Storm Damage

Tree Limb on Pool House
Elkridge, MD
August 18, 2019

I wrote briefly about Sunday's storm with the microburst right over the house in Monday Musings. I wanted to do a follow-up. 

The storm was brutal in the neighborhood. A large tree went down crashing through a neighbor's fence on Duckett's Lane. That was the biggest damage, but we are still evaluating the mess associated with our pool house roof and trying to decide how to get rid of the huge limb caught in the trees. 

After the Storm in the Pool
August 18, 2019

The storm gave me the opportunity to get Radio Flyer up in the air to survey the damage. The mess really looked different form the air, but the limb in the trees with branches extending onto the pool house was definitely visible. The mess that the storm left in the pool was likewise obvious. 

Chris and I are still collecting branches and sticks from the yard. They are hard to see in the picture of the limb on the pool house--but they are everywhere. The dead ash trees were dropping limbs everywhere. Jeremy and Lucas were here during the storm and they were a great help restoring the pool to swimmable condition and doing some of the work collecting sticks and broken branches from everywhere. 

The storm was one of the worst that has blown through here. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Baseball is Back!

GORC U12 Cooperstown Team
GORC Field 8
August 19, 2019

Despite the obvious fact that football season is upon us and that the Orioles have tanked after showing signs of life during 
July, baseball has returned!

Last evening was the first practice for the GORC 12U Cooperstown Wildcats! The coaching staff was there, most of the boys were ready to play and the 95 degree temperatures on the field reminded us that this is not Spring baseball--it is Fall Ball! The field was in great shape, especially considering the torrential downpour that happened on Sunday afternoon. It was good to be back out in the dust of the diamond!

The road ahead of the team is long--it does not end until July when the team heads off to the mecca of baseball, Cooperstown, NY,  to play a week long tournament. 

As they say, one practice or game at a time, but off we go.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - August 19, 2019

1. August is in its last half ad Labor Day is almost here. I am thinking of closing the pool.

Tree Limb Against Pool house
Elkridge, MD
August 18, 2019

2. We had a ferocious storm yesterday afternoon. There are lots of trees down in the neighborhood and a big brach fell onto my pool house. You can see the fallen branch on my pool house. I am going to have a quite a mess cleaning that up. The branch is tangled in another tree. Ugh. Sounds like more chainsaw work! The storm was ferocious--it was a microburst.

T-104 Timer
Before Replacement
August 17, 2019

3. I realized why Maryland drivers do not use turn signals--they know where they are going.

4. The timer for my pool broke last week--I had just installed it at the beginning of the season. Thankfully, Amazon had a new one in my hands ready for installation yesterday, just before the storm descended.

5. I can feel the end of the pool season coming, sadly. Later this week we are supposed to get some nights in the 60's--which really takes the heat out of the pool. Pool closing day is scheduled for September 8th. I am closing it early this year because we have not been swimming much during September and I have just been adding chemicals to keep it swim ready for the copious quantities of leaves that fall from the nearby trees.

6. I keep mowing my lawn, and it keeps growing. It seems like a vicious circle. 

7. Today in History. On August 19, 1909, the first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, now the home of the world’s most famous motor racing competition, the Indianapolis 500. Built on 328 acres of farmland five miles northwest of Indianapolis, Indiana, the speedway was started by local businessmen as a testing facility for Indiana’s growing automobile industry. The idea was that occasional races at the track would pit cars from different manufacturers against each other. After seeing what these cars could do, spectators would presumably head down to the showroom of their choice to get a closer look.


Headlines


One Minute It Was an Afghan Wedding. The Next, a Funeral for 63. - The New York Times

When Cities Try to Limit Guns, State Laws Bar the Way - The New York Times

U.S. President Trump does not want to do business with China's Huawei - Reuters

Asia stocks rise as stimulus, policy hopes calm nervous investors - Reuters

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Lunch on the River

Sailboat on the Magothy
August 17, 2019

Despite the temperature being 90 degrees yesterday, Chris and I joined with friends for a lunch meant at a restaurant on the Magothy River. 

The scene was beautiful, as it always is. Eating while looking out at the river and the boats docked. 

There is always something pleasant about being near the water to enjoy a drink or have a meal. Being there with friends makes the time even better. Although the day was hot, it was bearable under the fans--we were not inside in air conditioning, but were under cover with fans enjoying the late-August heat as the seasons begin the transition into autumn, which is approaching all too quickly. 

A great meal, good conversation, and fun times with friends. How better to spend a hot August afternoon?

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Finn vs Dolphin

Small dogs can be very territorial. The other evening as Chris and I were sitting around the pool enjoying Happy Hour and chatting about the happenings of the day, Finnegan began barking incessantly at the automated pool cleaner as it started cleaning the stairs. 

Our pool cleaner is a Dolphin pool cleaner, hence we call it the dolphin. So it was funny to watch Finnegan bark at the pool cleaner which, undeterred, went about its business. 

This, however, went on for far too long!

So in the cage match between Finn and the Dolphin, the Dolphin was the victor. We had to put Finn inside.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Sixteen in a Row - and Counting

Thankfully, the Orioles do not face the Yankees again during this season. The Yankees are probably unhappy about that since they have owned the Orioles since the first series of the season that the Orioles won 2-1. 

Since then it has been all Yankees--sixteen straight wins. The season series between the teams ended 17-2. The Orioles only wins being during the first series of the season. 

The Yankees set a new all-time season record for homers against one team. The old record was 48 held by the 1956 Yankees against the Kansas City Royals. The new record is 61 held by the 2019 New York Yankees against the Baltimore Orioles. Ugh.

But at least the Orioles have no more games against the Yankees during 2019. Unfortunately, the 2020 Orioles season opener is against Yankees on March 26th in Baltimore! Hopefully they will not make it 17 in a row.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

That's Not a Sale Price

Weird things some times happen in stores when it comes to pricing items for sale.

Chris had told me about a sale that wasn't the other day in our local Target store. The posted sale price for an item was higher than the regular price and no one seemed to notice or care.  

Last evening we happened to be in the vicinity of that Target store and she reminded me that I wanted a picture of the "not" sale and so we stopped went into the store to see if the item was still advertised as she had seen it the day before. I fully expected that they would have corrected the pricing mistake, but no! There it was, still on the counter. And here is the proof.  

We looked at the labels and the sale price for some time and could not reconcile it except that the sale price was 52 cents higher than the regular price for a 32 ounce container of Chobani Greek yogurt. And I have the video proof. I'm not sure how this is a sale, but at Target, it seems that the regardless of the original marked price the item is "on-sale."

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

A Doctor's Visit

I had a doctors appointment yesterday down in the metropolis of Baltimore. 

It was a 35 minute drive that took closer to 45 because of traffic and road construction. I arrived at my appointment the obligatory 15 minutes early to complete paperwork, except then they told me that I had already completed all of the extra nonsensical forms that such places require. So I sat for 15 minutes waiting for my appointment time to arrive.

And then I sat for 15 more minutes. I was busy on my phone so I hardly noticed the time.

And then I sat for 15 more minutes. I was beginning to be a bit frustrated because I had now been sitting in the waiting room for 45 minutes. 

And then I waited about 5 more minutes before being called to the back to have my vitals taken. After that I was then shown into the exam room. To wait.

And then I sat there for 15 more minutes. 

And then then, finally, the nurse practitioner arrived to begin the process of my visit. 

All-in-all I waited a lot, but it was worth it. I was pleased that I had one of the most thorough appointments that I have ever had and that we came up with a good plan.

But why all of the waiting? I don't think I'll take the last appointment of the day again.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Summer Around the Pool

Pool in the Pre-Dawn Light
Elkridge, MD
August 13, 2019

This summer has been the summer of the pool! The weather has been fantastic and I have been able to enjoy my pool almost every day. Last year it was cold and rainy most of the summer and I felt at the end of the season that the pool had been underused. Not so this year.

The only downside to owning a pool is that they require constant care. I believe that owning a swimming pool is similar to owning a boat. They are a constant source of expense! But they are both a source or relaxation and enjoyment.

I spent quality time with my pool nearly every day tending to its needs. This week I and doing some late-summer preventive maintenance to ensure that the algae does not get out of control. The plaster on my pool is old and in need of replacing. It is full of places for algae to gain a foothold if I am not diligent--and so I ham hopeful that my late season work will help ensure that the final month of pool season is fun and algae free.

But I truly do enjoy my pool and being in my backyard, I can enjoy it more often than a boat--although I can't travel as far in it as I can in a boat. But it does take me away from the trials of the day.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - August 12, 2019

Dragonfly
Elkridge, MD
August 10, 2019

1. It is the second Monday of August. The Dog Days ended yesterday and now the slide into September and Autumn has begun.

Louis Napping
Elkridge, MD
August 11, 2019

2. This dragonfly decided to land on a hose extension I was carrying on Saturday. It landed not once, but three times as I walked across the yard. 

3. I spent a few hours in the pool yesterday fixing the light in the deep end. It is not a lot of fun to try to hang in the water and use tools. 

4. Cat napping. I caught this image of Louis napping in a chair out by the pool. Louis loves to go outside and sleep. He spends the day outside and comes in for the evening. 

5. The Orioles had a miserable week of baseball--while they managed a rare come-from-behind victory in the 9th inning over the Houston Astros yesterday, that was the only win of the week which included a 23-2 blow-out on Saturday.  During the week, the O's went 1-5 and were outscored 65-24 by the Yankees and the Astros. Their record has fallen to 39-79 .333 and worse, they are 18-43 at home. They are now on pace to lose 108 games this season.

Leaves on the Lawn
Elkridge, MD
August 10, 2019

6. The leaves are beginning to fall from the trees around my house. It almost looks as if Autumn is arriving early. It is too early for so many leaves to be on the ground.

7. Pre-season NFL family team results: 

  Ravens defeated Jaguars 29-0
  Steelers defeated Buccaneers 30-28
  Redskins lost to Browns 10-30
  Cowboys lost to 49ers 9-17

8. Autumn is too close. I am beginning to report NFL scores. The end of the summer is approaching too rapidly. 

9. Today in History. On this day in 1990, fossil hunter Susan Hendrickson discovers three huge bones jutting out of a cliff near Faith, South Dakota. They turn out to be part of the largest-ever Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton ever discovered, a 65 million-year-old specimen dubbed Sue, after its discoverer.

Amazingly, Sue’s skeleton was over 90 percent complete, and the bones were extremely well-preserved. Hendrickson’s employer, the Black Hills Institute of Geological Research, paid $5,000 to the land owner, Maurice Williams, for the right to excavate the dinosaur skeleton, which was cleaned and transported to the company headquarters in Hill City. The institute’s president, Peter Larson, announced plans to build a non-profit museum to display Sue along with other fossils of the Cretaceous period.

Headlines

Colonel Killed in Vietnam War Finally Came Home. His Son Flew the Plane. - The New York Times

Inside Kashmir, Cut Off From the World: ‘A Living Hell’ of Anger and Fear - The New York Times

Hong Kong airport authority cancels all flights for Monday - Reuters

New York coroner 'confident' Epstein's death was suicide: New York Times - Reuters

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week


"I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience,"

October 21, 1984: In the second presidential debate with candidate Walter Mondale

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD