Reader

We're around the mid-point of summer. Another one.

Heat Waves

We had one or two heat waves recently, depending on how you look at it. Those aren't too unusual. The temperature goes up to the mid to high 90s F, sometimes hitting 100 or more. It gets miserable, especially if there's any humidity.

My house has a pool, which is not heated. In the past, when not working in the office, I dealt with the heat by swimming, sometimes in frigid water. Once I got used to it I would swim around and get out, and be comfortable for an hour or two.

Night was still tough. It usually cools off at night, but during a heat wave it can still be hot. My bedroom doesn't always get the greatest air circulation either. I eventually got an air conditioner, a floor-standing dual-hose unit that doesn't suck air from the room, which made a huge difference. I don't have to use it all the time, though, which is nice.

Now, it's still warm during the day, but it's actually cooler at night. If I open enough windows downstairs I can sleep comfortably without the AC, and the downstairs actually stays cool on its own. Until next heat wave...

Wildfire Smoke

This seems to be a routine occurrence now. I don't remember if we got it last year, but it seems like it's happened a few years this decade. Earlier this summer, the sky grew murky yellow again, this time from Canadian wildfires.

Breathing gets hard, and I got a headache when going out. I tried not to do much outside, and ran the air conditioners inside for some degree of filtration. I need to either buy a dedicated air filter, or build one of those DIY ones using a box fan.

Grass

Mowing hasn't been too bad. The grass doesn't always grow since it's been dryer. Apart from some bare spots, the lawn is doing okay.

Work

Thinking about trying to find a new job, for various reasons. There are things I don't know if I want to leave, though. The house for one, but also a few others, people, etc. It's weird starting to have some roots. I could pick up and move, but the thought of starting over is kind of daunting.

Travel

I feel like I should take a vacation. I'm not sure where to, but I should think of something. I did take some time to go to a jazz festival recently, but it seemed like only a partial vacation.

Internet

Hopefully I'll have fiber internet soon. I have an install date set up in a couple weeks. It was bumped once, hopefully this goes through. Looking forward to more upload speed.

That's It?

Until I think of more stuff I guess.

It occurred to me today that it might be interesting to do some sort of digital detox. That is, go someplace, maybe camping, away from screens. No laptop, phone stays off (but maybe handy for emergencies, or in airplane mode). Not necessarily all screens... I could see something like a watch/Fitbit or multimeter screen. Like maybe a change, working on something out away from my home office or office proper. Not necessarily away from “artificial” light, but not with the laptop screen.

Basically, something different from the normal grind. The work computer, or the home computer. Maybe an adventure, maybe not. Just a change of scenery.

It's getting nicer outside, and I've been enjoying getting out in the yard with Tim. It's been a while since I've had what I would consider a vacation, aside from various mini breaks and diversions.

The thing is, I know I shouldn't be staring at a screen as much as I do. But I also do enjoy technology. Even just being able to type something out like this, not to mention working on a project, or writing code, or hell even doomscrolling now and then.

Tim, my Irish Wolfhound, will bark if I let him out into the backyard at night. I try to get him out before we go to bed for a last bathroom check, and then he gets confined to the dining room for the night. Unfortunately, he doesn't always want to come in. Sometimes he wants to romp around with me, which I admit can be kind of fun, other times he has his own reasons. I sometimes have to lure him in with food.

There are other dogs in the neighborhood who he seems to converse with. He will start it, or one of them will, and it will go back and forth. Other times he picks up on something with his keen senses which go beyond my own, and upon evaluation determines that barking is the correct course of action.

If he's out with me, he usually won't bark as much. Or not at all, if we walk around the yard together. Ultimately, barking is an alert sound, and while I think he is trying to communicate to or confront something (another dog, some mystery thing), he's trying to alert me. This is probably one of the reasons humans and dogs started living together, they alert us to stuff.

Barking can be annoying, but in a way it's kind of his job. He'll occasionally bark in the house, but other than certain times at night he's a relatively quiet animal. So, I do appreciate him communicating this way. I figure if he's got something to say, I should hear him out.

Trying out 0.16 of Writefreely now. I don't usually write here, but it is kind of nice to have.

Happy New Year to all those who find their way here, either on the Fediverse or through my website. I'm not sure what this year will bring. I try to be optimistic, because what else can I do? But I'm also kind of anxious. We shall see.

For myself, I have some projects I'm hoping to attack. For one, I'd like to revamp my website – I have my own plans. There's other stuff I'll be looking at as well, which I will post about if I feel so inspired.

In the mean time, be well, and take care of each other.