Good morning Ernie, Paul and Kitty,

I am sitting here in front of my mood light enhancer that arrived yesterday. It’s much smaller in size than I had imagined for the cost.  It does have a timer and bright light adjustment with hues so I would guess these features would add to the cost.

Although I would like snow on Christmas Eve thru New Year’s Day, I agree that I am perfectly happy with the 40 degree temperatures and drizzle…

I must make a trip to Costco today to purchase items for the gathering.  Joe came from a large Catholic family with eight children…many of them had large families.   Thus, we are many.  I was an only child.

Enjoy the day.   Susan

Thank you for the birthday wishes.  I would like to believe that it is just a ‘number’.  So, on we go….. doing our best to stay active and healthy. I believe that is the key to staying young.

I have two cousins, one in Highlands Ranch CO and one in Chattanooga. We were all only children, I am the youngest! 

Enjoy the day ~  Susan

Good morning Susan.  30 here this morn, cool but much better than 18.  My parts for

the Baja were scheduled to arrive yesterday and didn't but today would be ok.  Won't

be very warm until after the mail comes anyway. 

Is your mood light lightening your mood?  I turn one or two lights on when it's a cloudy

and dark day even though I can see fine without them.  Especially when it goes on day

after day.

We are supposed to get some snow Sunday, few inches I think.  Don't think it would

survive until Christmas if we get it.  I could hold off anyway.  Will be plenty of weeks

with snow cover.  I fixed my boom box for snow shoveling.  If only a few inches I don't

use the backhoe, shovel makes less of a mess and I can use the exercise.  Think our

driveway is about 150 feet long with space for two cars for about half of it.

We had a large family.  My mom says most of us wouldn't have been born if they had

birth control pills in the 50s.  So I just barely made it here.    I was the youngest so

our family is fading fast.  I have a brother further north in NY that is still working at 80

years old.  Didn't manage to get a pension from the places he worked. 

Birthdays, for a while we have the option to restart ourselves in our lives but these times

will fade.  I'm sure doing a lot better while fighting diabetes but if not for this war I wouldn't

be doing it.  It consumes a good part of my life.  Many do everything healthy without these

battles though.  Many would look for someone to pay to replace these control arms on the

Baja but to me I would be paying someone to live my life for me. 

Still doing small tasks these days waiting for my parts to get here.  We did have the grandsons

yesterday but only about 5 hours.  They had pizza but I bowed out of my usual one piece.  I ate

enough without one.  We decorated the tree.  I got out an angel that lights but think I will need to

put some LEDs in it.  Not getting the lights to stay on. 

Enjoy the day all, some sunshine forecast here.

Ernie

Hi Ernie,

I am using the light as I type.  Decently sure that it will take longer than a day or so to make up for the lack of sunshine. The sun is shining today…but it is chilly.

I saw a birthday cake in one of your pictures.  Do you also have a December birthday?  Interesting comment your Mom made, but so true of the time.  The 1960’s ushered in the pill and so many options. 
 

You are very resourceful in dealing with it all!  Kudos to you!  We need to conserve our funds as we age.  
 

On we go.  Enjoy the weekend!

Good morning, all. My company had our holiday dinner last night, so happy for the mild temperature. Saw some colleagues I have not seen in 3 years. 

Enjoy the day.

Good morning all.  Chilly 23 degrees here.  Supposed to be another fairly decent sunny day here.

Think it only made it to 39 yesterday but I got warm outside working on the Baja.  Did the south

side towards the sun, then turned the car around so the other side was in the sun.  Finished it

in one afternoon, didn't think I would. 

Keep us informed on the mood light.  Nice to feel Summer in the Winter.  I haven't been in Winter

sports since I was a kid.  Yes, the pups and I both have December birthdays, had Cocoa's name with

mine on the cake, now Chloe and Belle.  Ironic, wife talked about doing another Snoopy cake this

year.  That one was years ago. 

My mom went to work in the 60s.  Probably $1.10 an hour then I think.  She was a cook.  She had

a hugh strawberry patch on the farm before that.  They were very good, she kept it going while working

into the 70s. 

I hope that fixed the rear of the Baja.  Probably shouldn't have a second car retired but don't like taking

our primary car out right after a snow storm.  Plus I'm still going down to the farm for a day every two or

three weeks.  Can carry things in the Baja that won't fit in a SUV, not often we need that but sometimes.

Now I need to try to find some used tires or bargain new ones in case the camber is still out and wears the

outer tread first again.  I only keep liability insurance on it for the past 13 years or so, $96 every 6 months.

Paul, we only had a department dinner and our manager had to spring for it.  Think the last few years, it

disappeared, the Christmas dinner that is.  Last manager we had was very rude, not a good human at all.

Nice you got to see lost colleagues, 3 years goes by quickly, didn't seem like it when it was our complete

tour in the Army.  Wife hadn't gotten her drivers license yet so made it tough at home sometimes, especially

when I went on a field trip or went on alert.  In my career, the first part, was in defense electronics, fighter

jets and bombers. F15 Eagle, B1B bomber, Stealth, Black Hawk, and others.  Then worked on RTUs in the utility

company here in central NY, control boards.  When I tested going into college the advisor said I should think

about going into social service.  I think he was right but my family was all about technicians and hands on, so

I seemed to have a one track mind towards that.  My brother in northern NY is still an electronics technician at

80 but because he didn't manage to get a pension for retirement.  He analyzes things like video games, juke boxes,

etc... and repairs.  He was in Kodak for a while but they had layoffs all the time.  I sometimes see ex coworkers but

from IBM Federal Systems I don't recognize some and some are gone.  Bought out by Lockheed Martin.

Was glad to get the parts and finish the work on the Baja.  Saw in tracking the one part got to Binghamton Friday morning

and still had to make it to my little town, other made it to Syracuse Friday morning, both made it here before noon.   Got

oxy acetylene torch out to heat a nut on one side.  I was very lucky to get good weather for that job.  Think I kept better

track of our vehicle when we were younger and that's all we had. 

Susan, so many try to trick you or outright cheat you when working on your stuff.  I guess many learn early in their business

from customers that want something for nothing and tough to survive in a small business.  Our vehicles and appliances, smaller

stuff break down constantly.  Right off I remember our freezer / refrigerator losing a relay and few years later the whole contol

board burned up.  Rear bearing on the dryer, year or two earlier had to replace that and the plastic holder they use in the front

with it's felt strip I guess is a front bearing.  Goes on and on, washer we got this time is a Speed Queen, $850 and later $900 but

isn't breaking down.  Has an agitator and it's timer is mechanical so doesn't have to be reset all the time the way our GE did. 

Glad everyone is doing well. More sun today. 

Ernie

My ham radio station in the mid 70s. our daughter way back then, Army days.

D

Snowing here now Susan, 2-3 inches forecast.  Don't know if it will still be around for

Christmas.  Glad I got outdoor lights up yesterday.  Only put up the 3 LED strings my

wife just bought.

Ernie

How lovely you have snow!  It’s cold here, but no snow forecast.  I just did a brisk walk-about with Finn. Mass soon and a theatre production, Elf, that Jim’s granddaughter is in.

Enjoy the day everyone! 

We are supposed to get rain soon. 

Jogged a 5K in Brooklyn yesterday. Somewhat cold at 6AM, but if I wear too many layers, I get hot when moving. The hot chocolate afterwards was popular.  Some people ran in Santa or elf attire.