You Won't Believe the Crazy Things We Did!

 

Costco on a Saturday Afternoon
North Palm Beach, FL
March 15, 2025

I am convinced that being retired and not fully appreciating which day of the week it is can be a problem. Take yesterday, for example. Chris and I did two things that retired people should not do on a Saturday. 

First, we went to Costco! Yup, I really wrote that. We risked life and limb to head to Costco. It was a free-for-all. At least there were carts. We did find a parking spot and the checkout line was not too long. But, wow, going to Costco on a Saturday afternoon is just like saying , "Here is my jaw, hit me!"

The second thing that we did was to go out to dinner. We had a reservation which meant that we had a table, but the restaurant was packed and the noise level was almost unbearable. It is much smarter to go out to dinner mid-week when the crowds are lighter. 

Well, note to self.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Launch and Sunset

SpaceX Crew-10
Jupiter Island, FL
March 14, 2025

 Beware the Ides of March!

The SpaceX Crew-10 launch happened last evening just before sunset. I headed to the beach, along with Chris and Finn, to watch the launch since the weather was clear. 

I was reminded that launches are exciting as we watched the countdown on my phone and then looked to the sky to see the vehicle in powered first-stage flight before the flame was obscured by the smoke trail. Launches are always exciting to watch and crewed launches are even more exciting because there were four souls aboard the bright dot in the sky. Chris asked me of the crew was nervous before the launch and I mused that there likely was some anxiousness, but they trust the technology and are likely more excited about going into space that they are nervous about the performance of the launch vehicle and capsule. 

Sunset over Tequesta
Tequesta, FL
March 14, 2025

Nighttime launches are a bit more exciting as we can usually see the boosters return to the pad, but not so last evening. Of course, we are about 120 miles from the launch pad and so we do not expect to see too much of the activity, especially in daylight. But, nonetheless, the launch was exciting on a beautiful cloudless early evening.

After the launch, we walked across the island to watch the sunset over Tequesta and were treated to a sundowner special. The clear skies meant that the sunset was localized, but still inspiring as we watched from a beach along the ICW. 

It was a great way to put the exclamation point onto another day. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Idyllic Evening

Tiki52
Tequesta, FL
March 12, 2025

Happy PI Day! 

The weather in South Florida lately has been nothing short of idyllic. Days with highs in the high-70s and low-80s coupled with low humidity. Wow!

I know summer is coming with mid-90s coupled with high humidity making the feels like temperature in the 100s, but for now--let's enjoy the weather and get to the beach or outside. 

I had a boat reserved for Monday, but that is the one day when temperatures will struggle into the mid-70s and thunderstorms are expected. Not a good boat day. 

But, this week we have been enjoying getting out. We went to our favorite watering hole on Wednesday evening enjoy Happy Hour and the weather was perfect. I find Tiki52 to be visually stimulating with colors, boats, birds and the ICW just beyond. 

A great way to begin the evening. 

Spring is coming, Thursday, March 20, 2025, at 5:01 AM EDT!

-- Bob Doan, Tequeta, FL

I Saw Them

Winn-Dixie
Hobe Sound, FL
March 12, 2025

 
Shopping yesterday in a local market I saw, for the first time, eggs marked at $10 per dozen.

I actually could not believe it.

There was a deal on a dozen-and-a-half at $13.89, which works out to $9.26/dz.

Winn-Dixie
Hobe Sound, FL
March 12, 2025

We did not buy the eggs.

That along with so many other things just highlights the disastrous times in which we live. And this administration is not yet two months old!

There is so much happening that I can only shake my head at. 

A measles outbreak in Texas--we had that disease beaten and now children are dying, again.

What is next? The return of polio? Smallpox, the sequel?

And shutting off grants to hospitals which are on the forefront of research is going to make America healthy again? 

We are not headed for the Golden Age of America--this is the stuff of the Dark Ages when much of the accumulated knowledge in Europe was lost and had to be rediscovered during the Renaissance. 

Here is how one writer characterized what is happening:

The wholesale destruction of the U.S.A.’s advanced medical research, especially cancer research, by firing scientists, canceling grants, banning communications and collaboration, and stopping travel is also radical and seems unlikely to leave Americans healthier than before.

Yesterday, news broke that the administration canceled $800 million worth of grants to Johns Hopkins University, one of the nation’s top research universities in science and medicine. Meanwhile, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has cast doubt on the safe, effective measles vaccine as the disease continues to spread across the Southwest. (Letters from an American)

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appeared to suggest getting measles is the best defense against the disease, as a Texas outbreak spreads across the U.S. (The Daily Beast)

I remember having the measles--I have never been sicker in my entire life. I vividly remember hallucinating  and running a really high fever. It is no joke. 

And don't get me started on the stock market.

We are mere pawns in a great money grab the likes of which have not been seen, ever. Our lives and fortunes are in play for the rich and unscrupulous to take.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

To the Beach and Beyond

Surfers' Ocean
Carlin Park, Jupiter, FL
March 11, 2025

 In celebration of DST, right after I retrieved Chris from the airport we headed to the beach for Happy Hour. 

It was our first Happy Hour on the beach since early-February and it was very enjoyable. It was a surfer's paradise with over 40 surfers in the water catching the waves. I enjoy being on the beach when the surfers are active because they provide something to watch and enjoy. Many of them are very good. 

Palm Beach Ice Cream
Tequesta, FL
March 11, 2025

There are other sights to enjoy at the beach. For instance, we watched three teens play and jump into the water. I was convinced one of them was going to wind up with a massive head bleed before they were done because they were jumping off the rocks into shallow water--but they survived. I dubbed them the Three Stooges for their antics.

After the beach we enjoyed a pizza dinner, Chris was tired and so the steak I had planned got moved to tonight. But, we also frequented our new favorite ice cream shop--Palm Beach Ice Cream! Their made on the premises ice cream is the best! And they have a multitude of flavors. Even Finnegan likes their ice cream.

And so Chris is back from Maryland and enjoying life as a grandma to a now two-month old grandson. We will soon find our stride and move forward. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

As Nero Played

 Something about yesterday's stock market downturn and the fable about Nero playing the fiddle while Rome burned hit me when I read: 

“We’re seeing a strong divergence between animal spirits of the stock market and what we’re actually seeing unfold from businesses and business leaders,” said the official, who was granted anonymity, according to CNBC. “The latter is obviously more meaningful than the former on what’s in store for the economy in the medium to long term.”  (The Daily Beast)

It has become clear that The White House does not want to be confused with the facts. Just wait until the March employment and inflation numbers come out in April--I'm not sure how that is going to be blamed on Biden. 

I have written my Congressman about the impact of federal firings on veterans, maybe he will finally stop towing the party line. 

We can only watch from the sidelines.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL 

Monday Musings - March 10, 2025

 

1. Hold on--it is already the second Monday of March! There are only 42 Mondays remaining in the year! 

Zebra Grazing
Pilanesberg National Park, ZA
February 25, 2025

2. I have been going back through my images from South Africa. While I took a lot during the wine tour, it seems the ones that I like the most are from Pilanesberg National Park. Like today, I was working on this Zebra image. Something about it just makes me happy. The image brings back many exciting and wonderful memories. 

3. Roughly 6,000 veterans have been laid off in recent weeks by the U.S. DOGE Service, according to federal data compiled by Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee. A spokesperson for the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee said that number is probably understated amid ongoing job cuts at the Social Security Administration, the General Services Administration and other agencies. Veterans Affairs, where military veterans make up about 26 percent of the workforce, announced plans Wednesday to cut 80,000 jobs.

Veterans make up about 30 percent of the federal workforce, serving in every department. (The Washington Post)

4. While enjoying high-70s and low-80s degree days it is sometimes hard to remember how cold it is not so far away. 

5. It became clear the other day why the Executive Branch is firing so many employees--the plan is to privatize services. What does that mean? Contractors owned by the President's friends will begin to rape the government for billions, possibly trillions of dollars. The American people suffer a politicized workforce providing less services while the rich get richer on our taxpayer dollars. This is just wrong. 

6. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made it clear that the Trump administration’s goal is to slash the federal government and to privatize its current services. As the stock market has dropped and economists have warned of a dramatic slowdown in the economy, he told CNBC “There’s going to be a natural adjustment as we move away from public spending to private spending. The market and the economy have just become hooked, we’ve become addicted to this government spending, and there’s going to be a detox period.”  (CNBC) (Letters from an American)

7. Today in History. On March 10, 1959, Tibetans band together in revolt, surrounding the summer palace of the Dalai Lama in defiance of Chinese occupation forces.

China’s occupation of Tibet began nearly a decade before, in October 1950, when troops from its People’s Liberation Army (PLA) invaded the country, barely one year after the Communists gained full control of mainland China. The Tibetan government gave into Chinese pressure the following year, signing a treaty that ensured the power of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the country’s spiritual leader, over Tibet’s domestic affairs. Resistance to the Chinese occupation built steadily over the next several years, including a revolt in several areas of eastern Tibet in 1956. By December 1958, rebellion was simmering in Lhasa, the capital, and the PLA command threatened to bomb the city if order was not maintained.

GOP says funding bill gives more time to codify Musk's cuts - CNN

Canada’s next leader takes aim at Trump - CNN

Veterans flocked to government jobs. Now thousands are being fired. - The Washington Post

 ‘A disruptive effect’: How slashing staff at the Social Security Administration is sparking fears the system could collapse - CNN

Europe faces stark choices over Russian asset seizure - Reuters

Farmers put plans, investments on hold under Trump USDA spending freeze - Reuters

China vows utmost efforts for 'peaceful reunification' with Taiwan - Reuters

israel-cut-off-electricity-gaza-hamas-ceasefire-negotiations - The Guardian

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Sunday Morning

Morning at the Beach
Hobe Sound, FL
March 9, 2025

 It is Sunday again after another crazy week. 

I think I'll just chill and prepare for the week ahead. 

I went to the beach this morning and it was already busy--even with DST going into effect last night. I just had not been to a beach in over a month and needed a few minutes--but this beach was too busy. It was, however, near the grocery store. 

It looks as if it is going to be a fantastic day. There may even be a bike ride in my future. Of course I have a couple projects to work on around here as well. Finn and I should be busy. 

The high today is supposed to be 85 and so I am pretty sure there is a Happy Hour on the beach waiting for me later. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Cold Saturday

DST is Back Tonight!

The Palm Tree out my Door
Tequesta, FL
March 8, 2025

 It is going to be a nice day. It may become a beach day. But it will have to warm up a bit. The morning started about 54 degrees, but the day is headed for 82 degrees with likely blue skies. 

I have totally been oblivious to the fact that Daylight Saving Time (DST) returns tonight! I am going to lose an hour of sleep. I hope the government finally gets its act together and cancels the return to Standard Time in November. We can only hope. It is funny that the return to DST crept up on me so innocuously. Almost like it was trying to fool me.

In the meantime, I am going to enjoy the bright sunshine and later daylight. The days are longer as well, but that is not a function of DST, it is a function of the Earth moving around the Sun with an axis tilt. 

So I'm looking forward to a great Saturday and Sunday, even if the weekend is one hour shorter. The daylight will at least be one hour later. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Getting Repairs or Replacements

Fuzzy Zebras in Zoom
Pilanesberg National Park, ZA
February 25, 2025

 NO, I am not going to delve into politics and government today. I think rational and informed people who use multiple news sources and watch what's happening live are able to make their own choices. 

I am going to discuss AppleCare. 

I just had a very good experience with AppleCare. My iPhone 14 ProMax that I used as a camera during our recent South African trip developed a problem with the telephoto lens. I could not get a clear image of anything using over 5x telephoto. It was very frustrating because the phone goes to 15X. The camera would lose focus or not focus and had a jitter. I finally resorted to using Chris' iPhone 12 ProMax with a max zoom of 12X to get the images of what we were seeing. 

Upon returning home, I first went to the Apple Store and they recommended wiping the phone and reloading everything from scratch because, after running diagnostics, they could not find a physical problem with the 3X lens and thought it might be a software bug. Well, that took hours out of my life to restore my files and apps. 

And it didn't work.  

So I called Apple Support to report the problem. I was told that they had never heard of this problem. And so I was asked to demonstrate the problem--which was pretty cool. They logged onto my phone and I stepped outside and focused on a Palm Tree. Eureka! They saw the problem. Two days and $99 later, I had a new iPhone 14 ProMax. I couldn't upgrade to a newer model, unfortunately. 

But, the AppleCare plan paid for itself! And the camera works great. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL