There Goes The Neighborhood

The critter guys worked hard, until about 5:45pm. When I finally went outside to inspect some of the work done I looked at my neighbor’s yard and was stunned — she had the tree guy out and they cleaned her yard up similarly to the way they did mine! Our yards look virtually nekkid.

Today’s Daily Challenge
Give your hands a one-minute massage.

Given the demands we place on our hands, it’s not surprising that stress and muscle aches and pains accumulate in them. Among the benefits of a hand massage are improved blood circulation, muscle relaxation, and range of motion. And giving yourself a hand massage is a great way to relax and de-stress.

Okay, massage done.

No More Vermin?
I guess that I can never be certain that my house is vermin-free, I’ll only be able to prove that they still reside in the attic if I hear noises again. Of course my biggest fear now is that since their entrances/exits have been secured that they will find some of the access paths into the house. Of course I’ve removed all traces of food from the kitchen in order to limit this possibility. The critter removal person will be back on Saturday to see if any of the traps he set have been tripped.

The work, expensive as it was, looks really good. Next up on the agenda is getting someone out to paint the soffit and ironwork, and then getting a plumber out to work on the sinks.

And then I can start thinking about that really expensive plumbing repair.

It’s The End Of The Toll As We Know It
This morning I tossed in the last 50 cents that I shall ever have to toss into the GA400 toll both. And it felt great!

By the time I thought about taking a photo of this blessed event it was my turn, so I was completely unprepared.

C’mon, Apple
Apple software has been baffling me of late.

First off is their spellchecking, or lack thereof. I’ve been typing “soffit” as “soffet” and for some reason Apple’s spellchecker is unable to provide me with the correct spelling. C’mon, I was only one vowel off!

Then there is their web browser Safari. Recently I have been either getting “Safari cannot find the server” message or getting web pages rendered only in text like this is 1995 or something.

Are these serious issues? No, but I hold Apple’s software up to higher standards.

Looks As If I’m Headed To The West Side Tonight
I possess a ticket for tonight’s Lucero concert at Terminal West. I’ll probably wait out a lot of the traffic tonight and head over to the west side shortly before the concert starts.

Looks As If I’m Headed To BetsyFest Tomorrow Night
I possess a ticket for tomorrow night’s Johnny Marr concert at The Loft. However, when I purchased that ticket I didn’t realize that it would take place on the same evening as the annual BetsyFest celebration.

I’ll probably head to BetsyFest for a while and, if I feel like doing something else I’ll think about heading up to the Star Bar in Little Five Points for the Gringo Star concert.

Today’s Personal Project
Go to the Lucero show and have a good time.

Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – pretty good, feeling as if I should start watching my pennies a bit more
Current Music – silence at the moment
Website Of The Day – The current exhibit at Atlanta’s Bremen Jewsh History Museum is called Return To Rich’s. While I remember Rich’s department stores I didn’t live in Atlanta when one existed downtown.
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – nothing
Morning Weigh-In – 212.5 pounds (November 22)

Monthly
Foot Mileage – ~13.0 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Gym Visits – 0 (0 cardio)

Days Of Bed-Making – 0

Vegetarian Meals – on hold until December
Carnivorous Meals – on hold until December

Marta Rides To Work – 5
Bike Rides To Work – 0

November Goals
– clean my basement to the point where I could have people over
– hire a plumber, an animal ridder, and a tree person to work on the ITP Estate
– dissolve Sharpened Stone, LLC
– follow up on some critical life details
– walk no fewer than 75 miles

2013 Goals: Measurable
– Get my weight down to 190 pounds so that I can wear a 36″ waist pants comfortably
– Completely read ten books, audio books permissible
– Dissolve Sharpened Stone
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Completely run at least one 10k
– Fix all (or at least most) of the things which are wrong with the ITP Estate

2013 Goals: Unmeasurable
– Simplify, simplify, simplify
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– Do not create a solution for something which is not a problem
– Eat smaller portions
– Start, and continue, to make my own bread using my bread machine as well as using the technique outlined in Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking
– Read and discard magazines during the month in which they arrive (even digitally)
– Take two real vacations, perhaps one abroad
– Take a more proactive approach to meeting women (read “stop being such a pussy”)

Books I’ve Read/Heard In 2013

1. Pages 1.7 for iPad (Timestompers Guide) — by Sean Wells
2. 60 Mountain Lion Tips — by David Sparks and Brett Terpstra
3. The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business — by Charles Duhigg
4. The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy — by Douglas Adams
5. Amazing Things Will Happen: A Real-World Guide on Achieving Success and Happiness — by CC Chapman
6. So Good They Can’t Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love — by Cal Newport
7. Born Standing Up: A Comic’s Life — by Steve Martin
8. Who Am I: A Memoir — by Pete Townshend
9. Still Foolin’ ‘Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys? — by Billy Crystal
10. Unstuff Your Life!: Kick the Clutter Habit and Completely Organize Your Life for Good — Andrew J. Mellen

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]