Wednesday, August 29, 2012

A Moving Experience

Tuesday: (08/28) I fixed ham, eggs and potatoes for breakfast. I had ordered a dumpster for the disposal of my dirt pile and it was scheduled to arrive this morning. It arrived sometime after 9am. Unfortunately, after it arrived i had to start moving dirt. I have both a pile of previously excavated dirt and a new are to excavate. i started with some of the excavated dirt figuring digging was harder and I'd get some easy dirt before wearing myself out with the digging. Ernie assisted with some of the dirt moving. We got a couple of yards of dirt moved from the pile and then I dug out another three yards before quitting for the day. Zucchini lasagna for dinner.

Wednesday: (08/29) Lou made French toast and sausage for breakfast. Today i tried something different. I worked in the morning until noon, then took a few hours off waiting for the shade to arrive over the work area. During the wait we had lunch, Gaspacho soup and deviled eggs for lunch. After 3pm work resumed and i worked until 7:30. Much progress made today. The hole was all but completed except for removing the path we're using to haul dirt from the pile. Zucchini lasagna for dinner. Lou and Dawn were out and about shopping today.

Thursday: (08/30) Leftover French toast and sausage for breakfast.In the morning Ernie and I moved more dirt and fully completed the hole. After lunch of Carl's Jr hamburgers we returned home. I completed the remaining few loads of dirt that filled the dumpster to it's 10cy limit. Unfortunately, i still have 7cy to get rid of so sometime in the near future I'll get another dumpster to finish the job. For now, the task is to get the base-rock into the hole and off of the driveway. Then hopefully finish the walkway and maybe get something done on Lou's new shed. For dinner Lou and I went to Harry's Hofbrau in Redwood City. I had stuffed bell peppers and Lou had pastrami.

Wilton New Patio
The finished patio and tea room.

Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one

The third phase of the walkway project is underway. About 8 cubic yards of bad clay soil was dug out and moved to the dumpster.

Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one
Ten cubic yards is a lot of dirt.

Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one
Now you need to watch your step to avoid falling into the new grand canyon.

Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one Wilton Phase Three Digout and Dumpster one
I had hoped to get rid of more of the stock piled dirt as well but still have about seven yards left so another dumpster will need to be loaded some time later.

Friday: (08/31) Leftover sausage and French toast for breakfast. Lou found a nice sectional corner sofa that had two recliners built-in. She advised Courtney, our friend and she said she was interested. She checked it out with Lou later yesterday evening. Today everything was half off so with instructions top get  it  Lou and I were off to San Jose early this morning. We waiting in line at the thrift store with a pretty big crowd. Lou was the second person in the door and bought the sofa. Then, we found that neither half would fit inside the Volvo so had to make two trips to bring each half back up to Courtney's Condo. Ernie helped me bring them up the stairs to her condo. Enough work for the day. For Lunch Dawn picked up some things from Hong Kong bakery. Pork bun and egg tarts for me. This morning, first thing, I had called the disposal company to pick up the dumpster. They said they probably wouldn't get it until Tuesday. I forgot we had a holiday this weekend. I wasn't looking forward to guarding the dumpster all weekend to make sure nobody else added their junk in it. Luckily they were wrong and picked it up about 3:30.  For dinner I made pork with Spanish rice and spinach. 

Saturday: (09/01) Lou and Dawn had cereal and I had a leftover pork bun for breakfast. I made the "mistake" of suggesting a hike to my hiking group and ended up leading the hike last week to the falls in Big Basin State Park. That worked out so well, we all made it back alive, that I was made an assistant organizer for the group. So now I'm leading another hike this coming Friday. This hike isn't much of a hike compared to the last one. It's only about 5.3 miles compared to the 10.5 of the last one. Our group actually prefers 6-7 mile hikes, However, it is one of my favorite hikes. I used to hike it quite often but haven't done it in a few years. So since I wrote up the announcement for the hike I needed more exact directions to the trail-head so we can meet there. To that end, we all took a little drive up Pagemill Road from home and to the trail-head off Alpine Road on the other side of the mountains so I could get some mileage numbers and confirm the directions. I also checked a couple of other distances to other trail-heads we'll likely be doing in the  future. Since we were out we came down the mountains into Saratoga and walked the village. Then we stopped in Cupertino for me to get a couple of things at Home Depot and Lou and Dawn to visit a thrift store. After those tasks we stopped at the Country Inn Restaurant for lunch. We all shared a chicken apple walnut salad and a wild mushroom spinach avocado and Swiss cheese omelet. That was it for activity today. This morning, before we left, I started some pork, sausages, sauerkraut and potatoes in the slow cooker. That was dinner. 

Sunday: (09/02) After morning tea in the backyard, I prepared sauerkrauted potatoes and sausage with eggs for breakfast. I managed to throw my back out again this morning doing a simple task, taking out the house garbage. I worked on the drip sprinkler system in the green house. Before being called in to go to a Greek Festival in Belmont.

Belmont Greek Festival
The church interior is quite interesting.

Belmont Greek Festival 20 Mandolin Orchestra Belmont Greek Festival 20 Mandolin Orchestra
We enjoyed a couple of concerts, a flea market and looking at the food. We only had some Greek fries and Greek coleslaw though because everything else couldn't be determined to be gluten free for Lou and Dawn. We left for a wile for dinner at Ihop where I had pot roast and Lou and Dawn shared sirloin tips. We returned to the festival for a concert presented by the Aurora Mandolin Orchestra (above right) which has 20 mandolins, a couple of flutes, a couple of guitars, and accordion, a base fiddle and a soprano opera singer. It was excellent.

Monday: (09/03) Hot cereal for breakfast. Roasted tomatoes and avocados with chili rellenos for lunch. Sauerkraut, potatoes and sausage and sausage or pork leftovers for dinner. My back is still bugging me so I worked on the drip sprinkler system in the green house again finishing all that is needed for current plants. More needs to be done to complete the setup for all areas but I need more parts to do that.

Tuesday: (09/04) Lou copied the omelet we had the other day at the Country Inn and prepared spinach, mushroom, avocado and jalapeno cheese. Well, not an exact copy with jalapeno cheese rather than Swiss but still good. My back is still complaining so probably another easy day. I cancelled my attendance for a hike I had intended to take tomorrow. I took a walk around the block in the afternoon and found an iPhone at the end of the block. I brought it home and while I saw a list of recent calls but couldn't see how to find out who's phone it was, Lou really read the names for the recent calls and noticed our neighbors daughters name so she returned the phone to them. Hamburgers for lunch. For dinner Lou made a mix of rice, sausage, peppers, tomatoes, and onions. Not really too much accomplished today. Quite nice.

Wednesday: (09/05) Lou was off to an appointment early then she and Dawn were busy doing errands like getting Dawn's mandolin repaired. A few weeks ago they found two mandolins at a garage sale. Dawn's is now fixed but I still need to replace a sting on mine. They also got some books so we can learn to play them as well. I stopped at Carl's Jr for breakfast of  a chicken torta.

TSA Meeting TSA Meeting
I had a TSA (Traffic Signal Association) meeting to attend in San Jose this morning. It was good to get together with some of the people I used to work with and learn a little something as well. After the meeting I stopped for lunch at the King Eggroll shop at got some eggrolls and a shrimp ball. Yum! Since I was in San Jose I took advantage of being there and wasted the rest of the day stopping by the Great Mall and a few other places before finally getting home. Lou and Dawn stopped at Chili's for soup and salad. They didn't need dinner. I did so had leftover rice. It's been cloudy all day today and even had some sprinkles on occasion throughout the day. In the evening however we had a real heavy shower that almost wet the parched ground.

Wilton Flower Wilton New Patio and Greenhouse
Nice late bloomers. The new patio has become a regular hangout.

Wilton Arbor Wilton Arbor Pond
Our arbor has filled out nicely.

Thursday: (09/06) Lo and Dawn were off this morning to an appointment and a thrift search. I started the day checking a nearby Park and Ride to be sure the lot will have room for some of my fellow hikers to meet for a caorpoolto tomorrows hike. I then stopped for breakfast at A Good Morning Cafe, country fried steak and eggs. When I returned home, I readied the RV to roll. I needed to take it out to get some estimates to repair the damage i did to it last month. It needs to be fixed before we can leave for another trip. I got two very different quotes, $2500 and $4500. The decision seems easy. Both shops look good and have been around for years. Both seemed to equally identify what needs to be fixed. For a late lunch when I got home I had a bowl of chili. For dinner I had some cottage cheese and fruit. Lou and Dawn really do a detailed search so they returned late as it was getting dark. 

 



Monday, August 27, 2012

Big Basin SP Berry Creek Falls Hike With The Meetup Group

Monday: (08/27) This morning I was off early to carpool with my San Jose Mid-Week Hikers Meetup group up to Big Basin State Park. I suggested this hike for the group and ended up as the guide for the hike. I hiked the same trail about a month ago when we were there for the Storytelling weekend. It's about a 10.5 mike hike. For some variety for me and because it should be an easier approach we hiked the loop trail in reverse from my previous hike. I tracked my route with the GPS and it is shown on the EveryTrail.com website linked below. Eight of us enjoyed the hike. The weather started off overcast and some fog but quickly turned into clear skies and nice weather. We all survived the 10.4 mile hike that took us 6 hours and 37 minutes averaging 1.6 mph. Rather a slow hike probably due to our stopping for the views. We had 3337 feet of up and 3264 feet of down per the GPS tracking. 


Big Basin SP Berry Creek Falls Hike Big Basin SP Berry Creek Falls Hike
Above is Golden Falls and on the right the group below Silver Falls.

Big Basin SP Berry Creek Falls Hike
While we were resting below Silver Falls we heard an extremely loud growling every now and then. We found it to be the trees we were standing under. They were rubbing each other due to some wind. When you touched them they really shook when they growled. My original thought was that the saskwash had found us again.

Big Basin, Berry Falls Trail Loop




I had breakfast at Jack In The Box on the way to meet my carpool. Lunch was at Golden Falls where I had tuna salad and crackers and some jerky. Sharon, one of our hikers made some brownies which were quite good when we got back to the car. Lou made steak wit hrice and carrots for dinner. 



Saturday, August 25, 2012

A Real Drain

Saturday: (08/25) I spent much of the day outside tinkering. I cut down the second shelf unit for the green house and welding the pieces together as two shorter shelves of tables. Lou and Dawn were busy with garage sales. 

Part of the new phone battery conditioning procedure is to charge it for 12 hours, done last night. Then full discharge it and repeat for 4-5 times. This is supposed to make it have the best capacity. So today, when the 12 hours was up, I turned on all the radios on the phone (bluetooth, mobile, GPS, WiFi) and ran them all day. I also used it to browse the internet, watch videos and listen to Internet radio most of the day. I started it just about 1145 today and it is now nearly 9pm and it still has 22% indicated on the battery charge meter. I'm not sure I can kill it in one day. How nice!.

Lou made home fried potatoes with peppers and onions with smoked pork chops and eggs. Leftover pad Thai and chow fun noodles for lunch. Hamburgers for dinner.

Sunday: (08/26) Lou and I spent the morning weeding the garden. I did a few more grass plugs in the bare spots which I got from the lawn area to be dug out. That's it for the plugging. In the afternoon I made a hardware store trip to get drip sprinkler parts. I had checked for some parts at our local Home Depot and Orchard hardware stores before. Even checked at the same stores in Redwood City. Today I went South to the same stores as well as a Lowe's in Sunnyvale and a True Value store in Mountain View. Finally found the valves and fittings I needed at the last stop, a Home Depot. Wouldn't it be nice if the others were properly stocked. Oatmeal and bananas for breakfast. Tuna stuffed tomatoes from the garden for lunch. Our tomatoes are really good this year. Roast chicken, French fries and corn on the cob for dinner. 



My New SPOT Connect

Friday: (08/24) Tea in the backyard started the day. I fixed popcorn for breakfast. We all went to an estate sale in Los Altos then to Costco. Lunch was very berry sundaes at Costco then some roast chicken from there when we got home. We had an evening appointment then, for dinner we stopped at IKEA. I had the Swedish meat balls, Lou had more roast chicken, and Dawn had Salmon. We followed dinner with a look around. The display rooms are always interesting. Then on our way home we stopped at the Mi Pueblo Market across the street from IKEA for a few things. In between all this activity I worked on clearing the green house storage shelf stuff. It takes up much less space when organized and then about 25 percent was thrown away. Finally I exposed the second shelf that I need to modify. 

Today I received a couple of things I ordered from Amazon, my new SPOT Connect GPS safety device and a bigger battery for my smart phone. I always take my SPOT GPS tracker with me on hikes but really don't use it. It's a two way satellite communications device that can be used to send a message for help if I ever new it. Since I often hike alone, Lou insisted i get one. The new device allows me to send back Twitter sized custom messages like "come pick me up a the junction of the Too Much Trail For Me and Highway 9." Of course I can also use it to brag about where I'm enjoying lunch. by posting to Facebook from places with no cell phone signal, which is often the rule where I hike. The SPOT Connect tethers to my Android smart phone and that poor thing's battery life was never that good and already strained by my using it as my primary GPS and camera device already so I thought I could use a higher capacity battery for it which also came today. Hopefully it does actually last 3-4 times as long as the original. It does make the phone almost twice as big. 

An interesting side note. When we all got our new smart phones almost two years ago from Best Buy, we got the full coverage warranty. One benefit was that they would replace the battery for us. Of course, the idea was we wouldn't need it and would upgrade before that became necessary. Well, our batteries were getting weaker so I ordered replacements through the warranty. Best Buy sent nice new batteries but they didn't work any better really. The replacements were 1000mah batteries, the originals were 1300mah, 30% more capacity in the originals. The new batteries lasted about as long as our old batteries. No real improvement. They also replaced Dawn's phone with a new one as well so the cost of the warranties did payoff. One reason we opted to not upgrade and stay with our old smart phones is that Verizon has changed it's marketing and the unlimited data plans are no longer offered and if we change phones we loose the current unlimited data plans. We like the ability of using the phones when we need to to tether to  our computers so we'll hope they last a few years longer. It also helps save the environment. Anyway, the phones are nice but they do discharge too quickly so I ordered the highr capacity, 3500mah batteries. Now I should be able to use it extensively on hikes without worries of it going dead. It's always good to be able to call home. There is one immediate problem that I was aware of. My rubber phone case wont fit on the bigger phone so I need to be more careful about not dropping it. That while I'm out and about more trying to drop it? Maybe duct tape will take care of that?



Saturday, August 18, 2012

Rummaging Around

Saturday: (08/18) Lou made a salmon and spinach omelet for breakfast. We enjoyed it on the new patio. After breakfast we all went off to visit a couple of rummage sales and garage sales in Redwood City. I was dropped off on the way home for a little walk home via a look around the Town And Country Shopping Center and Fry's on my walk home. I also stopped by a new cheese steak shop for lunch. For dinner we all went to Mitchel Park to a Friends Of The Library dinner presented by the staff for volunteers. Dawn is the volunteer. Hot dogs and the trimmings for dinner. 

Wilton Garden Sugar Pumpkin
Sunday: (08/19) One of Dawn's pumpkins above. Unfortunately I'm trying to blog this on Tuesday evening and the memory is too good. I think I just tinkered around all day. Lou and Dawn were busy managing the clutter in the kitchen. Green slime for breakfast. Shepard's pie for dinner. 

Monday: (08/20) Today was a material acquisition day. I visited Orchard Hardware and Home Depot a couple of times each. I picked up some nice, cheap planters for the patio and a bunch more brick pavers. My original brick purchase did not include the floor in the green house so I needed more to complete the next part of the walkway. I also bought a tire valve stem wrench and completed replacing a bad tube in the new little red wagon and put slime in all the tires. Bacon eggs and hash browned potatoes for breakfast. KFC chicken and corn lunches. Chinese stir fry noodles for dinner.

Tuesday: (08/21) Leftovers for breakfast. I had Shepard's Pie and KFC biscuits. Lou and Dawn had cereal then were off on a shopping trip. i tinkered in the yard most of the day. I potted some plants in the new planters I got the other day. They decorate the pation nicely. We went to lunch at Chili's Restaurant. we all had their soup and salad. They have a nice baked potato soup. In the afternoon I reinstalled the front walls to the green house. Lou has been busy plugging the bare spots in the lawn with the good grass in the next area to be dug out. She has a week before I start digging again. next Tuesday. BBQ ribs and a baked potato for me, sweet potato fries for Lou and Dawn all with a nice salad. 

Wednesday: (08/22) My project of the day was to get the plants back in the green house from their temporary quarters in the area I'll be digging out next.

Wilton Greenhouse Table Modifications Greenhouse Plants
To accomplish that I needed to shorten the wire shelf unit and turn one two tier shelf into two single tier shelves. I had to cut off about 6 inches from the about 6 foot shelves and weld the brackets back on to the shorter shelf. In the end, I had a wire platform about 3 feet off the floor. Now plants can rest on the floor or shelf or hang above the shelf. The new floor plan with the shelves crosswise in the grenhouse rather than on the back wall makes more efficient use of the space. By quitting time, the shelf was filled with the plants. Lou was busy doing detailed cleaning of the cabinets in the kitchen. Peach blintzes for breakfast. Chinese tofu cabbage salad for lunch. White fish with rice and squash for dinner.

Thursday: (08/23) Lou and Dawn were off early to San Jose for an appointment after which they played all day on their way home. I fixed sausage hash with eggs for breakfast. I wasn't in a hurry to start work so didn't until about 10:30.

Angel Wing Flowers

I like the flowers on the angel wing begonias. I tinkered in the backyard potting  and repotting plants in the greenhouse. In doing so I found an elusive cactus flower on a plant that looked pretty sick otherwise. About 1 PM I was off to Redwood City to lunch at the US Chinese fast food  place. Then I stopped in the Orchard Hardware store for some sprinkler parts and grinding wheels. More tinkering when I got home installing some of the sprinkler parts to the new patio plants and adjustments to others. Lou called to meet for dinner at LUU Noodle House. I had some egg rolls and an avocado smoothie. Lou had Pad Thai and Dawn had the chow fun combination. Among other accomplishments today I called and scheduled a debris box for disposal of the dirt I've been collecting. It arrives next Tuesday so I'll start work in earnest then.



Friday, August 17, 2012

Wonderlich Park In Woodside, Ca

Lou made sausage and gravy for breakfast with some home made gluten free bread. We enjoyed it in the yard looking at our new patio by the greenhouse. After breakfast I was off for a hike with my San Jose Mid-week Hikers Meetup Group.

Wonderlich Park Hike
Today we hiked some of the trails in Wonderlich County Park in Woodside. Below is a GPS track of the hike. I've been wanting to get some trail statistics so I downloaded an App from Everytrail.com that seemed to work well on this hike. It even shows the precise distance and elevation change totals for the hike by clicking the jagged line on the bottom right of the image. Just what I needed. My phone was having one of its fits so I only got a couple of photos due to having to restart the phone.

Wonderlich Park Loop






After the hike, several of us stopped at the Alpine Inn in Portola Valley for lunch. They make a pretty good hamburger. I played on the computer at home the rest of the day. Lou was busy with an appointment all day. For dinner I met her at LUU noodle House.



Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Finally Some Progress

Monday: (08/13) Lou was off to an appointment early so I fixed a nice breakfast of eggs, sausage, fried potatoes all over toast with some cheese. Yum! Then i got to work outside laying more bricks. When I ran out od sand i cleaned up and, since I had an ice cream urge, I stopped by Costco for lunch of a Chicken Bake and a Very Berry Sundae. Fortified, i then stopped by Orchard hardware for some sand. After unloading the sand at home I called it a day. Tomato ham and cheese panini sandwiches for dinner. 

Tuesday: (08/14) We had some of Dawn's quinoa muffins for breakfast. I continued laying bricks. By the end of a long day I finished the second side. Lou made a nice tomato ham and pepper salad for lunch. Dinner was hot chicken sandwiches with smashed potatoes.

Wednesday: (08/15) Lou was off early to an appointment and then enjoying her day oof playing about town. I fixed a nice breakfast of eggs, sausage, fried potatoes with some cheese.I relaxed all morning. Lunch was cottage cheese and fruit. I finally got outside to work after 1pm. I adjusted all the drain inlets, cleanouts  and sprinkler risers in the bricks. I also broke out the misaligned 5 edge bricks. The first one was so well installed that it brought it's base concrete out as well. Fortunately the other four came out properly. I should be able to finish it all off tomorrow by grouting and adding the setting sand. Dinner was sausage and peppers.

Wilton New Patio
Thursday: (08/16) I made breakfast fore everyone, eggs sausage and potatoes. I tinkered in the yard working on the patio grouting the drain inlets and riser pipes then swept in the setting sand for the pavers. It is now ready to move back into the greenhouse and enjoy the new patio. Not that the job is finished though. There is still a little more walkway to do and I neet to pour a slab for Lou pottery shed so more digging is yet to be done. Next week I'll load up a dumpster with all the dirt from the last project and this new hole, yet to be dug out. Lunch was  cottage cheese and fruit. For dinner we went to Hobee's Restaurant. I had some coconut fish and rice while Lou had a gluten free portobella burger.



Sunday, August 12, 2012

Wilder's Wilder Trails

Sunday: (08/12) I was off for a hike near Santa Cruz at Wilder Ranch State Park. It's a state park and I've never visited before. A local hike group, the Take A Hike Meetup Group, setup the hike. I haven't hiked with them before but it sounded like fun. About a 10 mile hike overlooking Monterey Bay.

I stopped by Jack In The Box for breakfast, a waffle egg and sausage sandwich. The hike started at 9am and I arrived about 20 minutes early.

Wilder Ranch SP Hike Wilder Ranch SP Hike
The hike was over some of the lesser used trails in the park making a long loop around much of the park. The terrain is mostly grassy hills with treed ravines. There was some redwood forest as well. About 1:15 we got back to our starting point , the Visitor Center, and we were surprised that there was a bunch of activity there. Evidently one Sunday a month they have docents and open the old ranch house and facilities. I even enjoyed a homemade ice cream cone there. I returned via Highway 9  through Felton and stopped in Boulder Creek for lunch at a brewery restaurant for a hamburger and fries, no brew though. I returned via Skyline and then Pagemill Roads. I managed to use up much of the day arriving home about 4:30.

Lou and Dawn were busy with a craft swap meet and Dawn worked at the Library book sale. They had dinner at the Whole Foods Market before coming home so I had a chilli size for dinner.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

A Productive Long Day

Thursday: (08/09) I started just after 7am laying bricks and didn't stop until 7:30pm. My back seems to be holding up by I think I wore out my knees today. Lots of up and down today. Getting older isn't so much fun. I did get most of one side of the green house area completed, the harder part. Lou made chorizo spinach and ricotta cheese omelets with home fried potatoes for breakfast. Chinese chicken salads for lunch. For dinner we had steak smashed potatoes with smashed cauliflower  and corn on the cob.

Friday: (08/10) Today wasn't that productive day. Lou and Dawn were off to some rummage sales with our neighbors Meili and Ping. I was off on a supply run. I stopped for breakfast at A Good Morning Cafe, corned beef hash. Then i was off to Harbor Freight for a few things. I needed a new back belt and grinding disks. They had the belt but no grinding disks. I also stopped at OSH hardware for more sand, some paver setting and and found the grinding disks there as well. I also stopped at Target for a bunch of bottled water. We were out. We normally have a case in each car and the house but all were gone this morning. Since I was resting today, I was spending time browsing at things as well so It was lunch time before I came home so I stopped at LUU Noodle House for some egg rolls and an avocado smoothie for lunch. When I got home Lou and Dawn were back and enjoying chefs salads. I napped in the yard after enjoying tea. When i relax, i relax. i just could get going. Finally, I started laying some bricks when my work area became shaded. Most of wat needed to be done involved cutting the bricks. i finished all of the first side except for the last four bricks. Tomorrow I'll get them in and fill all the holes and large gaps then install the setting sand and be finished with the first half. I have a long hike planned for Sunday so i don't want to wear myself out so wont start the other half until Monday. Dawn made some delicious green chili and quinoa soup for dinner.

Saturday: (08/11) I really planned on taking it easy today but got involved and worked on the bricks most of the day.

Wilton Patio Installation
I made a good start on the other side of the green house area but ran into a problem. After the first four edge bricks, the edge started moving out about 1/8 inch per brick. I decided to lay the rest of the bricks in proper alignment but will have to remove and reinstall about five edge bricks later. Unlike the inside bricks, the edge bricks are grouted in. Now I hope my knees are still good enough for my hike tomorrow.  Green slime for breakfast. Ham pepper and tomato salad for lunch. Chicken with potato salad and corn on the cob for dinner.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

An Oak Tree's Moving Experience

Wednesday: (08/08) First task was to go get some sand but that involved cleaning out the rear of the jeep which usually has all sorts of things we use when we travel. Since we're home they don't need to be there. As I passed a constructions site I noticed a big crane and a huge oak tree. I returned with Lou after my sand run and we watched them move the tree from one side of the lot to the other. They had to swing the tree twice to get it across the lot. Amazing! I placed some bricks this afternoon. It was a hot day so I avoided the worst part of the day and started when the shade started covering my work area.Toasted cheese bread for breakfast. Cottage cheese and fruit cocktail for lunch. Leftover zucchini lasagna for dinner.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

A Good Old Dog

Wolfie's Last Day
Tuesday: (08/07) Oatmeal for breakfast in the yard with Wolfie, Ernie's dog. His health hasn't improved. Severe arthritis and cancer, he's been hopping on three legs  for a while and seems in pain, so, today he is going on a special trip and hopefully can run free and enjoy his next life.  RIP Wolfie.

I installed the rest of the edge pavers. For lunch Lou and I went  to the Talk Of Broadway restaurant in Redwood City. I had my chicken fried steak and eggs. Lou had a pear salad.  After lunch we did a little grocery shopping at Big Lots and Grocery Outlet before heading home.  Dinner was cottage cheese and fruit and PBJ toast.

Monday, August 6, 2012

St Joseph's Hill Hike

Monday: (08/06) Oatmeal for breakfast in the backyard.

Valley View Mid Week Hikers On St Josephs Hill
I met my hiking partners in Los Gatos at the Forbes Mill Museum and we hiked up to the top of St Joseph's Hill along Los Gatos Creek giving us some good views of the valley and Lexington Reservoir at the top.  There were then a few hikers that needed a rest. We started at 0915 and were back from our 5 mile hike by noon. I stopped at the Wok On Chinese restaurant in Sunnyvale for lunch before heading home. I set a few more edge bricks in the afternoon. Lou made a zucchini lasagna for dinner.

Note: I finally uploaded some photos to the blog for the past month or more. The added photos go back to the 6/28 entry.