March 20

It has been a busy week end here.  On Friday we had some new carpet installed in half of the house.  When we bought the house we knew it had to be replaced.  The previous owner had a dog and there were some stains that cleaner did not remove.  Plus we were not sure what was under the carpet.  This week Elizabeth was busy moving stuff in preparation.  The installers arrived about 9:30 and they were gone about 2.  It looks much better.  The original carpet, and we think it was original to the house was light beige.  The new one is just a little darker but not what you would consider brown.  The only problem, and we ALWAYS have problems with stuff like this is near the back door.  The floor there is tile.  When they removed the old carpet we saw the edge of the tile is not a straight line.  The carpet guys said all they do is install carpet so we will have to get some tile people in to fix that.  Then the carpet guys can come back and finish installing the carpet.  Where it meets the tile they left the carpet long so there would be enough once the tile was fixed.  Right now it is just taped down.

Saturday I got up and went for a bike rise.  I rode a little over 26 miles.  Last week I rode 40 miles on day and that was a bit too much.  After getting home and having breakfast it was work around the house day.  On each side of our house there are gates that go from the back yard to the front.  One of these is on the north side of the house.  Between the house and the fence this area gets little sunlight and the grass does not grow.  Also once it gets wet it take forever to dry so it is also muddy.  It installed some pavers to improve.  It was a lot of work due to the soil we have here.  It really is not soil it is clay.  Very sticky clay.  Not only is it hard to dig, it sticks to the shovel and after a while it feels like the shovel weighs a hundred pounds.  But I got it finished.  The extra clay I will use to fill spots in the front.

While working on this I stopped to have lunch.  It was such a nice day we ate on the picnic table.  When I got done I took a shower and relaxed.  After supper we started watching a movie.  I had trouble staying awake so at 9 I called it a day.

It was noisy around here yesterday.  I am not sure what was going on at Ellington but there were a lot of World War II vintage planes flying over.  That happens during hte Wings Over Houston airshow but that is not until October.

Robins

It was been a very nice day today in southeast Texas.  I got up at my normal time but it was not normal time by the clock, don’t you love daylight savings time and got ready to ride.  I rode a bit too far yesterday so I took it easy today.  After I got home I showered and then we had breakfast.  After breakfast it was off to church.  After that we went back home for lunch.  IN the afternoon we took a ride.  Our ride took us to the most exclusive neighborhood in our area.  We saw an open house and stopped.  You just don’t get as much house for a million like you use to get.  B-)   Most depressing for those up north is that as we drove we saw some robins.  If they are here they are not there and since they are the first indicator of spring, it is not there yet either.  Sorry.

How old !!!!!!

Over the week end it suddenly occurred to me, I am now 29,   Twice.  B-)

March 5

Happy Birthday to me, happy birthday to me. Yes today is my birthday.  How old am I? A boatload of years. I am sure Elizabeth will make it a very nice day but it will have some sad moments. This is my first birthday without Mom. But I know I will get some very nice gifts including one I am giving myself. Well actually it is more for Elizabeth. For nearly the past year we have been a one car family. I have been on a temporary assignment that had me working only a couple of miles from home. That meant if something happen I could be home in minutes. Come the first of April I return to my normal work place which is more like a 30 minute drive away. I wanted Elizabeth to have a vehicle so she could get out if needed. She does not like to drive much that is why we run most of our errands on weekends. We have been discussing a new car for some time. At first we discussed getting a bigger car that could seat five so if company came we could all fit in one vehicle. But after some more thought we decided we really needed a car that fit our needs on a day to day basis. If we have company, or I need to transport a big load of stuff from the home improvement store we can rent something. So yesterday I went shopping. I settled on a Toyota Rav4. It is a small SUV. We are really excited about this. It is large enough to carry most of the things we need but small enough to be economical. That is especially important since those nasty oil companies keep the price of gas high. B-). It is also I bit bigger than our current small car and that should be safer for Elizabeth. It is also a recommended buy according to Consumer Reports. It was not quite ready to come home yesterday so I will be heading out this morning to pick it but I did take a picture.

No robins here

I went for a bike ride yesterday and I did not see any robins.  That may be good news or it may be bad news.  Let me explain. While that big rat in Pennsylvania is said to be the predictor of the end of winter, in upstate New York it is the appearance of robins that is the first real sign that spring has actually arrived.  Here in southeast Texas see only see robins for a few weeks in late winter.  They must spend the winter farther south.  They pass through this area on their way north.  So far this year I have yet to see a single bird.  That means I either missed them, even though I have been looking for them, and they have left this area to continue north.  That would be good news to those who have suffered this past winter.  Or it means they have yet to even arrive here.  That would mean winter is not over which would certainly be bad news.  I think it is the first.  They are typically long gone from here by early March.  So to Sue, my sister, and all in the northeast, even though the forecast for the next week may look like winter, rest assured, spring is on the way.