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I wouldn’t answer yes to that, but then I’d be biased because I believe I am a damn pleasure. Ha. But as I read about perimenopause and middle aged grumpy men more and more I wonder if I too suffer from such an affliction? I feel as though with all of my hobbies, and the freedom that comes with freelance work I am a pretty happy guy. My guts get rankled every now and again by Crohn’s but I don’t think I get ugly about it personality wise. I tend to want to just stay home, nearby an empty bathroom, rather than temp fate to go out with friends and/or family. I like working alone so I don’t feel like being isolated during the day makes me act like a bit of a shit when I do see other people. I’m not as social as I once was, but I don’t think I am cruel, or miserable because of it. I no longer HAVE to interact with numerous strangers every day, since I do not commute anymore, so I just don’t interact with strangers all that much. What you could expect from me; a tight lipped smile, a nod, a half wave that starts with the thumb up close to my body, and ending with the thumb tip facing forward (that’s the full range of a half wave, all one direction, in one fluid motion). Maybe a puffy to the cheeks smile that doesn’t ever reach the eyes, and shows no teeth, and is very brief, with no audible component. All very minor, non threatening, and noncommittal. I don’t think that makes me a grump. Other people might disagree with that. Although, I’m rarely effusive with my greetings and banter, so maybe I come across as aloof, or detached? But not grumpy. Tired? Certainly, but I don’t believe I have a bad outward facing attitude.

A little Thursday morning introspection for you, huh? Take a look in the mirror and take a quick stock of whatever is playing across your face. A touch of the RBF as it were. That being “Resting Bitch Face” or however you refer to it. Something else to ponder while the world burns down around us, am I right?

I have a list of work items to get to this morning, so I shall not linger for too much longer. The third book I have chosen is actually five stories all collected in one omnibus, so if I can finish it by the end of March, I’ll be miles ahead of my reading challenge. The book being over 800 pages has me more than a little concerned. That’s a pretty sizeable visual block to get over. Read for hours and it hardly looks like I’ve made any progress. Let’s see if it defeats me!

Four months of cold snow, ice, and bitter winds is enough to drive anybody batty. Not only that but we have six weeks left until the absolute earliest point in the spring, which usually still involves snow of some sort, and cold winds, slush, and grey overcast skies. I’m over it. Done. Bring on the warm sunlight, green leaves, and green grasses.

I was able to catch up on my reading yesterday, and now I am two books down over two months. Right back on track! Yeah-buddy. I will start a three part omnibus of collected stories today if I decide not to start painting my newly primed Warhammer miniatures. Or if I decide not to start another 8.5 x 11 canvas of whatever I have lying around in acrylic paint. I played some guitar yesterday too, so there’s always that option available. I completed my latest sculpt the other day, he turned away from goblin, and became just a man. Nothing fanciful about him at all. I do have an armature waiting on clay, so I could do that too. Or swing wide and get back to work on my resin model kit that I put away last spring. Too many options. Choice paralysis! Argh!

I do like having options though, they are the spice of life in my opinion. Ha. Not to worry, today is Wednesday and while the sun is most definitely shining the base temperature before the windchill is minus thirteen. Feels like minus nineteen an ever so slightly warmer low for the day. Not by much but it means the kids might actually get outdoor recess today. Who knows!?!

I long for the days of sandals, shorts, and a hat with sunglasses. Miss me with all this snow, ice, and windchill factor baloney. I’m not built for this sort of thing.

Started this book last night, and just finished reading it about twenty minutes ago. Lots of the technical details went over my head, but learning about the technological wonders of the JWST was pretty astounding. I can’t wait to see what they developed, and then deploy next. Though I guess the Artemis missions to the moon are what’s up right now.

So yeah, two books down, with a three part omnibus on deck next. Going back to space faring science fiction and war stories in the Warhammer 40K universe. Dan Abnett and a couple of Gaunt’s ghosts are in the house! Pew-pew.

I did give some thought to going back to finish Mistborn, but I’m not in the mood for magic systems just yet. Give me a couple of weeks of reading dystopian war stories and I might want a break for elemental magics, and a good heist.

I have a massive book of dragon tales I can read, as well as yet another Aliens omnibus, so I have no shortage of things to read. Also my brain is a tad mushy after 200 pages of science history and telescopes, and Spectrography discussions. I’m not a smart man, numbers aren’t my thing, so it took a fair bit of focus to read all that, and keep a through line of what it all meant. Brain is tired. Much like those days when I would write 4,000 or more words of a short story, my head would get foggy, and I’d need to dumb things down a bit before bed. Know thine limitations!

Anyway — book good. Photos lovely. Science neato. Short and Sweet.

If I had my way I would scoop these sorts of things up from the farm, take them home to my garage shop, break them down, strip off the paint, add all new hoses & fittings, fix any bearings, pins, and bushings, chase threads, repaint it, reassemble it, and enjoy watching it get a whole new life of use on the farm. A few things stick out as to why I don’t. One- can’t lift it. I do not own a skid steer, a truck robust enough to carry it, nor a shop crane to manoeuvre it once at my shop. Two- I don’t really know anything about hydraulics, systems, hoses, fittings, pressurized lines, and how the flow of fluid works within such systems. Although this being an attachment for a tractor I suspect the majority of those complications lie inside the tractor, and not this add-on attachment. Three- my shop is not big enough to house this thing which is larger than it looks up close. I also don’t have a sturdy enough work bench for that type of weight. I also don’t do any sort of metal fabrication, so I couldn’t weld anything, bend anything, mill/lathe any simple fixes, or do much of anything worth while to it in my shops current state. I do mainly wood working, and a hint of vehicle service, and household repair. It’d be fun to figure this thing out though. Repair linkages, repaint it. Carve off the stickers & decals and then reapply them when done before a thick clear coat finish was applied to seal it all in together. Fun times!

There’s this sizeable wagon I want to fix too, that if you could add a third, fat wheel to at the front, that articulated would allow you to steer it around, could be used to hold a watering barrel for those hard to reach spots in the gardens. It needs sanding, dent repair, some minor fabrication, and a paint job. Possibly new, or just properly inflated tires, and some body work so the tires spin freely. Could also be a fun project. Likely a whole lot simpler than the excavator attachment. Weigh a whole lot less too.

In other news I finished the Jason Pargin book last night. It was fine. Glad I got through a book, and am not into another one. This is about the James Webb Space Telescope, and so far reads pretty easily. Less textbook, more biography of the processes required in bringing it to life. Also — space photography! Ooh, aah… Very nice. While I’m not sure if I can do the twelve books in twelve months this year (my eyes and all that) I’m glad to finally sit down to read this one. I love science fiction, but occasionally I need to read about real science. Not that I understand much of it, but I am glad that others do, and are able to act on it in our favour. Sweet!  Also the books not that long. Fewer than two hundred pages with a lovely photo spread in the middle. Just like the New Horizons book about the Pluto mission. One of my all time favourite books about actual science. But I digress.

I spent some time yesterday priming over my poor earlier paint job of several Warhammer 40K miniatures. I intend to redo those with my air brush, and considerably more patience. Not that I am able to battle with them, I just want a much cleaner paint job for the few that I have. I might even wash, and primer over some Eldar that I have too. My first pass with yellow was unsuccessful, let’s just put it that way shall we. Hideous results. No matter. Strip the paint off, and begin again!

All the best to you out there!

Which I was told was supposed to start over this previous weekend, but that didn’t happen because it was still minus twenty five when I got up both mornings. However to hedge my bets I have gone and dug out the storm drain at the front of the property to try to eliminate a standing puddle that will turn into a solid block of ice every night once the sun goes down. And I took some time to cut away the snow & ice build up from the end of the driveway to widen it back up just a hair. I saw my spouse had driven directly backwards into the snow pile, so half the work of breaking it down was done for me. What the state of her rear bumper is right now, I don’t know, but I imagine there may be a couple new bumps, dents, and scratches on it, that’s for certain. No matter. I also dug out the alcove for the garbage bins, and the 306 L recycling dumpster we all use now. With there being so much snow making our driveway entrance tighter and tighter, I am not able to put the bins out in the drive, and still have room to get around them in the mornings. So a carve out of the snowbank is essential. It’ll get filled in with any new dumping of snow, just you wait and see. I’ll be back out there digging it out soon enough.

Most importantly I found the storm drain, and it is uncovered. May the warming spell drain itself away unfettered! I can’t say what has become of my down spouts or eaves troughs, but the street (at least on my side) shouldn’t flood too badly. I mean if the storm drains are a solid block of ice underground, my opening the top grate to the world isn’t going to do much good. It’s the thought that counts! Ha.

Here we are in February, the 2nd at that. And it’s sunny. The ground hogs are sure to see their shadows, and we get six more weeks of hard winter. On the plus side, no icy trips to the cottage or Ottawa this February, so that’s a plus in my books. It’s always so damn cold! I hate the cold. I hate it! With a passion, no less. Interminable season. Never wants to leave, sticks around for far too long. The fact we started snow in November means we’re four months into the white stuff, and I don’t care for it. Makes Christmas look picturesque but is otherwise a nuisance.

Welcome to Monday everybody. We started the laundry last night. I put the dishwasher on before I left with the kids this morning, and I can focus on other things if I wish. Like taking a nap! In all honesty I welcome the coming of spring. I can get back into my wood shop and build some useful items for the house. Start to poke around in the trees, shrubs, and hedges a little. Clean up the left over weeds and leaves from the lawn. Pick up all the dropped twigs from the trees. Take a load of stuff to the farm as clean fill for the field(s). I get to open the windows, and doors, and begin the spring cleaning. Washing the windows, blinds, ceiling fans, vents, that sort of thing. It’s not glamorous work but it feels like things are getting done around here. Cobwebs on the ceilings get brushed away. Dust bunnies are found and disposed of. See if the closets I cleaned out have gathered newer junk to be sorted or purged. Swap the kids clothes over to lighter items for the impending temperature change. It’s a whole thing!

Do a nice little service to the bicycles and the lawn mower. Make sure both chainsaws are up and running. Maybe return to bucking logs at the farm for a week or so. Much can be done when the weather begins to turn in March/April. Can’t forget tax time either. Wheeeee!

I worked a little on my report yesterday, and I shovelled another foot and a half of snow off the back deck, for those playing the home game that outs me up to just shy of 100 cm of snow removed from this particular deck so far this winter. The skies are blue, but it is icy cold out there, and I don’t much care for it. It was just a few days ago that I realized I hadn’t even read one whole book in January, so I tried very hard to sit down to read a bunch over the last two or three days. I’ve made progress, but my one book a month goal has fallen short all ready. D’oh! Maybe I can make it up with two shorter books in February, or over the summer? I don’t know, and I’m not all that concerned about it to be honest with you.

But, I did sit near the fire to read for a solid hour or more and I’ll take that as a win. No phone in my hand, I left it in another room to charge while I focused on reading. It feels good to work, or entertain myself without a phone nearby. Helps to keep my mind on the task at hand.

I don’t mind having music playing though, but with music from my phone comes notifications, texts, emails, and all of that type of nonsense. I still have CDs, but my last cd player died about five years or more ago. My television hook up can play music, same with my old Xbox. So physical media isn’t totally out of reach right now. Perhaps I’ll look into getting a new CD player for the house, eliminate the need for my phone for music. Though a lot of my new favourites were discovered on iTunes, and I don’t have a disc for them. I can’t remember the last time I went out to buy a disc for a band I like. That has to be more than a decade ago by now. Wow. Funny how time flies. I guess the iPod destroyed music stores. No need to buy albums when I could grab the single I was after. Funny that. Huh.

I’m trying to locate large print versions of books I’d like to read. Long gone now is my desire to read an 800 page time with 6 pt nice type in it, and a thousand words per page. Give me 140-210 exceptional pages of snappy characters in an interesting environment and I’m with you for the ride along! Think Martha Wells and the Murder it series in regards to brevity. I’m far more drawn to that now than ever before. I used to love long winding, meandering, world building tales that used thousands of pages. Now I want you to allude to it, and keep the story moving. That’s my jam now. That’s where to meet me in the book store aisles.

I might have to just wander the large print section at the book store because I can’t ever seem to find new titles in large print online. Maybe it’s a special order kind of thing? I guess hard cover books get printed with fairly large type in them, so I have that option available. Those just get pricy. More than I’m looking to spend at the moment. Whatever, I have glasses, and a substantial pile of books to be read, so I should knuckle under, read those, then search out newer stuff that’s easier on the eyes.

It’s not difficult to want to sit a read when it’s bitterly cold out, and there’s a fire going in the family room. Sunshine, warm blankets, fire crackling. Get your books out! It’s reading time.

Fewer than 200 pages left to go until book one for the year is done. Wish me luck!

When I was growing up as a kid in the eighties there was this one defining feature that you would see everywhere, and now that it’s gone, I get a weird sort of nostalgia for it. And it’s really rather odd, if I do say so myself. That feature? You might ask… Massive rippling burgundy curtains on every wall or surface. Going to the movies? You could expect stairs, levels, and burgundy curtains everywhere. Going ice skating indoors? We’ll do I have news for you, along with burgundy curtained walls we have blue cloud sky patterns on the ice, a magnificent cyan blue. Rippling burgundy textiles were either all the rage from the seventies with heavy carry over into the eighties, or had its hey day in the eighties. That shit was every fucking where. Inside restaurants. And I miss it. It was a bold statement! Couldn’t tell you what it was trying to say, but it was loud, bold, and omnipresent. The colour of my youth outside the home — burgundy; rippled hanging curtains, with gold tasseled ends, or draw strings. Black objects with gold or silver inlays. Black porcelain toilets. Dark stained wooden cabinets, hutches, and tables. It was a wild time. Dim orange lighting, and ash trays and heavy smokers. Not a good time if you were asthmatic.

Then we got builders beige, Millenial grey, dark slate grey homes with black trim, open concept homes, dual toned kitchen uppers from lowers, marbles and granites for counter tops, soon carpet will be back in fashion leaving hard wood & laminate floors covered up for another decade or more. The times they are a changing!

Funny the things we get nostalgic for isn’t it. Sometimes it is people, places, old brands or toys, but I think the hardest hit are the “feelings” we experienced from our youth. There’s no going home, as they say. Which house from my youth would I yearn for anyway? We moved a double digit number of times. My childhood home memory spans five, or six, possibly more places. Houses, apartments, different countries, and entirely different groups of surrounding people. If I had the chance to “go home” where would that even be?

Speaking of which, the last time I moved was 2009, this is the longest stretch of time that I have lived in one place, with the same friend group, and the same neighbours, and I think my kids benefit from having roots of their own developing here. One childhood home where all the memories are. We’ll, besides the inlaws house, farm property, and the cottage, but those also don’t move or change locations, we do. We go there. It doesn’t randomly become a new destination to find every few years.

I grew up feeling nomadic, and I’m not outgoing enough for it anymore. Making new friends over, and over, and over again isn’t in my wheel house anymore. I really don’t want to move even if we somehow come into money, via lottery or otherwise. I love my tiny house. I’ll stay put I think. Although I did get pretty good at moving, and paring my life down to fit a number of totes, boxes, bags, and bins. I love a good purge! I can spring clean like the best of them. Marie Kondo has nothing on me! You just have to remind yourself that your house will not magically expand in size just because you cleaned out some closets, cabinets, or storage rooms. The foot print remains the same, but you might enjoy some visual freedom from clutter, or have an easier time opening doors, or walking with fewer items in the way.

How did large hanging burgundy curtains become a discussion on purging, moving, and childhood nostalgia? I don’t know, but my disorganized mind took us there didn’t it? Sure did Bob.

It’s Saturday, and the last day of January. I have had the second best ever month on this blog this January. I hit 800 or more views. Wild. I don’t expect to hear the 2,000 in one month like last July, but this is a very strong start to the year. My fifteen cents in ad revenue is a testament to that! So thank you! Germany, Singapore, even the US, and the UK have put up significant numbers here already this year. I do not know what you have found, or that which you seek, but I’m happy you found this wee little blog on your travels. Thanks for stopping by, and looking in. Ciao Bella!

It’s like the previous week was on replay or something. Cold weather, check! More snow, check!, weird cough slash illness, check! Snow day to cancel school the same week as a pre planned PA Day, check! It’s like January doesn’t want to end, and wants to go on forever. Forget Groundhogs day, January PA Days are vying for the position so we can never get out of the cold ass month. I feel exhausted. What day is it anyway? January 73rd? Ugh.

What’s worse is we aren’t even into the coldest month of the year yet, we still have the deeper freeze of February to look forward to, and exist within. Grocery shopping, getting gas, climbing, taekwondo, dance, girl guides, school drop off & pick up, dog walks, all of these things exist with an outdoor component, and February is here to kick us in the teeth for it. Oh, and don’t forget the snow shoveling, and the chipping of ice that awaits us all. Thanks! I hate it.

I was able to finish the first draft of my report nearly two days earlier than expected, so I can work on a couple of different things for another client today. With the kids home, yet again, I will need to stop frequently to deal with fighting, squabbling, and requests for food & beverages. Oh joy! I was under the impression they were going to the cottage with the grand parents last night, but that didn’t materialize. The extra deep cold seems to have taken the wind out of everybody’s sails for heading north. I don’t mind. I dislike the drive when we go for only one or two nights. Road conditions aren’t ideal for road trips.

I’m going to have breakfast shortly, and then I’ll get to work. I had hoped the kids would sleep in since they complain of being tired on every other school day morning, but I had to be up before eight am anyway. Why was I blessed with children that don’t want to go to sleep, stay asleep, or sleep in during the mornings when that option is available.

What Friday type things await us today? US interference in the Albertan separatist movement. Threats from T regarding airplane certifications. More threats of annexation. Cool, cool, cool.

Oh don’t get me wrong, it is blisteringly cold outside this morning, a very tepid minus seventeen before the wind chill factor even gets considered, so don’t wax too lyrical about the sun, because balmy it isn’t. But the precious vitamin D from what little sun shine we do have is a great mood enhancer regardless of exterior temperatures. I’ll take a moment to bask in the orange glow of the sun through all of this grey dinginess. Take what I can get at this point. The saddest day of the year approaches, Blue Monday, where we’ve gone so long without sunshine, warmth, and heat, so it makes us all a little depressed.

But, the days are getting ever so slightly longer with the sun up now until almost five thirty, soon to extend beyond until almost six, and then BAM! Spring will hit, and the grass will turn green, buds will appear on trees, and the birds that haven’t died from bird flu will come back, and we will all get outdoors far more often. And the lawn care cycle begins anew. Awesome.

For now, we enjoy each individual day that has any sun shine to it, or a wide open blue sky, because with winters here being so cold, and having returned to snowy form, full of shoveling, it’s best to take your moment of joy/peace whenever you can find it. I found out my Balaklava from storage so that I can shovel without my neck, cheeks, and mouth getting cold. A god send! Thank you to whomever designed that article of clothing. That and long johns and snow pants! All must have around here.

I have work to get to so I should be about my business. I understand Australia is battling bush fires in the height of their summer. I wish them well. While I like hot more than cold, those 50°C temps are just too much! You are a more hardy folk than I. Take care out there.

Welcome to Wednesday and I’ve still got more of this report left to do! Big work jobs require lots of focus, and attention to detail. Best to go slowly and be as precise as can be.