Monday, January 25, 2016

Day 2232

Where did today go? I stayed busy all day, but really accomplished almost nothing. It was still dark when we walked the dogs because Janet had to leave for work early. I saw four of the five visible planets, but the illusive Mercury was still hidden by low clouds on the Eastern horizon. I watched the Impossible Planet episode of Dr. Who on the BBC channel during breakfast, which made breakfast take even longer than it usually does. I always liked this episode. When I took the dogs out to pee again before I fired up the computer and started working, I noticed another dead bird in the yard. This explained what the dogs were so interested in last night. The feral cats in the neighborhood do help control the rats, but I hate all the dead things they drag in the yard.

The first thing I discovered when I turned on the computer was that the backup batteries had gone bad in my Uninterruptible Power Supply. Since I wasn't that busy anyway, I took the power supply down to the battery store and had them rebuild the batteries. I think this is the third time I've had to replace the batteries in this particular UPS, but it was still cheaper than buying a brand new Uninterruptible Power Supply.

Dash was low on Phenobarbital, so I stopped by the vet to get a new supply and then returned to the battery store to pick up my refurbished UPS. When I finally did get to work, there wasn't much to do. There are still a couple of unfinished website projects, but no impending deadlines at all. I used my free time to write a letter to the watch winder people expressing my displeasure at their refusal to repair or replace my two broken winders. I don't expect much of a response, but at least I got that off my chest.

I discovered that I could buy The Martian on iTunes for half of what it would have cost to purchase a physical DVD in a store. No wonder stores don't carry many DVD titles anymore. I downloaded the movie and may never buy a DVD again. Why bother. I watch DVD's on my computer anyway and a downloaded file plays more reliably anyway. Half price seals the deal. No wonder Apple isn't making computers with DVD drives anymore. They really want to convince people to buy everything on iTunes. Now, all I have to do it get the little Apple TV box and I can watch my downloaded files on the big TV in the bedroom. Not that it matters, but I did remember to order ink for the large format printer.

The weather has got me confused. I bundled up like I did yesterday, but the minute I stepped out the door I realized was overdressed. As soon as the sun came up, it quickly got even warmer. By the time I was running errands this afternoon, I didn't even need a jacket. I think by the end of the week, temperatures are supposed to be in the mid-seventies. It's strange weather for this time of year, but I'll take it. It certainly beats cleaning up after the East Coast's giant snowstorm.

Unless somebody's website crashes unexpectedly, tomorrow will probably end up being a carbon copy of today. That's OK with me. I've got fresh bag of Fritos and a new movie to watch.

Bones is today's Dalmatian of the Day
Watch of the Day