Barry’s Daily Web News

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Most of the day was spent on work on the outside of the house. I re-attached the roof tile that had fallen off the corner of the house. I also cleaned out the bird’s nest that was under the tile near the front porch of the house. I filled the area under the tile with styrofoam, so hopefully the birds won’t return. It’s not that I mind the birds, it’s just all of the crap they leave on the porch. After that, I cleaned all of the windows and screens on the front and side (by the dining room) of the house. The windows on top of the front door reach 15 feet high, so this was quite an effort. After all that work, I took a nice long nap.

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I had fun this morning on the unicycle. I can now start from the curb on the street, so I don’t have to have a pole or wall to get started now. I use the curb both to prevent the unicycle rolling backwards, and to avoid the need to jump to get the seat to the top of the unicycle. I am also much better at turning, so when I was practicing mounting from the curb, I was able to make a circle within the width of the street to come back to my starting point to practice the mount again. Once I get more comfortable with mounting from the curb, I will try mounting from a flat surface.

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It was a hot day today, with a high of 110 degrees. Everyone enjoyed a nice evening out in the pool after dinner. Cortney bought a new pool thermometer, and the pool water was 90 degrees. It felt noticeably cooler than yesterday, so it seems like the pool has cooled off several degrees since I took the pool cover off. We should still have pleasant pool temperatures through the weekend. As usual, Sean had a great time in pool.

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Finally, the work week is over with, and nothing broke today. I’m hoping by the end of next week, this week’s disasters will be over with. The car goes into the shop on Monday to fix the door latch, and the new part for the garage door opener should arrive by Tuesday.

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I removed the cover from the pool this evening. The cover had been on since Sunday in an attempt to warm up the pool water. The pool thermometer broke, so I couldn’t tell the exact temperature, but I would guess it was in the low 90’s, which is a noticeable difference from the low 80’s that is more typical for this time of year. Sean and I had a nice swim in the pool, and we were joined by Sean’s great aunt Cindy. We certainly didn’t have to worry about Sean being too cold. Even though I brought a bunch of toys into the pool, Sean still preferred to swim under the water, either jumping off the pool side, or just lowering himself under the water at the pool stairs.

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This week just hasn’t been kind at all. The gear sprocket on the garage door broke this evening. I ordered the part to fix the garage door opener, but it won’t arrive until next week some time. This means we will have to park the cars in the driveway under the hot sun.

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After dinner Cortney arranged a birthday celebration, complete with over the hill posters and black balloons. I received some nice gifts, but I have to admit the gift I bought myself is my favorite: (click to enlarge)

I ordered the unicycle off the internet about a month ago, and I have been practicing riding it for about 3 weeks now. My goal was to be able to ride the unicycle by my birthday. I need a wall or pole to get started, but once I get going, I can easily go about a block or two, so I met my goal. If it wasn’t so hot outside, I would be spending much more time riding the unicycle.

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After a tiring day at work, Cortney stopped by work with everyone in the minivan to pick me up. We drove straight to dinner at a nearby mexican restaurant I hadn’t been to in a while. Sean must have realized it was my birthday, as he was on his best behavior during the meal. I thinked it also helped having his grandma and great aunt with us as well. Everyone had a good meal.

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For a birthday, today didn’t start so well. It started when my brother woke me up at quarter till five in the morning to wish me a happy birthday. After failing to get back to sleep, I woke up and got ready for work. I picked up some donuts at the grocery store, since it is a tradition at my job that you bring in some type of treat for your own birthday, with Krispy-Kreme donuts being the preferred item. I put the donuts in the passenger side of my car, then went to shut the door. The door latch then refused to latch. I drove the short distance home, which was only a block, holding the passenger door the entire way. Cortney had to drive me into work.

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Today is my 40th birthday. I really only feel 28, which is actually my age if you count in hexadecimal. I’ve been dreading this day for a while, so in some sense, it is a relief that it is finally behind me.

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Cortney picked me up at work today so that Cortney, Sean and I could drive to the airport to pick up Cortney’s Mom, Leslie, and Cortney’s Aunt, Cindy. They will be staying with us for a week. Sean loved the extra attention from our guests tonight.

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Today continues the trend of bad Mondays. In addition to a tough day at work, I settled down after dinner to relax while watching a baseball game, only to see the Diamondbacks blow a lead in the 8th inning to lose to the Yankees.

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Most of today was spent cleaning, with a little yardwork thrown in as well. Cortney’s mom and aunt are arriving on Tuesday to stay for a week. I put the pool cover on the pool in an attempt to warm up the pool water a bit, so Sean won’t be swimming in the next few days.

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We finally used the new dining room table. We invited some friends from just down the street, who are parents of twin girls, just younger than Sean’s age. Cortney prepared an excellent pork roast with garlic and rosemary. Everyone had a good time.

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I’m really impressed with Sean. This afternoon, when we went in the pool, I put him on the pool stairs on the second step. When he stands up on the second step, he is about chest high in the water. Sean actually lowered himself to put his whole head under the water, and then brought his head back out of the water when he ran out of breath.