Between the drops...

The weather weasels have been predicting the rain.  A few drops here and there, but nothing solid.  I was about ready for my morning walk when it came down a bit more.  And then, a sucker hole.  "What's a sucker hole?" you ask.  Thanks for asking.  Pilots know this term: when a small patch of blue sky appears in the clouds... go up through that opening, and you might get "caught on top"... and VFR pilots aren't trained to get back down through the clouds.

I checked the hourly predictions, and it looked good for a walk.  Out on our street...

Yep, that far end of the street is how far I'm walking today - right to the cul-de-sac at the end of the street.  And at the end of the street, there is this view to the east...

That is the next canal over and the "natural side" of our island.  You can see the highrises on South Padre Island in the distance.  And then, back down our street...

I made it back without getting rained on.  Rufus must have missed me while I was out walking, because he sat on my lap for quite a while...

That is a contented face.  He still isn't completely sure about this powered chair, but I think he is discovering the "stretch out space" on it.  I had to disturb him when it was time for my indoor exercises.

A knock at the door.  Our friend and neighbor, Susan, was at the door, bringing us mail that had been mistakenly put in their box.  She was walking their large dog, Tessa.  While Joan and Susan visited at the door, Rufus walked over to see what was going on.  He had only seen Tessa once before (last year) and she was in her puppy stage and a bundle of energy.  This morning, Tessa was more sedate, and she and Rufus were curious about each other...

No fear or hesitation with either - they seemed perfectly comfortable with each other.  Good socialization for both of them.  And for us - always nice to see our neighbor.  Susan is the one who said to me (a couple weeks ago, while I was out walking), "It is good to see you smiling again."  I think that may have been a turning point for me... and I have been smiling a lot since then.  :-)

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Joan suggested we take in a movie this afternoon... sounds like a good idea to me.  We have gotten spoiled with some of the theaters in Phoenix, with electric reclining over-stuffed seats and plenty of room in each row.  And, being able to book your seats ahead of time on-line.  By comparison, our local theater hasn't updated their seating in the 20+ years we've been going there.  Well, this is kind of a big deal...

OMG, high-back comfortable new seats!  In three of the four theaters.  To be honest, I wanted to go see a movie, but I wasn't looking forward to the awful seats in this theater... this was a delightful surprise!  They put the new seats in a few months ago, but we were in Phoenix in February and March, then stayed busy with doing medical appointments to get ready for my hip surgery, and then... yeah, the aftermath of that surgery.

We saw RocketMan, the Elton John biopic.  It wasn't as good as Bohemian Rhapsody; in fact, it felt a bit self-indulgent as far as "Oh, poor Elton."  It felt like it should be a Broadway musical; not that that it a bad thing... I just wasn't expecting the multiple song and dance routines.

But, the new seats were good.  ;-)

Mail Call...

We don't get a lot of mail.  Traveling around and having mail forwarded eliminates a lot of the junk (3rd Class) mail.  Getting a new address (no, we didn't move - new central mailboxes here) last year also helped.

After a delicious lunch out, we stopped at our mailboxes on the way home.  In the words of the philosopher AOL: "You've got mail."  And, you're thinking: "How old are you that you remember AOL and that statement?"

Joan got some insurance stuff that will keep her occupied for a while.  I hit the jackpot...

It's the Sweetwater ProGear catalog!

Remember when you were a kid and the Sears Christmas Toy Catalog showed up in your mailbox?  Yeah, another "boy, are you old" reference.  Remember when you'd go through that catalog, and being the non-greedy kid that you were, you'd only pick one item on each page?  Yeah, we all did that.

Well, that's what this Sweetwater ProGear catalog is like - it is music gear... "Everything You Need for Studio and Stage."  Seriously, it is 602 pages of all kinds of stuff you didn't even know you needed!

It is kind of a ceremonial thing in our household: the old catalog doesn't get tossed until the new catalog arrives.  After a page-by-page review, this new catalog goes into my "reading room."

Sweetwater is an impressive music store in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  We went there two years ago for their GearFest event... they have vendors for most of the gear manufacturers on site showing the newest and the best of their wares.  The place is huge (their shipping department looks like something from Amazon), and they have big white tents set up around their campus to house the vendors and gear during that event.  It is like a combination musician convention, trade show, and concert venue.

Considering the cost of printing and postage, it is impressive that Sweetwater can justify this expansive catalog.  That's all I have time to write about now - I have to go check out the new stuff in the catalog!

:-)

I want to ride my bicycle...

... I want to ride my bike.  If you said, "Queen, 1978," you get 50 bonus points.

This morning, I went to the exercise room here at our resort.  Well, there are now two exercise rooms (one used to be the computer room)... as you might surmise, it has been a while since I visited the exercise room.  One has weight-lifting equipment, the other has bicycle type things, treadmills, and other assorted devices that I've never seen before.

No, I was not going there to exercise.  I would like to try one of our bikes, but I thought it might be a good idea to try one that doesn't move first.  The two bicycle-ish devices are more like a recumbent kinda thing.  I pulled something climbing on one.  Not "pulled" in the way that I pulled (or popped) a muscle before... just achy.  I lifted my feet into the stirrups and pedaled... yep, my legs go round and round.

Now that I know I can handle the pedaling, it is a matter of deciding which bike will work best for me at this time.  No way will I be doing the fat tire e-bike - it is too tall for my current condition.  I have an old folder that is rusting away: 20" tires and the seat isn't too tall.  I tried it on, and I can kinda touch the ground while sitting on the seat.  I will have to air up the tires and see if the chain will move.  One other option is Joan's beach cruiser; it's a girl's bike, so the step-through would be easiest.

Joan had gone to the store, and our jumper battery with the compressor (to air up the tires) is with her in the car.  Instead of messing further with the bike, I did my second walk for the day and my second set of exercises when I got home.  That's enough activity for now.

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When Joan got back from the store, I got the compressor out of the car and pumped up the tires on the bike.  In the heat and humidity.  (90º and 72% humidity)  I brought some lube out and loosened up the chain, and worked it into the gears.  The bike has been sitting outside since we got home from Phoenix... I considered putting it out on the street with a "free" sign on it, since it isn't getting used.  In my current situation, it should work for me.

I folded my cane and strapped it on the rack over the rear fender.  Took a deep breath and shoved off... the bike rolls, and I have no pain pedaling it.  I was almost giddy - this adds one more option for getting around for me.  I rode it to the end of our street... just a bit further than I am going on my current walks.  (Speaking of which, I am up to about a mile and a quarter with my 3 walks for the day.)  I am calling this endeavor a success.

My furry boy started my morning off nice: he gave me a head-butt while I was still in bed and laid down on my chest.  He must think I'm back to normal.  Later today, he was on his favorite spot on the back of the couch...

Look at those crossed front legs - the boy is such a poser.  Until he decides "No more photos!"...

Yeah, I'm kidding.  He's fine with being photographed.  That was just a big ol' yawn.  Pretty rare that this boy is anything but sweet.  I think he gets that from me.

;-)

Rufus...

I talked about Rufus in yesterday's post, and how he is getting back into a more normal routine with me.  Oh, I think he still likes his Momma best (for now), but he is back to rubbing my legs and laying by me.

We have a little "feeding routine": there has to be some leg rubbing before I put the food down.  This is a longtime tradition, with all the cats before Rufus.  Think of it as: I am feeding you, so you should show some appreciation.  Ruf is generally in leg-rubbing mode when he sees his food being prepared.

Steph and I visited about this last night... yeah, the whole family is cat-mushy.  And, Dan is a part of it, too.

Seriously, how could you not get all mushy with this face...

:-)

A moment...

Something special happened this evening: Rufus hopped up on the couch and gave me a head-butt.  That may not seem like a big deal, but he has always enthusiastically head-butted me since the day we got him; it has been "our thing"... until the surgery.

This boy is intuitive; he knows when things aren't right, and he has been very gentle around me since I came home from the hospital.  He has gotten much closer with Joan during this time.  Yeah, she gets those kitty hugs, and he has been sitting by her.  She fed him when I couldn't.  She has been getting the leg rubs.  And this big furry boy gives good leg rubs.

It was finally my turn again.  Another sign that things are getting closer to "normal."

:-)

Movin' on...

Today was my last in-home physical therapy session.  It has been the same two guys (one or the other) each time.  I have developed a good relationship with both of them, and feel that I can ask them anything or express any concerns I have.  These guys are great - I truly can't say enough good about what they have done for getting me going again.

I have had some good improvement since that set-back (after giving that muscle time to heal): I can do the 20 reps on all the exercises, and continue to extend my walk a bit each day.  I have been cleared to walk on the beach (with the cane) or go in the pool.  There was some discussion about using our hot tub, and I think I need to strengthen up the hip a bit more before taking that on.  If I have a bike that is easy to get on and off (a pedal bike, not a motorcycle or a scooter), I have enough rotation with that leg to give that a try.  It won't be with our fat tire e-bikes - they are a bit too tall for me at this point.

With the last of the PT done, Joan asked if I wanted to go out for lunch to celebrate... "Yes, I do.  And, I'll drive."  Yes, walking is still with a cane.  For now.  But, I'm ready to be "normal"... or as close to normal as I can do.  ;-)

It's a little bit funny...

If you said, "The first line from the Elton John song: Your Song, 1971," you get 100 bonus points.

With the movie RocketMan out, Mark thought we should learn an Elton John song.  Your Song is one of my favorites.  Mark recorded piano and strings tracks, then sent them to me alone with a vocal cue track (for the timing).  I recorded a vocal track last night.  It went faster than I thought, so I decided to add bass, drums, and acoustic guitar tracks.  I was feeling pretty good about the results, did some trimming and mixing, then turned off the Spire so I could send those tracks back to Mark.

Well, that's never happened before... the Spire app told me: "Some of your tracks have been lost."

Lost?  Do I need to go looking for them?  Mark's original tracks were there, along with the vocal track I did.  The rest were gone.  The trimming and mixing were gone.  Yep, that's a little bit funny.  It was getting late, so I called it a night.

This morning, after getting my exercises and walk in, I went to my music room and re-did the tracks.  Some trimming, a bit of mixing... and I held my breath to see if everything stayed.

Yep.  Hopefully, that is a one-off thing.  Although, the Spire Studio is smart enough to let me know that some tracks were lost.  Still no idea why.

Here's the finished project...

https://soundcloud.com/captainjimb/your-song-v2

Now I can take on my day.  ;-)