Little Ruf Riding Hood...

 

OK, he isn't that little... and it wasn't a hood.  Joan likes to wrap him up in a blanket.  Being a good boy, he puts up with it (even though Joan says, "He likes it.").  I don't think so...

At the car wash, yeah...

 

If you said, "Rose Royce, 1976," you get 100 bonus points.  If you said, "Is Jim washing the Equinox?" you are, once again, right on, but no bonus points.

We bought some Rain-X car wash liquid - it is supposed to "dry without wiping down and no spots."  They lied.  It didn't just spot, it water-spotted worse than when I've used baby shampoo to clean our vehicles.  Instead of using a long-handled miracle cloth type scrubber and a rinse, it was a long-handled scrubber, rinse, then rinse some more, then wipe it down with a miracle cloth, then wipe it down again.

I was thinking I'd roll the scoots out and wash them, too, but after doing the Equinox, I was a hot mess.  Not the sexy kind.  Joan brought me out some ice water as I was finishing the car (I'm going to call this crossover SUV "a car") - just what I needed.

I abided by our policy of "one task per day."  I'll get to the scoots another day.  ;-)

It's National Cat Day...

 

... in the United States.  A day to give special attention to the feline in the family.  Or, as we call it in our household: everyday. 

Rufus this morning...

"It's your special day, Ruf!"  As you can see from his expression, he is less than impressed.  But... he is such a good boy!

:-)

A few minutes later (after a morning treat), he's very excited...

Vote to ride, ride to vote...

 

We voted today...

 An off-year election, so no need to choose between the two least competent candidates.  Today is part of our "early voting," and it was mostly about state constitutional amendments that would allow the state or local government to get more of your money... for your own good; three school district proposals to, likewise, get more of your tax dollars.

Suffice it to say, the polling office was not crowded... we were the only ones in there.

But, the main goal of the day was to get some scooter time in.  I checked tires and oil before heading out...

No 360 video today, just some riding around.  We stopped for lunch at Mahi Nic's...

Dining al fresco... that's fancy talk for: eating outside.  Joan likes their fish tacos, and I can get a decent burger anywhere.

Windy as we were riding across the causeway, but an otherwise lovely day: 79º, sunny, and low humidity.  That last one is rare here, so you have to get out and enjoy it when it happens.

Crap in a box...

 

No, this isn't about Rufus's private potty.  At my recent doctor appointment, he asked me when I had my last colonoscopy... "I've never had one."

"Never?"

"Pretty sure I would remember."

He suggested that he have a Cologuard kit sent to our house... "You mean the 'crap in a box' thing like on the TV commercials?"  I figure he and I are close enough that I can speak frankly.

Yep, that's pretty much what it is.  Well, you don't crap right in the box - you get a box with a container that you crap in, pour some magic elixir over the crap, then put the container back in the box, and send it back to Cologuard.

Being the person at Cologuard who has to open all those boxes sounds like a shitty job to me.  Someone had to say it.  Well, those more refined than I would probably think it but not say it.

Timing is important.  If this is TOO MUCH INFORMATION, feel free to skip to the next blog post.  You have to crap in the box, then get it to a UPS outlet so they can get your crap in a timely manner.  It (the box for crapping in) arrived late Friday.  I figured it would not be good to crap in it and wait until the following week to get it sent.  So, today is my official "Crap in the Box" day.  Apparently, Cologuard is my new best friend... I received something from them in the mail today... a reminder to crap in the box and get it sent back.  Then, this morning, I got an automated call from them... after confirming my birth date (maybe they are going to send me a card?), the automated voice said, "Did you crap in the box and send it in, yet?"... "Do you intend to crap in the box and get it sent in soon?"... "Would you like to talk with one of our representatives about crapping in a box?"

Frankly, I think they're getting a little personal.  I tend to be competitive, so I want it to be a good crap sample.  Monday, things were a little loose - hey, I warned you about TMI.  I didn't crap at all yesterday.  Today may be the day.  It isn't often that I hope I have a crappy day.

As you get older and deal with people in the medical field, any hope of decorum goes out the window.

For some reason, this box situation reminds me of the SNL skit with Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg, "Dick in a Box."  I may write a song. 

And for the record, I think this crap box they sent me may be defective: the box on the TV commercial has legs and it talks.  This box I received does neither. 

No photos... you're welcome.  No shit.

 

Everyone knows it's Windy...

 

If you said, "The Association, 1967," you get 30 bonus points.  If you said, "The typical weather condition in the Tropical Tip," you got that right, but no bonus points.

Yes, it's another windy day here.  I really appreciate the pedal assist on my e-bike when riding on a windy day: the effort into the gusty wind (21 gusting to 30 right now) is about the same as riding with the wind.  It makes for a consistent effort.

One of us, and I won't mention his name but it's Rufus, doesn't like the wind.  He especially doesn't like the wind blowing on his hind end.  And walking into the wind, he gets that dramatic "Nanook of the North" look on his face.  I made him stay outside long enough to get him off the landing at the front door and do a once around the house...

 

That is his "I'm not happy about this" face.  You can see where the fur on his side and neck is getting moved around in the wind.  But, the boy needs to get his exercise.  Me, too.

Riding along in my automobile...

 

If you said, "From the song No Particular Place to Go by Chuck Berry, 1957," you get 75 bonus points.  We took the Equinox to Harlingen today, under the guise of needing to run a few errands.  Mostly, I wanted to play with the various "safety features" of the Equinox.  I think we may have learned more than my allotted "one item per day."

The Equinox is comfortable and well-mannered on the highway.  The Lane Keep Assist does what it is supposed to do, in a subtle manner.  The Blind Spot Alerts works.  And, we messed with (um, learned) the navigation and audio options.  In all, a successful outing... Rufus got stocked up on food that Chewy's was out of; we shopped at a bigger H.E.B. than what we have in town; first "lunch in the car," and yes I was very careful.  We got to experience the "stop and start" that shuts the engine off when waiting at a red light.  No, you can't turn that "feature" off.  The speed limit sign reader works.  Cruise control actually lists the speed where I set it, so if I "boost it by a couple miles per hour," it is right there on the dash for all to see.

The phone features all seem to work well... but, when I get out of the car, it seems that it turns the ringer down on my phone.  Yes, I looked it up - I'm not the only one.  

The cruise control buttons on the steering wheel have one button that looks like a car about to have an accident (the back end of a car/a star/your car)... I didn't want to push it to find out what it does.

 

Seems that it is Adaptive Cruise Control, where you set the gap you want between you and the car in front of you, and the car speeds up or slows down to maintain that gap.  How did I live without all this stuff?

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Nothing to do with the car - just another pretty start to the morning as I was getting my bike out...

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I forgot to mention... we got our Moderna booster shots this morning.  We generally use Walgreens for our flu shots, and did the mass vaccination events for first two Covid shots (5 to 6 hours waiting in line in the car; fortunately, it was in February, so the weather was pleasant while we waited).  This was: call 15 minutes ahead to the nearby clinic; show up; get the shot; wait a few minutes to make sure we don't spontaneously combust; then bye-bye.  Fast and easy.

This booster is a half dose of what a single shot was in February.  A couple neighbors told us they had minor short-lasting effects, and then all good.  I'll let you know how we fare.