Just Another Rainy Sunday

I guess today was a more or less normal Sunday around the Brockmann casa.

It began for me around 6:30 when I woke with a start realizing it was not dark outside. That's 2 days in a row that I slept through the night! After last week and the "Vampire Project" from work, it's a fact worth noting.

Once I had consumed a couple of cups of coffee, I made my Sunday morning pilgrimage to Wal-Mart. It's a good excuse to get out and see what's changed in Monroe. Verdict, not a lot.

I brought back the obligatory Sunday newspaper for Marilyn, some food for Wally, an assortment of toiletries for the trip, and a new suitcase. My old one had vanished into the ether.

Once I sorted out the loot, I sat down in my recliner, and turned on the TV. I spent the next couple of hours flipping back and forth between Spike and Speed.

As soon as it got hot enough, I hooked the truck to the trailer, pulled it forward about 20 feet, and mowed under the trailer. After I put it back where it belonged, I did the giant slalom around all of the treasures in the back yard, and mowed the front and side yards. Then I pulled, prodded, and cursed the weed-eater until it decided to cooperate. Start to finish, the yard took about 2 hours.

After a brief cool-down, I went upstairs to see how Marilyn was getting along with the newspaper, and discovered that Gizmo, our cat, was on top of a 7' tall hutch in the corner of the living room. Sometimes I think that cat can fly. It was a good 3 1/2 feet from the back of the couch to the top of the hutch. Beam me up, Scotty.

Once we finished laughing, Sandy came over, and she and Marilyn went to Macy's in Athens. They met Jon, Missy, and Violet, and spent several hours shopping.

Being left to my own devices, I grabbed a hand full of tools, and put a grille insert into the Jeep. I've grown tired of the trash that accumulates between the grille and the radiator. The screen should go a long way toward eliminating the mess. Since nothing is ever as easy as it seems to be, the whole deal (bolting a screen behind the grille opening with 4 bolts) took over 3 hours. I think the brace on the back of the grille shell is the first piece they grab when they build a Jeep. I had to take the air box out, disconnect the radiator braces, take out 6 bolts that held the radiator in, take out 12 more that bolted the fenders to the grille shell, disconnect the front body mount, and finally remove the brace. Then I slipped the screen behind the grille, bolted it in, and spent 45 minutes putting everything back where I found it. It looks good, and everything still works.

All things considered, it was fun.

Just about the time I was finishing up, the sky started to get dark. 10 minutes and .5 inch of rain later, the power went out. It's tough to blog in the dark. 90 minutes later, Walton EMC had replaced the whacked transformer or broken line that blacked out our neighborhood. That's the longest power outage in recent memory. The EMC does a great job of keeping my toys energized.

When the power came back on, Marilyn pounced on the computer and continued her "Knob Quest". Good news on the kitchen front, too. The cabinets shipped Friday, and should be here next week. Perfect timing. I leave in 8 days. :-)

I hope you all have a great week.