wood shed and the other side of the swimming pool. I stopped after that because I wasn't sure if I should do the ex chicken yard, so I didn't. Besides, I need to pick up some of the small, red bricks that used to be around the chicken coop and put them somewhere. I'm thinking about possibly starting a brick path between the porch and the swimming pool deck. I know for a fact we don't have enough, but that won't stop me starting it.
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I also want to split the Poplar stumps in half using the chainsaw, then cut all three of them as close to the ground as I can get. Something else I could do that Rain suggested, is drill a hole in the middle of each, pour molasses or something in and let the ants eat them till they're gone. I do like using the chainsaw, so I'm thinking that I'll probably do that 'just because I can'.
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I took an old spray bottle that I filled ¾ full of water and then topped it off with white vinegar, and sprayed as many weeds and clumps of 'clump-grass' (not it's real name, but that's what it looks like). Not sure if that'll actually make that stuff start dying since it wasn't straight vinegar. Thought I'd give it a shot anyway. Speaking of clumps de la grass, last week I poured a cup of straight vinegar on the roots of two of them at the end of the porch. They are both starting to die, but it's suggested I pour one more cup on each of them. Possibly today.
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Next on my mental-list is to take the trashes out and burn them in the barrel. Then either I will be bringing in the two loads of clothes that were hung on the line yesterday, suggest it to someone else, or help whoever bring them in and put them away. We also need to run up to 'The Egg Guy's' house and get some chicken eggs.
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Projects and inherited things

This is our new shower bar. The actual shower head we've had for a while, but just a few days ago we got that shiny, new extension so that the water comes down straighter. I think we need one more extension so that the shower-head is over the center of the bathtub. The extension was $20 bucks at Lowe's. I suppose if we wanted to really pinch those pennies I could make one with PVC pipe. We'll see.
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This is a wall hanging that my mom had for mega years, that was sent to me after her passing. Finally decided where to put it, in the pool room on the wall. It really needs a frame though because it's pretty small, and it's the only thing on that wall, which makes it look even tinier. Plus I need to re-level it.
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These were also mom's. My sister sent them to Rain, my wife, and now they are also in the pool room window. Unfortunately the weather got cold, and it's been cloudy, so they're not getting as much sun as they need. Hopefully Spring will actually start in a week and they'll get all comfy.
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We also inherited this little gem that gives both the inside and outside temperatures. Plus the time, the top number. I took this last night when I was bored. It's held on the wall with double sided carpet tape because it was the easiest thing to use rather than Velcro.
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Have had this for a week or two and couldn't decide where to put it. Last night we came to an agreement, that on wall next to the door we consider the front door, it would make a good shelf for outgoing mail. Or maybe sunglasses, or whatever is small and needs a temporary place to be. Oh yeah, and this was a shelf I made for mom when I was in high school about 20 years ago.
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Not mowing. Affordable (not) Health Insurance

Was thinking yesterday that I would mow today, so I asked Rain what the chances of precipitation was according to the forecast and she said, "100%". So I told her that I guess I won't be mowing tomorrow (today). This morning I got up, took a shower, drank my coffee, watched TV for while, took my medicine like a good boy, and not once did I hear water falling on the metal roof. A little after noon I decided that since all my coffee was drank and the show that was on wasn't important enough to keep me inside, that I would do some aforementioned mowing. When I got onto the porch I noticed that the van was wet. Upon closer listening it was apparent that the sky was indeed dripping. Therefore the idea of mowing today passed. Luckily for you (not) that meant I now have time to write.
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You know those commercials that say, "If you are one of the 47 million Americans without health insurance, now you can get some affordable insurance and are already qualified!" ? One of those came on a couple of days ago mentioning that for only $6 dollars a day for individuals or $10 dollars a day for families you could get their insurance. So I went to their web site, found contact information and sent them an email. I asked if they were serious about $180 or $300 a month being "affordable" to someone on disability income only, or were they kidding me that I should have that much "extra"? As you probably guessed, they haven't written back to answer my questions yet. It just annoys me that they think just because THEY say something is affordable that it really is. Like we can't do the math. Yes, I'm perfectly aware that if it really bothers me that much I should turn the television off.
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April Fools Day and updates

(November Sunset)

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Happy April Fools Day! Before breakfast I took a wet load of clothes out of the washing machine and hung them on the line. Because I believed it would at least feel much warmer than it had the days before, I didn't put on my coat. Should have because it was a little windier than I expected and therefore felt a little chilly to me. Got the clothes hung-up without too much suffering and didn't even catch a chill or pneumonia. LOL. The next time I took clothes out to hang I did wear a jacket and it felt warmer, more pleasant, and went smoothly. Wifey helped with the second load, then we came in and I played a game of pool with her. It was a good, fun game, and I'm looking forward to playing her again some time today.
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I was considering taking down the plastic that is blocking the wind from blowing on the north side of the house today. Was actually thinking about it yesterday too, but the wind was blowing pretty hard and was freakin' cold. Plus, on the news last night they were suggesting that there was a chance for a frost in some areas. Although I pretty much knew it most likely would not get that cold here because we're generally about 5 degrees warmer than where the TV station is, I chose not to de-plasticize the porch, was glad I didn't. Haven't fully decided one way or the other as to whether today will be the day. Or if the indoor windows' plastic will be taken today or not either.
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I also got the trash taken to the burn barrel and burned this morning. Cannot remember right off the top of my head whether or not it was before or after breakfast. I'm thinking before though, for what that's worth.
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Been meaning to update whoever cares about the 'check engine soon' light on the van. After we drive it at 60 mph or above for an extended amount of time (10 or more minutes I guess) the light goes off. Have decided that it's coming on before that because of the 0² sensor. Will be looking up where that is and how to fix it on the web later. Hopefully it won't be too difficult. We don't think it would be a huge deal if we didn't fix it right away since it's been going on and off for a few months now, and the van seems to be running okay.
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