December 2022 Home Front Activities and Carrying On

[Dark3]

Rodney, hows it going? I bet they got you on some happy pills haha.


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[Donald Garner]

Greetings to everyone,
Forecasted temps for across Central Texas today were 40-45dgrs with 59%humidity and a NE wind @ 4mphs.  We had scattered rain showers move through the area today also.

Not much happened today at work. The kids and teachers are all on Christmas Vacation now till the 4th of Jan.  My team will be working next week doing some deep cleaning and getting ready for our Christmas Break the following week.

I had a doctor's appointment with my kidney doctor this afternoon.  Things are moving in a positive direction so far.  My kidney's have reduced the amount of protein they've been producing in the previous months.  My blood pressure is holding fast within an acceptable range.  My next appointment with him is 20 Jan 2023.  I'm praying for continued positive results in my next round of Lab Works.

The weekend coming up is going to be spent taking a day trip tomorrow to Marble Falls for the Christmas Lights City Tour.  We'll stop in and enjoy a meal at our favorite restaurant The River City Grille.  It's located right on the banks of the Marble Falls Lake.  Sunday we'll attend church and spend the rest of the day relaxing.

Dark3; So how's the house work coming along?

Bud; Tks for the update on your wife.  I'm glad to hear she's having some good days now.  I still have y'all in my daily prayers. 

Rodney; I know you're bed bound and can't reply etc.  Hope your surgery went well for ya today.  I have ya in my daily prayers my good man.

To everyone have a pleasant and safe weekend ahead.

[Bud Kennedy]

Cold and frosty start to today.  Temp this morning was 30 with a lot of frost in our area.  High for today may reach 50.  Sure has been a cold fall as we head into the winter season.  We are expecting lows down in the 20s just before Christmas.

Will be driving Miss Daisy this morning.  Taking her to her physical therapy appointment and while she is there I will take her car over for an oil change.  Her 17 year old 2005 Monte Carlo SS has just reached 44K miles.  We are trying to drive it a bit more but for the most part it just sits in the garage and might get out once a week or so.

Yesterday was my birthday but did not do any celebrating. Just business as usual.  I am now looking forward to starting my 78th year with a positive attitude and curious what this next year will bring.  I am still feeling good except for a few aches and pains here and there but I guess that is pretty normal for the geezer years. 

[Dark3]

Don, Glad to hear health things are stable, and the weekend sounds relaxing, hope the weather plays along.

Bud, wow that Monte only has 44k!? Those are pretty cool looking cars. Does it have the 3800 in it, they were good motors.

Rodney, Hope you are recovering well and not too sore.

Yea, the house repairs, really improvements have been going on. Most recently teaching my self electrical, changing a couple ceiling fans and installing a few dimmer switches. I have a bunch of small projects in queue. Ive been doing alot of snow blowing and shoveling. Its been snowing for a few days.


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[Bud Kennedy]

Dark 3, Yep that is correct, only 44K miles.  This car is my wife's baby and is mostly in showroom condition.  Yes, it does have the 3800 motor + it is supercharged.  Here is a picture

[Donald Garner]

Good evening from Central Texas
Forecasted temps for the area today were 42-45dgrs with 100% humidity and a N wind @ 4mphs.  We had scattered rain showers moving through the area today.  That N wind made it a little on the chilly side.

All's quiet on the school front as the kids and teachers are all at home enjoy Christmas Vacation.  We're at school getting some deep cleaning done.  Our Christmas vacation starts this Friday at 2pm after we clock out.  We'll return to work on the morning of Jan 2nd then.

Dark3; Sounds like you're a real busy man there.  Good luck with the upgrades and controlling that white stuff you have lying on the deck and surrounding ground.

Bud; Happy Birthday > Yesterday <   I hope this coming new year finds you in good health and still able to get out and do the things you want too.

Rodney; Hope the the recovery is going well for ya.  You're still in our daily prayers.

To everyone have a relaxing evening.  I hope tomorrow is a better day than today was for ya.  Be safe in your travels if you out and an about.

[Bud Kennedy]

Still on the cool side.  I think the temp might have hit 50 but if it did it would have been just barely.  Currently the temp is 42 with light rain that will last through the night with temps remaining about where it is now.  Like a lot of the rest of the country Christmas eve and Christmas day will be very cold with lows nearing the single digits and for sure with a significant wind chill making it feel like single digits or possibly just below 0.  Not a good feeling thats for sure. 

Nothing much else going on today.  Just a quick run to Target for a quick purchase and then stopping off to buy some gas for the Expedition.  Good price today at 2.51 per gallon.  I hear that the price is dropping all over the country and I hope that is right.  We had a very simple supper tonight of Hot Dogs and fries.  We have not done that for a long time.  Was good for a change.

Hope everyone stays warm and have a great night.  Rodney, hope the healing is beginning and you will soon be back on line to give us a report.  Weather map looks like your area and Dark 3 area has all the snow they need for now but some mega bitter cold headed your way.

[topdsm0138]

Afternoon guys. Not much going on except getting everything closed out for the year at work. Been putting in close to 60hrs, just M-F and Duty has been busy as well trying to get stuff ready to send to another Unit for them yo deploy. (Basically they're going to be overglorified government janitors now that there is no more war. )

Thinking of takingy vhull out around the intracoastal areas and doing some saltwater fishing to stock up some fresh fish.

Also Happy Hanukkah to those of our members who celebrate (Yes, I know im 3 days late as it started Sunday..)

Getting closer on finalizing my VA disability and looking close to 80-90% once done. That will take care of my mortgage payment once we get our house next year. So that means my Engineering job is just my "Hey, I'm bored and want a new boat, 4 wheeler, side by side, etc...money." Can't wait.

Take care

Sent from undisclosed location. -Tiller Mafia

[Donald Garner]

Good evening to everyone,
Forecasted temps for across Central Texas today were 34/45dgrs with 82%humidity and a NE wind @ 5mphs. 

Somewhat busy day today cleaning the school.  Tomorrow is another Team Cleaning day.  Thursday and Friday we'll finish up the week with everyone working in their own areas.  As of tomorrow morning I have 5 days left at work   

Top; Tks for stopping in and providing an update.  Good luck with getting your disability approved.

Bud; We're having some cooler weather here also.  I don't know if it's all these med's I'm taking etc. but I'm sure feeling colder     We had a very simple meal tonight also...hotdogs, coleslaw and tater tots and a diet Dr. Pepper      I concur with ya. It was a good change of pace for the evening meal.

To everyone have quiet and relaxing evening.  I hope tomorrow is a better day for everyone. 

[Bud Kennedy]

Digging out the heavy coat today.  My infamos "Chicago" coat will see some action over Christmas.  Temps taking the big drop with wind chills into the single digits are predicted.  This old coat was a life saver during my couple years in the NW Suburbs of Chicago a long time ago.  Our area just is not prepared for temps like this and our homes are equally unprepared.  Will have to crank up the thermostat to stay comfortable for sure.  Tomorrow however temps will be in the middle 60s before the big drop on heads our way.  At this point there is nothing else I can do to prepare.  Just hope the electric stays on.  Some high winds are also forecasted that makes me worry a bit about maintaining electric power. 

[Donald Garner]

Howdy from Belton, Texas 

Forecasted temps across Central Texas looked like this today.  41-47dgrs with 83%humidity and a S wind @ 5mphs.  The winds are suppose to change directions tomorrow from S to NW and increasing up to 25mphs.  The lows tomorrow night are forecasted to be in the low teens. Daytime temps starting on Friday >>> Sunday 30 / 44dgrs.  I'm sure glad I work inside and we have no plans to be out and about this weekend 

We finished up the Team Cleaning of the unassigned areas today.  Tomorrow and Friday the team will work in their own individual areas.  I cleaned out my desk and locker today.  I gave my Cabela's rain suit to my outside guy.  I had some other things I gave away to those that were hanging around the office also.  Friday morning I have an appointment with my Primary Care Doctor.  I'm looking for some more positive news like I got from my kidney doctor visit last week 

Bud; I'm digging out my cold weather jacket I brought from Alaska.  Our forecast here is only calling for 3-4 days of cold weather.  From what I saw the coldest temps will be during the over nights.  My wife will be complaining a little bit but I'm readjusting that thermostats a few degrees during the night 
I hope y'all don't have any weather related issues during this cold snap. 

To everyone get ready it's fixing to be cold here for a few days.  Be safe and stay warm.   

[Bud Kennedy]

Really cold weather on the way.  This morning at 6AM it was 65 degrees now at 1pm the temp has dropped to 55 and a west wind is beginning to blow.  Gonna be a cold and blustery Christmas holiday thats for sure.  Had to do a quick errand today so I got it over early and plan on spending the rest of the day and likely the next few days right here at home. 

Our neighborhood was once mostly retired folks but now about a third of the homes are owned by folks who are still working.  This is not a bad thing but it does change the basic mood of the community.  Our one close knit community is evolving but it seems not for the better.  There has been some vandalism and recently a house break in.  I guess homes that are empty during the day are becoming the targets of bad people.  I guess I should consider turning on my outside security stuff and update the cameras just in case.  My usual installation includes some very loud sounders that make this place sound like a jail break in progress.  I have found that of all the security you can add to your property, things that make lots of noise are number 1 in making bad people just go away.  Number 2 would be some significant flashing lighting is also very effective.  Cameras are way down my list as they only provide a picture of who just tried to rob your place.  All I want is for them to go away and leave us alone.  I don't want the problem of having to have their body removed from my home or to clean of the blood because of a blast from my Judge.  At my age I can't fight them but I still can shoot just fine.  The Taurus Judge is right effective at close range.

[Dark3]

Don, exciting times I bet. I hope you are looking forward to it. What do you have planned to fill the void?

Bud, nothing more useless than an unloaded locked up or improperly positioned fire arm for home protection. I have a .40 Shield laying on my kitchen island lol and other places in the house. I wouldn't need them here tho. Too cold for most lazy criminals plus I got these hands haha.

We also have the storm sweeping through. Expecting 5-10 degree weather the next couple days. Not expecting alot of snow with this storm but who knows here. It just generates right on the big lake and starts snowing out of no where.

Continuing working on the house. Got some new vanity light fixtures for the bathrooms waiting for me to install. I cleaned the old stainless kitchen sink but its beyond cleaning at this point although it helped. I used lime away with a scotch bright pad, followed by foil and some stuff called perfect sink. Atleast its clean. It got me looking underneath though and its ugly on the bottom with stains. The cabinets are pretty old.

Have a good day everyone, Rodney hope you are doing well. Here is my guard dog, she is 11. She is a chiweenie. Best dog I could ever ask for. Rarely ever barks, just a loving little girl.





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[Donald Garner]

Greetings from a windy and cold Belton, Texas 
Forecasted temps for our area today were 13 - 23dgrs with 64% humidity and a NE wind @ 25mphs.  With the wind chill factor it is 2 dgrs outside.  That wind isn't messing around.

Drove across Belton Lake Dam on the way home this afternoon.  It was wicked looking out on the water.  High winds, White Caps and Fog rising off the surface   

Quiet day at the Fun Farm today.  I mostly hung out in the office tinkering around on the computer.  My team worked in their individual areas.  Some of the ladies got together and presented me with a parting gift for me and the wife.  They gave me a hoodie with our School Logo on it, couple gift cards to restaurants in town.  There was a huge tin full of assorted cookies.  They got a couple different style hear rings for my wife.  I'm going to miss working with some of my Team Members.  My wife reminded me as I was walking out the door this morning I have only 3 days left 

Tomorrow will be an easy day.  I have a Dr's appointment with my primary care provider @ 9am. The Team will be working in their assigned areas.  We get off work tomorrow at 2pm.  Our Christmas Vacation starts then.  Monday 2 Jan 2023 we'll return back to work.  I'll have 1 day left then 

Dark 3; Yes sir I'm very much ready for this retirement.  Nothing planned to fill the void yet.  I got a bunch of medical appointments to deal with up front.  Once we get the body heading in the right direction I foresee plenty of fishing and traveling up to Missouri, Kentucky and where ever else we decide.  Tks for the update on the house project.  Nice looking watch dog you got there also.

Bud; It is fricking COLD here now with that wind howling down from the NE @ 25mphs.  The temps with the wind chill = 2dgrs outside.  When we first moved into our place there were like 50 families that lived in this area.  Since 2004 they expanded out into 3 different phases.  I have no idea how many families live in our neighborhood now.  I can say that 90% of the people that live here work.  Knock on wood right quick...we don't have / had many issues with rift raft coming in and stealing things or damaging things.   
Beings we live outside the city limits the Sherriff's Department does make the rounds through our neighborhood.  My next door neighbor is a police officer for one of the surrounding communities.

Rodney; My good man we still have you in our daily prayers.  Hope the recovery is going well for Ya so far.

To everyone be safe in your travels.  I hope tomorrow is a better day for y'all also.  Stay warm.

[Donald Garner]

Good afternoon to everyone,

We started the day off here in Central Texas with Blue Bird Skies    Bright sunny skies with forecasted temps of 21-36dgrs with 30% humidity and a NE wind @ 4mphs. The warming temps should be arriving here tomorrow with lows in the high 20's and the highs low 50's / mid 60's by Wednesday 

Nothing is planned for today or the rest of the weekend.  Relaxation is on the schedule.  I got up and fixed breakfast for me and the wife.  We had toasted English muffins sandwiches with hard fried egg, fried Canadian Bacon, Fried ham with melted Coby Jack cheese. 

I took the trash out and made a quick check to see if the Stratos and G3 were still parked in the storage area next to the garage.  They're still there all covered up.  All the fishing rods are still hung up in the garage with the tackle boxes sitting on the shelves.  I'm making my late Winter early Spring tasking list to prep for the upcoming fishing season.  New batteries for both boats are at the top of the list.  There will be other things to accomplish also now that I got plenty of FREE Time to get things done. 

The countdown is on.   Jan 4th retirement arrives.  I can't wait 

To everyone Merry Christmas tomorrow.  Enjoy the family time together, be safe in your travels if you're out visiting family and friends. 

[Bud Kennedy]

Current temp here at the beach is 30 with a slight breeze from the North.  It got down to 19 last night and will go down to the mid 20s tonight so all in all not bad compared to what I am seeing from other reports.  At least it was a very sunny day and that is always a good thing.  The Mrs is watching the Panthers game today and I am sitting here playing the cats favorite video.  I took a short video just to demonstrate the cat's boxing skills.




Forgot to mention that supper tonight will be pancakes, bacon and topped off with an egg.  We like breakfast for supper from time to time.

[Donald Garner]

Good morning to all,

Merry Christmas to everyone.  We're starting the day off with Blue Bird skies and forecasted temps of 23-50dgrs with 74% humidity and a SE wind @ 1mph.

We're off to church here shortly.  Lunch will be done at home today.  We're having home made pizza and salad for lunch today.  Simple quick and easy.  The rest of the day will be spent in the recliner watching tv.

Bud; Tks for sharing the video.  It's always fun to watch cats.
Rodney; Hope this morning finds you feeling pain free and on the path to recovery. 

To everyone enjoy the day spent with family and friends.  Be safe out traveling if you have to get out.

[Bud Kennedy]

Things are starting to get back to normal.  It is still cold but it is easing off a bit.  Temp today was near 50 and dropping down into the low 30s tonight.  We expect the low 60s by Thursday and high 60s by Friday and maybe up to 70 on Saturday.  New Years eve will be a bit cool but not bad and it is supposed to be dry.  For those that go out to celebrate the new year it should be a good night for it.  Us old folks will be in bed at our usual time and will see the new year the next morning.  The worst part is all the jack wagons setting off fireworks most of new years eve.  The cat will hide somewhere under the furniture but our new dog does not seem to mind them too much but we will see.  The 4th of July did not bother her so I hope that holds true.

The Mrs wants me to pull up her now frozen hibiscus plants and get the planting bed ready for her annual pansy planting.  I'll get rid of the old stuff tomorrow and maybe do the planting on Thursday if the weather forecast holds. 

[Donald Garner]

Greetings to everyone,
Beautiful day across Central Texas today  We have lots of sun shining out there with forecasted temps of 39-55 dgrs  with 34% Humidity and a SE wind @ 7 mphs.  We're looking at hitting 70dgrs tomorrow with 77dgrs forecasted for Saturday    We're starting to get back to normal here also for a Texas Winter 

I fixed breakfast sandwiches for us this morning.  We took a morning drive to kill some time and to just get out of the house.  We stopped in Btown Burgers for a late lunch meal.  Relaxation is on the schedule for the rest of the afternoon and into the evening.  With it warming up tomorrow and later on this week there might be some yard work getting completed then.  We have this 6ft Rosemary bush that needs removed.  I'm going to take the chainsaw and trim around it and then attach a rope to it and pull it up. 

Bud; Glad to see y'all are warming backup also.  I'm not a big fan of cold weather anymore.  We have the same issue with fireworks here also.  We live outside of the city limits and it sounds like a mini warzone.  It doesn't bother me but is sure pisses the wife off.  I generally sleep right through the noise.

Rodney; Got you in my daily prayers brother.  Hope your recovery is coming along great for ya.

To everyone have a relaxing and pleasant evening ahead.  Be safe in your travels if you have to get out.

[Bud Kennedy]

Been a busy couple of days.  The temps today reached the upper 50s and will climb to the 70s by Saturday.  We have been running errands for a couple of days.  Yesterday we had to go pick up the wife's new I phone and a quick stop for just a couple odds and ends of groceries.  Today was pay the bills day.  Had to go and pay the boat storage rent, then over to pay the 2022 real estate taxes and then we had to stop at the dollar tree for a couple greetings cards and a couple of calendars and one final stop at Lowe's to pick up some contractors mix grass seed for our courtyard.  This is about the only stuff that grows in the courtyard in the winter otherwise it turns to mud and that is not a good thing.

The wife's I phone is now all set up and working as it should.  This is an upgrade from her original flip phone.  Unfortunately we have to re enter all of her contact names and numbers as the old flip phone was not software compatible to allow for an electronic download.  No big deal.

The final task for today was to plant 3 dz pansy plants to replace the hibiscus plants that bit the big one during the last couple days of super cold temps into the teens.  The rest of the day will just be resting. 

[Donald Garner]

Greetings to all from Belton, Texas 
Forecasted temps for across Central Texas today were  57-74dgrs with 48% humidity and a S wind @ 15mphs.  It was a beautiful day today.

Busy day today running errands.  Made a run over to the VA Hospital Pharmacy to check on a prescription I hadn't received yet in the mail.  The tech was a great help with doing some research.  I had to head back to the post office to check on the shipment.  They didn't have a record of it arriving. Made a stop at Lowes to pickup a couple items   I dropped the wife off at home and headed back to the VA Hospital Pharmacy.  The same tech was there from this morning and in he took care of business and got my refills done for me.

While out and about the wife fixed some smoke sausage links, coleslaw and tater tots for supper.  It hit the spot once I got back home.  The rest of this evening is going to be relaxing from the recliner checking out reruns of In The Heat of The Night.

Bud; You had a busy day I see.  Glad to hear the weather has turned off being nice for ya.  The wife and I are going to be doing some yard work tomorrow.  We got that big herb bush to pull up out of the flower bed.  I'm going to hook the tow strap around the base and let that Ram 2500 Turbo Diesel do the hard part.
Hope your evening is a relaxing one for ya.

To everyone hope your day has been a good one and tomorrow a better one. Be safe during your travels.

[Bud Kennedy]

Very nice day here at the beach.  Current temp is 70 with calm winds and blue bird skies.  More of the same for tomorrow and a little rain moving in on Saturday.  It could stay like this all the time and that would not be a bad thing.

The wife's new I phone is all set up and working great and she seems really excited to have it compared to her flip phone.  I still have to load some pictures into it from my desk top but I will probably get that done over the upcoming weekend.

We are getting ready to do a walk about in the neighborhood with the dog and cat and after that nothing else is planned.  Wife wants me to mow the lawn tomorrow just to spruce up a bit and to get the rest of the leaves picked up.  The lawn is fairly small so that won't be a problem at all.  We also finished patching some of the cracks in the driveway and on the back patio.  The real solution would be to have the concrete removed and new driveway, sidewalks and patios re poured.  Unfortunately I just don't have the kind of cash it would take to do that at this time. None of the original cement was done correctly in the first place but after 30 years it has been marginally ok.  Hope it will hold on a little longer.
Tomorrow will be my last payday of the year.  Our pension checks will hit the bank account at that time.  I sure am glad to have those checks come it.  The extra money is always appreciated.  I have two pensions and the wife has one.  Her check always goes into her savings and my checks represent a little extra money for play things or some unexpected expenses.  So many of our neighbors only have social security and I swear I don't know how they make it financially.  We are very fortunate to have the pension money each month to help out.

[Donald Garner]

Good morning to everyone,
We're starting the day off with overcast skies and the threat of rain moving in across Central Texas.  Looking at the weather radar there's a big area fixing to get wet.  Forecasted temps across our area today are 44/65dgrs with 74% humidity and a W wind @ 5mphs.  There's a 73% chance of us getting wet today.

I'm going to help the wife do some cleaning of the bathrooms and do a little vacuuming.  She has dinner slow cooking in the crock pot.  There's some chicken breasts and stove top dressing cooking in there.   She found some new dish on face book and we're having it tonight for dinner.

I postponed the removing of the large spice bush from the side flower bed.  The weather just hasn't been right for the past couple days to be out there digging etc.  We went for a walk around the neighborhood yesterday morning.  Its been a long time since we've done that.  I noticed yesterday there's an oil leak underneath the Silverado.  It looks like it's coming from the front end of the vehicle.  I'll be making an appointment with Goodyear to get that issue fixed.  It's always something with the vehicles it seems like.
After the cleaning of the house today it will be relaxing in the recliner. 

Bud; We're starting to get weather like you're getting.  Although I can't complain I really like the weather we have here in Central Texas.  The Falls and Winters for the most part are mild, Springs can be a little wet sometimes, Summers....well welcome to Texas 
What do you repair you driveway with?  Is it a chalking type material or what?  Concrete patios and driveways here in Texas get cracks in them all the time due to the weather.

Rodney; Hope your recovery is coming along in a positive way for ya.  We still have ya in our daily prayers.

To everyone I hope y'all have a really pleasant day today.  Be safe in your travels if you have to get out and about.

[Bud Kennedy]

Donald, I use a product by Sakrete called Concrete Crack Filler.  It comes in a 1 qt bottle and works really well.  I just squirt it in the cracks and use a putty knife to smooth it out and then let it dry for a few hours.  It claims to fill cracks up to 1/2" wide and 1/4" deep.  I had a big crack on the back patio so I used some steel wool as a filler then applied the crack filler on top of that.  Seems to be just fine.  It is an easy product to use.  I don't recall how much I paid for a bottle but I am thinking about $13. and they had it in stock at our local Home Depot.

I am starting to think about painting the driveway with some epoxy paint next spring but have not yet made up my mind about that.

[Donald Garner]

Good morning to all,
Beautiful start to the day here in Central Texas.  We have Blue Bird Skies with lots of sun shining    Forecasted temps for the area are 51-78dgrs with 46% humidity and a SW wind @ 13mphs.  There's a chance of rain on Monday but the rest of the week is looking bright sunny and in the mid 60's for our highs.

Nothing happening here today except relaxing and watching some TV.  I got a text message from the director last night we return to work on Tuesday now.  So that means I have only (1) day of work left    I'll spend that day turning in my uniforms, ID badge, keys, parking permits and clearing HR and Payroll.  What time is left in the day I'll help my replacement get her computer setup.

My wife and I have nothing special planned for the last day of 2022.  We'll enjoy the peace and quiet till it gets dark.  We live in the outskirts of town so there will be plenty of fireworks and gun fire going off tonight 

Bud; Tks for sharing that product with me.  I have some cracks in our sidewalks and driveway I'm going to deal with later on this Summer.  Hope you and your wife have a relaxing last day here in 2022.

To everyone have a really pleasant and enjoyable last day of 2022.  Be safe if you're out traveling.